Like or dislike 2006 Temple?

[Teo del Fuego]

Does anyone have any opinion on the 2006 Temple design?

[Dork]

I loved it. My initial impulse was probably like a lot of other people who wondered why it was so small. Up close it was quite beautiful. If it hadn't been "the temple" nobody would have thought it was too small. This is why I hate repeats. The temple sucked because it was smaller than last year. Thunderdome sucked because they didn't do enough matches. The flowers sucked because they didn't roam as much as last year. The base of the man sucked because it was too square compared to last year. I don't frequent sound camps but I'm sure the same happened there. People being disappointed because something came back and was slightly less impressive than the previous year. If it had been the first year of the temple, or the man, or the flowers, or any of the others they would be cheered for their audacity.

Burning Man is supposed to be about a singular experience. You see it, love it, then it's gone forever to make room for something else. Yet we keep trying to recreate everything only slightly bigger. I say burn it all and try something new next year.

[diane o'thirst]

We are doing something different next year...

I thought the Temple was beautiful, it was low-lying so it became a lot more approachable. It traded awesomeness for personality. I LOVED how it dovetailed with the Belgian Waffle, like it was framing it. It reminded me of Angkor Wat.

[Teo del Fuego]

very interesting observations, both of you. And very positive too.

I think it would be impossible for the Temple and Man each year to be bigger and better than the previous year and still have enough room on the playa to contain them. I am a little concerned, however, with the artist's sketch for the 2007 Man base. Looks like a big tarp to me. But it is a singular experience and maybe it will be awesome in the way we interact with it.

[Kinetic IV]

Not to kill the feel good vibe but this was the first year I didn't visit the temple. In fact I thought the Cathedral was the temple until I was told differently.

Compared to temples of years past and with the Uchronians and the Cathedral close by it simply became just another object on the playa...and it didn't draw me in. Perhaps if it had been a bit larger in scale it would have helped my perception.

But that being said I'm glad you built it and that others enjoyed it.

[Dork]

I am a little concerned, however, with the artist's sketch for the 2007 Man base. Looks like a big tarp to me.

I'm with you on that one. Unless they're purposely trying to make it unimpressive (which wouldn't bother me) I doubt the final design will look like that.

I also thought the cathedral was the temple at first, just because I saw it first.

[ibdave]

I loved it. My initial impulse was probably like a lot of other people who wondered why it was so small. Up close it was quite beautiful. If it hadn't been "the temple" nobody would have thought it was too small. This is why I hate repeats. The temple sucked because it was smaller than last year. Thunderdome sucked because they didn't do enough matches. The flowers sucked because they didn't roam as much as last year. The base of the man sucked because it was too square compared to last year. I don't frequent sound camps but I'm sure the same happened there. People being disappointed because something came back and was slightly less impressive than the previous year. If it had been the first year of the temple, or the man, or the flowers, or any of the others they would be cheered for their audacity.

Burning Man is supposed to be about a singular experience. You see it, love it, then it's gone forever to make room for something else. Yet we keep trying to recreate everything only slightly bigger. I say burn it all and try something new next year.

I'd like to Second the fine words from above..

From the Moment I steped into the Temple this year I knew it was right for me. Yea from a distance the appeal was not of years past, but man the power was the same.... Good Job to the TEMPLE BUILDERS...

[diane o'thirst]

I took a Temple guardian shift after the Man burned, Saturday night/Sunday morning. Late in my (eventful) shift, we had the beginnings of a storm come in from the west.

The Temple did an interesting thing. When I wasn't circulating and warning people not to get downwind of the structures, I heard the wooden rod-combs at the tops of the spires knocking together in the wind's wake. It sounded like applause, or maybe a sound similar to when the masses of Kodamas rattled their necks deep in the forest in <i>Princess Mononoke</i>. Previous Temples, in the wind, would just have swinging chandaliers. This Temple was very ALIVE.

Can't wait for next year

[Kinetic IV]

Going off topic a bit I hope the Cathedral makes a re-appearance next year. I danced my ass off in there.

As for the temple anything coming after the David Best monstrosities is going to have a hard act to follow no matter who builds it. I was thinking about that before the event....damn it would suck to have to follow up after something like that. But from the sounds of it the current team did a good job at it.

[Eric]

The Temple structure was indeed nice up close, but I was underwhelmed by it. I thought the Catherdral & the Waffle were much better, and personally I got a better vibe from both of them.

The Waffle was just awe-inspiring, and the Cathedral just had.... presense. It felt much more spiritual (at least during the day) then the Temple does to me. I think it was the airy openess and the way the playa & sky were so connected to it and by it.

I love the fact that the Temple Crew is doing something different from the Best stuff, but the fact that the Temple is the "Second Burn" means it needs to inspire at a distance as well as up close. If you can't see it from a distance it just becomes another piece of great transient playa art you have to search out, but not one that necessarily deserves automatic funding.

