Burning Man

Burning Man’s Black Rock City: A Remote Desert Becomes a Community of 50,000 for One Week

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As we were waiting in a mile long line of vehicles to enter Burning Man, a rainstorm hit. The vehicles were stopped to protect the desert floor and people got out to dance. And then we saw this incredible rainbow. It was a magical moment.

Black Rock Desert is located in the remote northwestern corner of Nevada just a few miles east of the small town of Gerlach. Normally it’s as quiet as a tomcat on a mouse hunt.

But not on the Monday before Labor Day Weekend.

Thousands of cars, trucks, vans and RV’s clog the local roads and create a traffic jam that would make Los Angeles proud. Vehicles are packed to the brim with people, tents, food, water, bikes, costumes, mutant vehicles, cameras, building material, camping gear and things that glow in the dark… everything that is necessary to create a city of 50,000 and survive for a week in the desert.

Burning Man is underway.

For a brief week, Black Rock City becomes the third largest urban area in Nevada. Only Las Vegas and Reno can claim more people. Then it’s over. People break camp, pack their vehicles, and head back to wherever they came from.

The Black Rock Desert returns to the peace and quiet.

The following photos are designed to capture a sense of what Black Rock City and the remote Black Rock Desert look like.

The evening sun bathes the surrounding mountains at Burning Man in soft light...

...And lights up the clouds.

The flat playa that serves as the home to Black Rock City is in stark contrast to the surrounding mountains. This photo features our friends Ken and Leslie Lake along with their shadows. Ken, or Scotty as he is known on the playa, is wearing his kilt.

By Friday, Nevada's third largest city is three days away from disappearing.

Mega dust storms are a common occurrence and can create close to zero visibility. The mutant ship and giant slide seem like a mirage. Photo by Don Green

In 2010, the Man included a high viewing platform. This view is looking out across the playa toward the distant mountains. The temple, built to look like a sand dune, and the 'urban' structures beyond are destined to be burned during the week.

This photo is taken from the platform looking back toward Black Rock City. The dark line on the left is porta potties. They are found throughout Black Rock City in the hundreds.

My telephoto provides a closer perspective.

A final view of 50,000 people camping out together at Burning Man.

The Mutant Vehicles of Burning Man

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The Cat Car is a wonderful example of how creative people are at Burning Man in designing mutant vehicles and how much time, money and effort goes into the project.

Driving your car around Burning Man is a definite no-no, unless of course you check in at DMV and obtain a permit. That’s the Department of Mutant Vehicles not the Department of Motor Vehicles.

My first acquaintance with mutants was Godzilla. Today we have the Xmen but I am still partial to the early Japanese horror flicks. There was something totally campy about them that is rarely matched in today’s standard fare of special effects.

I wouldn’t describe Burning Man’s mutant vehicles as campy but they are wonderfully creative. The rule is that if you are going to drive a vehicle at Burning Man it has to be decorated, i.e. transformed into something that has minimal resemblance to its original look. Check out the Cat Car above.

And here again there is a movie reference since we have Transformers, the vehicles that morph before our very eyes.

I’ve learned about Transformers from my grandson Ethan who has dozens of the toys and is an expert at changing innocent looking cars into a raging monsters, some of whom are forces for good while others are forces for evil. It is hard for me to tell the difference but Ethan is patient with me…

The mutant vehicles at Burning Man don’t actually morph but their persona does change between day and night when the already interesting dragons, bugs, elephants and ships are lit up like Christmas Trees and begin to breathe fire. It’s a transformation that is rarely if ever matched in our everyday world and I am still not sure whether it resembles a Fairy Land Fantasy or something out of Dante.

Mutant vehicles of the day take on a different persona at night. Photo by Tom Lovering.

Like my blog on the characters and costumes of Burning Man, this blog is better told with photos than words, however.

The "Never Was Haul" is another great example of the creativity, work, and expense that goes into creating mutant vehicles. This one is delivered by flat bed to Burning Man. Photo by Tom Lovering.

How often do you meet up with a polar bear in the desert? Photo by Tom Lovering.

And here we have a golden dragon. (Dragons are common at BM.) Many of the vehicles are designed to carry a number of people. The woman dancing at the left is probably responding to music coming from the vehicle, another common occurrence.

Mutant vehicles are also designed for individual use.

While not defined as mutant vehicles and not requiring permits, many thousand bicycles are also decorated.

This ship of the desert captured by Don Green reflects both the heat and dust of BM. Note the giant slide in the background.

Often mutant vehicles reflect a sense of humor.

Or, like this dragon headed vehicle, may appear a little scary. The gun-like device on top shoots out flames at night.

Tom Lovering caught this interesting vehicle as it drove by the Horse-Bone Camp.

And here we have a praying mantis...

And that’s it for the mutant vehicles. I don’t have a clue as to how many are registered in any year, but they have to be in the hundreds. In the last photo, Luna, AKA Peggy, tries to hitch a ride.

Sailor Boy and Luna of Horse-Bone Camp stop to check out a mutant vehicle masquerading as a Playa Taxi.

The Characters of Burning Man

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Scotty wins the prize for being best dressed of the Horse-Bone Tribe. From painted toe nails to early morning dress, to elaborate kilts, he can always be expected to shine... or is that shock?

If people watching were a sport, Burning Man would be Big League.

Whether you are bicycling the Playa, hanging out at Center Camp, strolling down the Esplanade or sitting in camp, you are almost guaranteed a show. Even a trip to the port-a-pot can be a walk on the wild side.

Burners take their fantasies seriously and dress appropriately. Everyone is expected to wear a costume and most people do. Some go all out. There are no rules: exotic beauty and downright ugly walk hand in hand.

There is even a costume contest. I was lucky to be considered a paparazzi after one event and had a prime location for photographing some of the more elaborately decked out characters.

