They took away a lot of the Man

[Tay]

Late Friday night a campmate and I went for a walk out to the man. She hadn't been in the maze yet and wanted to see it before it got shut down for the pyro stuff. But when we got there it was already shut down and there were people hauling stuff out of the maze and loading trucks. I asked a Ranger what was going on and she said the artists were removing art from the man because they didn't want to burn it. By Saturday when I saw it, the maze was also gone.

Of course my question was, if you didn't want it to burn, then why put it on the man?

Has this happened before? It seems to take away something rather significant from the symbolism of the Man. At least that's what most of the people I talked to on the playa thought.

[Kinetic IV]

What you described is quite normal. In previous years the base has had interactive features but 24 hours or so before the burn the base is closed off and things removed so the pyrotechnicians can get in to install the various fireworks and the DPW guys can do their last minute prep work. I ran into the same issue on my first burn and wondered wtf was the deal? Now I know and if I want to visit the man and the stuff at the base I get out there before Friday night. Consider it to be a lesson learned.

And did anyone really look close at "the man" this year? In particular at some yellow neon "he" was sporting?

[ZaphodBurner]

Now I know and if I want to visit the man and the stuff at the base I get out there before Friday night. Consider it to be a lesson learned.

And did anyone really look close at "the man" this year? In particular at some yellow neon "he" was sporting?

We went out on Tuesday night to avoid the rush. The funhouse/maze was fantastic. One of our campmates, a virgin, even got to help turn the man one night.

The neon curliques reminded me of ovaries. Is that what you mean? All burns the same I suppose.

BTW, thanks for introducing yourself, Kinetic. I wasn't able to make the meet-and-greet so it was cool meeting you at the Zaphod camp.

-c

[Bambi of Finland]

I miss the bales of hay.

[Tay]

I know they close it off and stuff it with pyro (and extra wood last year) but I always assumed what was built with the man burned with the man. (including the smoke detector (according to the book "This is Burning Man.")) I mean, isn't that the point of the whole thing?

What surprised me was that this year they took away the actual structure. It was a little bit of a shock.

But then, as we all know so well, Burning Man sucks. Tell everyone you know.

[SBgalaxy]

I'm so bummed that I missed the maze!!!

I totally didn't realize that it was going to be removed so early on. (yes I was a virgin burner this year)

I am ALL ABOUT MAZES so I just freaked when i realized I had missed it.

Were there any other mazes that I've missed? I really want to build one for next year so I'm interested as to the whole MAZE thing and what's been done in the past.

[Steven bradford]

Burning something like a smoke detector, with it's radioactive material and batteries, is not very responsible. Along with many of the other things in the maze. Plus the large area of the maze means that the whole are would have to be protected from burn scars.

[jennybird]

Tay wrote "Of course my question was, if you didn't want it to burn, then why put it on the man?"

Hey Tay, in the last couple years, beneath the man has evolved into a gallery of sorts. Last year there was thousands of $ worth of scientific equipment in the observatory that had to be removed. This year the projects under there weren't created to be burnt. This will allow the artists to show them off the playa, so we'll be lucky enough to see them again. Many of the things beneath the man are interractive which follows along the line of interacting with the Man. A lot of the stuff there we wouldn't want to burn. The days of hay bales are gone.

As far as the closing of the maze on Friday, it took the artists hours to remove thier stuff, then it took DPW all night Friday to remove the outermaze so the man could be packed for the burn. They were working on it into Saturday to get everything ready.

My suggestion is if you missed it, don't be a weekender. Get to BRC by Wednesday and you'll have plenty of time to see what is beneath the man. And also look for art shows around the country where some of the Man art will be shown.

[spider_rabbit]

actually I wrote that, not JennyBird. She was logged in last, heh.

[spider_rabbit]

...and another reason the maze was destroyed was that the burn blanket beneath the man only covered what was left after they removed it.

[gawul]

i'm glad they removed it. one year the base structure burned so hot that we couldnt see the man at all in the flames

[Tay]

You guys aren't getting it at all.

I'm talking about the symbolism of what burning the man stands for - or at least what it's supposed to stand for.

AND what it is evolving into. A gallery may be nice, but there are gallerys everywhere. Maybe I'm one of those burners who remember the hay bales too fondly. Maybe it's just one more reason why the Sunday night burn is so much more important to so many burners. The event has changed over the years, but this is the first time I remember such a big change in the man before it burned.

And by the way, I'm not talking about "missing out" on the maze. I went through. It's true I did arrive on a weekend, but it was the weekend before. I was there on Saturday - a full week before the burn.

[ubu]

don't look back, tay, times are a changin. in the old days we used to burn everything and it was downright toxic and dangerous, let alone destructive to the playa. Not everything is there to burn. In fact the burn part as far as I am concerned is overemphasized.

I did enjoy the hay bale fires and I especially enjoyed the nuttiness of the fire farmers who put leaf blowers to the fires, but those days are gone. There were also pro fireworks displays in the middle of the playa and guns going off into the air. sheer edgy madness and anarchy and public acts of sex. all gone now. all gone. and worst of all, no trek to the hot springs and the mud. oh well.

This is a new burning man, huge, with more and more lights and better costumes, and more people. On sat night I rode my bike around just before the burn to take in the sheer scale of the madness, a ridiculous number of people and blinking crap. what madness! it was beautiful in a new way. unprecedented. and so many kids. it is heraclitus's river or maybe a pond that keeps growing and changing.

There may be too many rules now and too many cops, but bm is no longer underground. There were many more people than will be officially reported there. It has become a migratory instinct that afflicts a large number of people. The investment in the art paid off this year as well and we were lucky with the weather. I loved it and I don't care if I ever go back again, same as every other year that way for me. Hell, I can just walk out my door in SF here and find the same BM vibe humming all the time, and it is not restricted to those who can afford the price of the ride or a certain social class.

[Tay]

Ubu,

I totally agree with everything you said. I've actually come to embrace most of the changes - especially since a lot of the changes have allowed the continuation of Burning Man itself - and have enjoyed every year on it's own terms. And it's true, the burn itself has come to mean less. What has come to mean a lot is the experience I have there - and the friends I have there - and the friends I make every year. In fact, this year, I had a great time at the burn. I sat next to a wonderful older woman and we had the most amazing time.

I guess I'm just in a little bit of a post-playum depression. Especially since that BM vibe is not so readily available outside my door in Los Angeles (though inside the house it's rocking and rolling!)

[ubu]

A big kiss and a hug from SF! If i stretch my arms far enough out, I think I can get LA in there! Smooches to you. dahling.

[dj_john69]

I miss the bales of hay.

I agree.

~John

[fancy1]

I agree with the thread. I'm the one that Tay walked with. After a full week of running a camp, I'd finally had the opportunity to walk. Tay walked with me and we ended up at the man. I'd seen it from a distance, but not been close nor through the maze. Yes, I was dissapointed in missing that part of the man. And I do understand that some of the art was not meant to be burned. In years past, I'd not waited so long to get out and about and I was just a little surprised that they started so early (or what I thought was early) preping for the burn.
It was a great year nontheless, different perhaps, but still a great year.
Thanks again for the company, Tay.

[MikeNY]

Hey camp-mates! If I could lay a little Campbell on you;

If you're going to say yes to the adventure, you have to say yes to things like this. Perhaps if the symbol is changing the meaning of the experience for you, change the meaning you get from the symbol.