[Tiahaar]

The temples are my favorite special place. Only last year and this year was I able to stay to see their conclusion. When most of the crowd this year moved over up close to Uchronia I stayed by the embers of the temple fire with a very nice quiet group of people and soaked up the warmth. Uchronia going up was very impressive even from that distance be assured! Meanwhile the temple had a visitor...this one little whirlwind started on one side and sucked up sparks from one of the base squares' fires then skipped across to another for awhile, then another, and another till it had traversed clear across the temple area. We we all watching going OOOO!!

[Jordan 10-E]

Frankly, I think this is a dumb question.

For one I think it is offensive to those that put in countless hours of work to create the installation. I give them props. I personally know what kind of work goes into these structures.

Second, bigger is NOT always better. If the the size is the only thing that floats your boat then what can I say?

I was going to write a bunch of responses, but really it just comes down to me thinking this question is rude and misguided.

Maybe letting go of suspect expectations and opening one's self up to new ways of seeing something that is familiar will relieve you of future disappointment. Just a thought.

I thought the temple was awesome. Different than previous years, but still a great work.

[Eric]

Frankly, I think this is a dumb question.

For one I think it is offensive to those that put in countless hours of work to create the installation.

Every painting, every photograph, every building, every sculpture, every can of beans and diamond necklace, every computer mouse and PVC pipe and chair and car ever made was designed and created by someone, often by someone who put countless hours into it.

Everything ever made in the real world is open to people's opinions- personally I know people who think the Mona Lisa is over-rated and would like to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa fall. The Eiffel tower was hated by many when it was built, the Twin Towers loathed by a great many who now miss them, the Impressionists weren't initially allowed to show their pieces at the Paris Salon and "the Rite of Spring" literally caused rioting in the theater when it premiered.

You seem to be saying that just by being created on (or for) the Playa elevates a piece away from people being allowed to have an opinion about it- that just because it's there we have to like it.

I disagree. I don't leave my brain at home, and I see many things out there that take tons of work that I don't like, and I've seen things out there that were tossed together in a creative frenzy that have been amazing (and the reverse as well).

To declare a piece beyond comment just because someone put in sweat equity in the desert takes away any real meaning the piece has to offer, and makes it a static and empty symbol instead of a living breathing piece of art.

[Teo del Fuego]

Jordan,

Thanks for labeling my question "dumb" without having taken the time to read it or the following responses. Thats the Burning Man spirit! (Well, E-playa superior than thou spirit.) Notice, I intentionally kept the question neutral. I neither praised nor criticized the Temple. My next post was to praise the two authors whose viewpoints were in favor of the design.

Was it really a dumb question? I don't think so. I was not a great fan of the Temple, but after reading other people's perspectives, I see that what may be underwhelming to some, could be the most impressive part for others. I started to think that perhaps its smaller scale could have made it more special if I had approached it with a different attitude. (There is no doubt that its design was beautiful and dovetailed with the Art Deco-inspired overall theme. ) My only regret is that I cannot go back in time and encounter the Temple with this new perspective I gained from others. I have nothing but high respect for people who design and build the special structures we all share. It was not my purpose to condemn or praise but to see if I was alone in my impression.

My other comments were an acknowledgement that an ever increasing scale of projects is not sustainable over time.

As for the proposed Man base, I'm not equivocal. The preliminary design, and I know it only that, is uninspiring to me. But, because of the other insights, I'll keep an open mind and try to approach it next year with my old notions tempered by a different sensibility.

Look, I don't care that someone called my question dumb and surely that could be considered getting off lightly by E-playa standards. I really just dont get why the e-playa HAS to be so critical and uncivil.

[Gary Curran]

I look forward each year to seeing how the concept of a temple is interpreted by its creators. For me, irrespective of size or physical adornment, the temple is embellished by the wealth of sentiment and emotion that is projected onto it by the citizens of the city. They draw you in , stirring your own thoughts , drawing out complex emotions from within yourself, and then sitting there contemplating your own projections you become aware of the nuances and peculiarities of this powerful architectural canvas. A weeklong expreience meriting reurn visits. I loved it

[BAS]

This was my first year, so I can't really compare it to past temples, but I liked the temple this year.

B.

[Bambi of Finland]

My initial response was that I completely overlooked it, and asked if that big wooden wave structure was the temple. When I found the temple on my own. I was just as emotionally affected as in years past. The size never mattered in terms of experience. I spent more time at the temple leaving my own and reading the dedications and testimonials etc.,and was more affected by its meaning than wanting to compare it to anything past.
The Waffle was a nice place to visit. I was there twice, for a few minutes each visit. I wished it meant more to me. It just did not.

[Lorgasm]

I have nothing negative to say about the Temple. Nor do I have anything negative to say about any art piece presented at BM. If someone has something they want to present to us, it is deeply appreciated and will continue to touch me.

I have had the priviledge and the pleasure of seeing David Bests temples 3 years in a row. I do miss his work. The 2006 temple, though small still affected me greatly. I was able to send a letter to my sister, dad, and teacher (and HST). I got to watch the flames. I saw little white sparks slowly moving up to the sky like little messages towards the heavens. It was great and THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO MADE IT POSSIBLE. I also want to thank all those who were there to share that moment with me.

