Burning Man transcends traditional interpretations of what a festival is. It has its own identity, its own peculiar and astounding nuances. It represents more than just a week in the desert: It represents a way of life. A central feature of the festival is the building and burning of a temple.

The Temple in many ways is the spiritual hub of the festival. People visit and write messages for departed loved one’s on its walls and meditate in its centre. They grieve. They marry. They party. The festivals climax see’s the Temple being burnt and with it the grief that people have shared within its walls. These Burning Man photos are a documentary in pictures of a week at the Temple that share the narrative behind its construct, its being and its ultimate destruction..