Impressions of a specific year at Burning Man are bound to be intensely personal. Was a certain year the best ever or much less than that? How much of what one remembers as good, and as less so, is determined by your own state of mind?
I think that, overall, by 2010 I had just reached a point where there was too much sameness about it all. My enthusiasm was muted, the gob-smacked wonder had passed. Though I would rank a couple of other years above 2010 for the quality of the art, the more I have gone back and looked at what was there, the more I see how my dim, dusty memories truly had been affected by my rather burnt out state of mind. There was some wonderful stuff in 2010 after all.
Though we did not have these numbers at the time, it turns out that the event population numbers went over 50,000 for the first time peaking at 51,454. This was an increase of more than 15% from the year before. As the population grows, the city becomes more dense and complex. There is simply far too much to see. It becomes ever more difficult to feel that one can get to even the highlights in the short week of the event.
Considering that construction and setup of art installations is often ongoing throughout much of that week, and that tear down begins before the event ends, seeing and experiencing the art is truly a challenge. Many of the most interesting pieces are out in Deep Playa, a very large expanse which can be unforgivingly hot and exposed in the mid-day, and with a surface which will be often too soft for a bike. There is art throughout the main playa surrounding The Man and there are installations in all of the plazas, and at Center Camp. When I later read on the organization website what I might have seen, I wonder whether I got to even a twentieth of what was out there.
Then there are the residential streets with theme camps, and cafes and music venues, and play areas. Creativity unending. The larger the city, the more impossible the task of seeing much at all beyond your own neighborhood and along whatever routes you choose for travel.
The 'waitress' at the Daisy Diner primps before opening for lunch
Black Rock City Welcomes you to the Friendliest Concentration Camp on the Playa, Barbie Death Camp and Wine Bistro – We put the Barbie into Bar-B-Que.
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