During the days before the burn, I got to grieve with my fellow comrades. No matter how big, small, colorful, plain...it is still a treat and a moving experience. At BM, we live, love, laugh, dance, create, and cry.

While I'm still on my soapbox, let me add this: it still pains me at times when I hear of "nonburners" talking about how BM is just a place for drugs, sex, and whatnot while turning a blind eye to the beauty of the temple. May if forever be a part of the burn!!

[Ron]

Jordan,

Thanks for labeling my question "dumb" without having taken the time to read it or the following responses. Thats the Burning Man spirit! (Well, E-playa superior than thou spirit.) .... I really just dont get why the e-playa HAS to be so critical and uncivil.

For myself I don't really think that the eplaya is that different or special from the burn itself. There's *lots* of assholish behavior on playa centered around the idea that the asshole in question knows better, is superior to, the folk around them. Wether we're talking about the sound bullies, mean folk yelling at those who pass by, bicycle thieves, rapists, folk who litter, or so on BRC really doesn't have fewer assholes than the eplaya, IMHO. It's just that the eplaya gives them all a place to demonstrate their attitude to *lots* of folk while on playa they can only piss off that small portion of the population around them at any given time.

And I like this year's temple, as well as last years, in part because they were so different from David Best's work. Having a feeling of being enclosed was missed, agreed, but the change was also good. As for the cathedral, I didn't like it. The craft was amazing, no doubt, but for the same reason I don't like the Imagination piece the cathedral didn't work for me. Copying art that exists off the playa, on the playa, doesn't quite float my boat. That, and $5, will get me a beer in some cities...:)

Ron

[AntiM]

The Temple just didn't resonate with me at all this year, but I think that's more to do with me and mine than the design. If I believed in signs and portents, I'd swear the thing was trying to drive me off with weird negative coincidences.

I felt especially bad for the mouse I saw running and hiding under the platforms. Poor mousie, all thirsty and scared and unwittingly waiting a flaming doom.

[Lorgasm]

Sweet dreams little burner mouse. No pun intended. I'm an animal lover and hate hearing of sweet innocence lost.

[Isobel]

This year was my first burn. I'd seen photos and videos of prior year temples though so I had some expectations of how the temple would be like. The size and design of this year's temple did not match my expectations at all. However, there was no disappointment, there was surprise.

In searching for the temple earlier in the week, I was very confused. I had thought the cathedral and waffle were the temple. The night prior to the man's burn, my friend and I went out to explore the playa and find some fire spinners to join. He pointed out the temple to me and I expressed a wish to check it out up close and so we went.

And what a moving experience it was. I felt so comfortable and welcome to unleash tears and grief stored inside of me for a few years now. And I was finally able to connect- with my friend, with the burners who left their offerings. I felt human once again, not like the robot I felt like I'd become.
I am so grateful that this temple existed at that given moment, for the burners there before me. I felt a lot lighter and more open after my temple experience. For once, feeling and connecting with the pain of others didn't bring me down or drain me... I felt renewed.

Okay, back to my opinion on the temple design. I think if the temple this year was enclosed, I wouldn't have felt as free to let my emotions go and I think if it were more ornate, I would have just been in awe with the structure and would not have been able to be a part of it, so to speak. I think my mind would have just kept thinking about how it was created and the emotions trapped inside me wouldnt have surfaced. So for me, the temple was perfect just as it was :-)

[Barbie]

I avoided the Temple like the plauge this year---I got the call while I was packing my playa boots.....(It was my 4th year this year 2006) from a X playa boyfriend You know the call where your buddy says are you sitting down......One of our camp mates was killed by a drunk driver while riding his friends motocylce home from Montana where he had been looking at property--he was gonna change his life move away from Cali.....This guy Dave or mouse trap (cause he use to were a mouse trap on his gentials) has been such a big part of my burning man experince every year he was the first person to invite me over to their camp my first year(Blackies Bar at 9:15 and the second to the last ring - come by and have a drink with us)---- he gave me spankings when I needed them, and when I passed out on the art car he'd bring me a blanket or tell me to get up go my tent....I miss him soooooo verrryyyy mucccchhhh... sooooooo every moring this year I woke up going I have to go to Temple and say goodbye I coulden bring myself to do go
Finally on Sunday moring I saw a Raven a real ravan I got on my bike without my googles of water or anything I rode out to Temple when I got there It was a FULL on Dust storm I mean I couldn't even see the Temple had to ask someone is the temple close they told me about 10yards ahead----I stayed while the dust storm was RAGEING about 3hours in true playa style I was served Dom Perion in a dixie cup.... THANK YOU EVERYONE I LOVE YOU ALL ... Its inportant to me to tell you because you never know when...... please don't drive drunk you never know who's friend you might run over

[pbmaniac2000]

i had likes a dislikes of the temple this year. From a distant it was not very impressive. Once you did get up to the temple though it was rather large. I did like the idea of the wooden pieces to write on. It gave you time to write your thoughts on them, then put them where you wanted. It was not a bunch of people trying to crowd around a few walls. The pieces pilled up on top of each other created their own beautiful art. So granted it was not a huge david best sculpture, but i think the atmosphere was incredible.