Upcoming Triplopia Article: Burning Man in the Outside World

[quiet girl]

Hey there everyone,

My name is Susan, aka Quiet Girl, and this will be my eighth year attending Burning Man.

I'm working on an article for http://www.triplopia.org , which is a poetry ezine. They invited me to write an article about Burning Man and Black Rock City, and while it took a me a couple of days to come up with a topic, I think I finally hit on a good one that both explains my positions and invites those who haven't been to go and make a creative contribution as well.

When I talk to people who have not been, I often get comments such as "Oh, it's like Woodstock" or "I heard it's a great big drug fest". Additionally, I also hear the argument that attending BM is wasted energy (even from participants) that could best be spent somewhere else.

What I would like to do with my article is address two things:

1. I want to talk to people who once held the "Woodstock/drugs" perception until they went to the event. How has it changed your opinion?

2. I am looking for artists and themed camp participants who not only make art or a camp at Burning Man, but how they, as a group, engage the outside world. David Best's temple in San Francisco and Matthew Ebert's project on the Sempra Coal Plant are two examples...what about you and your camp/project?

Unfortunately, I'll only be on site from Thursday - Monday, but if you'd like to talk to me on the playa, you might be able to find me at Hysteria & 3PM or else at Gestalt and 5:30. Saturday morning I'll probably be helping the pyrotechs put in the fireworks (I was with DPW for 5 years and still help out every now and then...may go back next year, not sure yet). Maybe we can plan on a meeting at your camp or art project.

Otherwise, if you'd like to make a comment here, or else email me with your story at: quietgirl@eightyfeettall.com , I'd love your help and would be eternally grateful!

Thanks in advance, everyone!!!

-Susan aka QG

PS: For the record, I don't care if people want spend their entire week at Black Rock doing drugs or get wasted as long as they're not running people down on the playa...for some, Black Rock is the only place they let their hair down. However, I'm focusing my writing on items beyond the "party" aspect.

[LeChatNoir]

Quiet Girl...

How did your project turn out?