photo by Stewart Harvey
Moze has a great write up on the Burning Man blog, “The Evolution of Man”, about the history of the Burning Man sculpture, starting from when it was on the ground and on through its myriad of bases over the years.
Each year the YOUNG MAN became more and more popular in spite of himself and around him developed a scene, a happening, a gathering, a CATHARSIS if you will. He was a fire burning, burning bright, growing each year in stature and reputation
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Love it. Too bad he forgot to mention that it went from costing nothing… like on that picture:
http://dustandillusions.com/wp-content/themes/modularity-lite/images/slideshow/image5.jpg
to costing $300,000 in 2007.
It’d be great to have people build the Man from their own wood, and take the whole week until Saturday/Sunday, whenever something is ready, and have people pull it up again… I think it’d be a real community builder, as opposed to the cold aspect of raising it with the crane:
http://dustandillusions.com/wp-content/themes/modularity-lite/images/slideshow/image18.jpg
Actually forgot to link the $300,000 figure so you can verify that.
And still that number doesn’t take into account the real cost of the Man, with heavy equipment, and other costs?
Yeah, but it’s not 1986 anymore. It’s kind of unrealistic from a liability standpoint to think that any yahoo just walking out of the playa with his own wood and own ideas on how to build the man would be a good idea at a massive festival that has a ticket price of hundreds of dollars.
But that’s also not stopping anyone from doing their own 1986 project. Put these flash mobs to good use. Go twitter that everyone should grab their tools, some wood or furniture parts, and meet down by Ocean Beach tonight. See how many people show up ready to Burn.
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