I chose this man to kick off my blog on the people of Burning Man partially because of the character shown in his face and partially because he is a veteran Burner who works with the Department of Public Works that builds Black Rock City.
When I first travelled out to Burning Man in 2004 the perception was that Burners were a group of modern-day hippies who travelled out into the desert, got naked, and smoked a lot of pot. I was okay with that. I like new experiences and adventures. Besides, I could go out into the desert, not get naked, and not smoke a lot of pot. What I quickly discovered, and have since advocated over and over however, is that Burning Man is much more than a hippie party in the desert; it is a hot-bed of creativity and a huge outdoor gallery of world-class art. Many of the costumes shown in this post are another aspect of that creativity.
Bright, colorful costumes have been a tradition at Burning Man since the event started. They are a way that individuals contribute to the overall atmosphere. (Photo by Don Green.)
Naturally I was curious about who my fellow Burners were. As it turns out, so was Burning Man. BMO (the Burning Man Organization) began carrying out an annual census or survey in 2002 of who participated. What I discovered, as I reviewed the results of the annual surveys, was that the everyday average Burner looked a lot like me.
Burners come in all ages and many come well-costumed. I’ve always been a bit suspicious that some of them are also aliens. I like the eyes staring out from behind. There is a good chance that Susan Sarandon tacked them up. (Photo by Don Green.)
Here are a few results from the 2014 census (the last date for which complete details are published) that I pulled out to share with you:
- 58.2% of the participants are male and 40.6% are female. (Some don’t respond.) Of these people, 64.9% had been more than once and 35.1% first-timers (virgins in Burner speak). Only 5.5% fit my category of having been to the event 11 times or more.
- People are older than you may think. 33.9% are 40 and older and 35.2% fit the category of 30-39, leaving only 30% for the under 30 crowd. My esteemed age (grin) puts me in the one percent category.
- Income-wise, the majority of Burners are well above the poverty line. 2.7% actually make over $350k a year. Over 50% make between $50k and $299k per year.
- 27% of Burners have advanced college degrees and 42.6% have bachelor degrees meaning that almost 70% of the people at Burning Man have graduated from college.
- Not too surprising, 87% of the participants are white, a fact for which BMO has come under some criticism. 84.8% of Burners come from the US and 15.1% from other countries. (And yes, I realize that leaves 0.1% hanging out there. My theory is that these people are aliens from outer space. Who would ever know?)
- The political view of Burners is somewhat left of center, especially on environmental and social issues. Only 4.8% registered as Republican. 34.6% registered Democrat and 34.3% Independent. Other parties got the rest. In the last election 72% voted. Of these, 75% voted Democratic.
- Two final results: 69.4% of Burners consider themselves heterosexual. 71.8 % do not belong to an organized religion.
So now, to put a face to these numbers, here are some photos of Burners from 2015. I owe a special thanks to my friend Don Green for many of these pictures. Don is much less shy than I am about going up and asking people if he can take their photo.
It’s not all youngsters at Burning Man. As the glasses suggest, the majority of Burners are of a more liberal persuasion. Most would go along with the old saying: Make love, not war.
Burning Man has a rule about not wearing feathers. They tend to escape onto the Playa and have to be cleaned up. That never stops Burners from wearing them. I thought they looked good on this woman. (Photo by Don Green.)
This woman has been coming to Burning Man as long as I have and never looks a day older. I want her secret.
I captured this man twirling fire. While 87% of the participants at Burning Man are white, my sense over the past several years has been that the ethnic make up of the event is changing, be it ever so gradual.
I identified with this woman as she sat alone and worked on her journal, capturing her experience at Burning Man. It could have easily been me.
This young couple stood next to me as we watched a burning piano be tossed 50 or so yards up the Playa. Glasses form an important part of Burner’s costumes. He had a large fork as a staff. Why not…
Great eyelashes. (Photo by Don Green.)
Some Burners are abnormally tall with surprisingly small feet.
And some have wings, large wings. (Photo by Don Green.)
I really liked these “wings” caught in the early morning sunlight. Is she ready to fly?
This woman had learned how. (Photo by Don Green.)
Our next door neighbors had a huge orange outside their RV. They told me they had an orange tree in Southern California that bore fruit right about Burning Man time every year. They would pick the fruit, bring it to Burning Man, and give it away. They had been doing so for several years.
The hat and unique look guaranteed that this man would make it onto my blog. He really looked like someone I would like to know.
Here is how I like police people to tell me no. This woman was a member of the Black Rock Rangers, BMO’s group of volunteers who help maintain order in Black Rock City. She was telling me I had gone about as far as I could go.
Every party needs a pirate, right. Could it possibly be… (Photo by Don Green.)
Wandering through Time and Place 