This particular blog is one that is better expressed in pictures than words. Scroll down and enjoy.

This shaman here wears one of the most elaborate costumes I have seen. It is Burning Man, however. Maybe it isn't a costume.

The Mona Lisa smile of this exotic beauty captures the imagination. Photo by Don Green

Here's another smile that's hard to resist. I also enjoyed the way her hat set off her face.

In the category of hairdos, it is hard to beat Mustache Man.Do you have a feeling you have arrived at a circus?

Snake Woman also reminds me of the circus, or possibly Las Vegas.

Sometimes, less is more, assuming you've got the body to pull it off. Or is that take it off?

The women of Horse-Bone Tribe often complain there is more eye candy for the men than there is for the women. Maybe this exotic guy fits the bill. Photo by Don Green.

Then there's the Purple Man...

Or what about the purple haired lady?

Rocket Man came by to visit us in camp and played us a tune. We rewarded him with a beer.

I call this war bonnet with matching sunglasses and lip stick. Talk about a fashion statement. Photo by Don Green.

I have to throw in at least one man in a dress. This guy was also an accomplished trumpet player.

We have hundreds of photos like these. But hopefully I have at least provided a flavor of the folks we see and enjoy at Burning Man. I will conclude with a pair of bunnies from the Horse Bone Tribe.

A pair of bunnies from the Horse-Bone Tribe: Ringer and Pape. Photo by Ken Lake.

The Horse-Bone Tribe of Burning Man

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Bone and Horse share a moment at Burning Man.

Bone is jealous. We started out as the Horse Tribe of Burning Man. Bone reminded me that he was at Burning Man before the stick horsies were attached to our bikes and begin neighing around.  And he is, after all, a horse bone

So in my mind and Bone’s mind, we are now the Horse-Bone tribe. Whether other members of the tribe agree, who knows…?

Tribes are a big thing at Burning Man. Last year’s program listed over 500… and those are only the ones that bothered to register. (We never have, for example.)

They come in all sizes. The Horse-Bone Tribe ranges from 8-12 people depending on the vagaries of any given year. Other tribes have several hundred members.

The always dapper Scotty, a founding member of the Horse-Bone Tribe of Burning Man.

The tribes live in camps and come in a variety of flavors. Most are unique.

Their names provide a clue to just how unique. Here are a few: Academy of Fools, Arachnophobia, Barbie Death Village, Back to Heaven, Buddha Bunny Camp, Camp Making Bacon, Funky Town, Hippocampus, Jub Jub’s Plastic Circus, Picasso Camp, Reno Housewives, Space Cowboys, Twilight Over Atlantis, Vamp Camp, You Are Here… the list goes on and on.

Two Vamps at Vamp Camp Burning Man

Tribes tend to attract people of similar interests. The Horse-Bone Tribe is made of friends who have spent years working and playing together. Our group includes a bike shop owner, a restaurateur, a judge, a lawyer, an interior decorator, a writer, an elementary school principal, a psychologist, a hospital administrator, a teacher, a trainer/school consultant and other professionals.

HP, Ringer, Sailor Boy and Luna share a laugh at Burning Man.

In other words, we hardly resemble a group of New Age hippies seeking Nirvana in the Black Rock Desert. But we do adopt new personas; there is Scout, Luna, Outlaw, Sparkle, Sailor Boy, Boots, Horny Princess, Sparkle, Scottie and Ringer, plus other disparate characters.

Scout and Trigger pose for a photo at Burning Man.

The first thing we do upon arrival is stake out our territory, literally. We pound stakes into the ground and connect them with ropes. Burning Man has set aside vast area of the desert for tribes and individuals. We can grab as much as we need wherever we want to.

Sparkle sparkling.

Many tribes take on projects that benefit the larger community. These range from teaching Yoga to cooking pancakes, to taking on major art projects. For example, the artist Jim Bowers along with several laser technology scientists and craftsmen have joined together with the TriBe Camp to create the World’s Largest Working Clock this year. (Lasers will project a 5000-foot wide clock in the sky that will accurately reflect hours and minutes.)

Boots and Bone

As for the Horse-Bone Camp, we aren’t nearly that ambitious. So far we have been happy to provide a home base for our tribe to share camping space, dinners, laughs, and companionship on the Playa

Beth, Bone and Unicorn. (Unicorns sometimes join our herd of horses.)

Beth, our bike shop owner, did set up a bike repair shop and repair bikes for neighbors this past year, however. Bone was proud of her.

Self Portrait of Outlaw (thats me), Picasso style.

Last, but far from least, Bones horse, Eeyore, insisted on being included as a member of the Horse Bone Tribe.

Burning Man Art: A Celebration

/ Curt Mekemson / Leave a comment

Burning Man is about… well almost anything you want it to be. For some it is a deeply spiritual journey, for others it’s a seven-day party. One thing it is definitely: entertaining. I view it as an adult Disneyland filled with art; a modern day happening that challenges both the mind and body.

In this blog I provide a brief sample of art I have photographed during my seven trips to the Black Rock Desert. I am amazed at the variety of art and its quality.

Over the next several months I will feature different aspects of life at Burning Man as the date of this year’s event approaches in late August.

Bird Sculpture

Dragon head and part of its 50 foot body. At night his body and mouth shot fire into the air.

Friendly Pooch

A Daliesque photo collage captures the feel of Burning Man including the looming desert mountains.

One of the more impressive sculptures: two oil tanker trucks welded together.

Oriental temple.

Supplicant

And who could object to the sentiment. My wife Peggy, who is indeed a Mom, forms the centerpiece.

30 foot statue of nude woman.

30 foot statue of nude woman.

The Man. Standing on top of a tall tower, he will be burned at the end of the week.