Burning Man is an annual week-long event held in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, where a temporary city called Black Rock City is built by about 70,000 to 80,000 participants. It is a unique cultural festival focused on community, radical self-expression, art, and self-reliance. The event culminates in the burning of a large wooden effigy known as "the Man," which gives the festival its name
. The festival operates on ten guiding principles: radical inclusion, gifting, decommodification (no money or commercial transactions except for coffee and ice), radical self-reliance, radical self-expression, communal effort, civic responsibility, leaving no trace (environmental respect), participation, and immediacy. Participants create and share art, performances, workshops, and other activities, making the event a participatory experience rather than a conventional music festival with scheduled performers
. Burning Man originated in 1986 on a San Francisco beach as a small bonfire ritual and evolved into the large desert event starting in 1990. It is organized by the nonprofit Burning Man Project and has inspired numerous regional events worldwide
. In essence, Burning Man is a temporary city and global cultural movement where people come together to build art, share experiences, and celebrate community in a radical, cooperative, and non-commercial environment
