On September 7, the Burning Man 2015 festival closed at Black Rock City, Nevada. Every year, thousands of artists, performers and free spirits gather to create a temporary community to enjoy radical self-expression and self-reliance. The theme of this year’s event was "Carnival of Mirrors".
Highlights of the festival – in our photo gallery.
The Burning Man Festival is an eight-day-long art event spanning from the last Monday in August to the first Monday in September.
Above: Participants climb the art installation "Got Framed" during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants climb the art installation "Got Framed" during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The organizers describe the event as an experiment in community and art, influenced by 10 main principles, including "radical inclusion" and community cooperation, "radical self-expression" and "radical self-reliance".
Above: Fireworks are launched as the Man is burned during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Fireworks are launched as the Man is burned during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Burning Man was held for the first time in 1986 on Baker Beach in San Francisco and attracted only 20 people.
Above: Attendee Nadina wears a feathered headdress during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Attendee Nadina wears a feathered headdress during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
In 1990, the festival moved to Nevada.
Above: Participants begin to gather to watch an effigy being burned during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants begin to gather to watch an effigy being burned during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The number of participants has rapidly grown since it moved to Nevada. In 2014, attendance was nearly 66,000 people. This year, 70,000 people attended the festival.
Above: Participant Lea touches the art installation "Penny the Goose" during Burning Man 2015 in Nevada.
Above: Participant Lea touches the art installation "Penny the Goose" during Burning Man 2015 in Nevada.
The event takes its name from its culmination, the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy ("the Man") that traditionally occurs on the Saturday evening of the festival.
Above: Participants watch the Man burn from an elevated view during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants watch the Man burn from an elevated view during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The festival is organized by the Burning Man Project, a non-profit organization.
Above: Participants Radiant Fire (left) and Sonya Sophia walk during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants Radiant Fire (left) and Sonya Sophia walk during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The festival covers an area of over 5.5 square miles of desert.
Above: A group of participants wear illuminated suits during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: A group of participants wear illuminated suits during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Participants of Burning Man live in trailers and have to obtain food supplies and water on their own.
Above: Rainbow Eyes, her Playa name, climbs the art installation METAHEART during a dust storm at the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Rainbow Eyes, her Playa name, climbs the art installation METAHEART during a dust storm at the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The festival features numerous installations as well as performances by artists, musicians and DJs.
Above: Participants gather to watch the flames from the art car El Popo Mechanico during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants gather to watch the flames from the art car El Popo Mechanico during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Cars of mind-blowing design are one Burning Man’s trademarks.
Above: A flaming piano is launched from a trebuchet during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: A flaming piano is launched from a trebuchet during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Participants of the festival often wear costumes of famous characters, artists, animals and things.
Above: Participants climb on an art installation during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants climb on an art installation during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The area of the festival comprises numerous camps. Participants use art-cars and bicycles to move around the territory.
Above: Deby Dai dances before sunrise during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Deby Dai dances before sunrise during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Ticket prices range from $200 to $650. Ticket sales start in February.
Above: An aerial view of Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: An aerial view of Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Over the last five years, the Burning Man Festival has sold out.
Above: Participants gather at Medusa Madness during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Participants gather at Medusa Madness during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Dust and sand raised by the desert wind is called playa. Participants of the festival are given the so-called playa names, in addition to their regular names.
Above: Kenyon Acton (right) takes a photo of Ian Bennett posing on an art installation during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Kenyon Acton (right) takes a photo of Ian Bennett posing on an art installation during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
In early-September, it was reported that Elon Musk, founder of Tesla and SpaceX, and Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, planned to build a permanent Burning Man city in Nevada.
Above: The moon rises behind the Man during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: The moon rises behind the Man during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Participants of the Burning Man are called burners. Every year, they spend $35 million in Nevada on food and accommodation during the festival.
Above: A Mutant Vehicle made up like a polar bear drives through the dust during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: A Mutant Vehicle made up like a polar bear drives through the dust during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
In 2013, for the first in Burning Man’s history, a group of Russian artists received a grant to create an installation which was called "The Cradle of Peace."
Above: Julia Kwinter dances on the Playa during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Julia Kwinter dances on the Playa during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
The main co-founder of the festival was Larry Harvey, a young artist from San Francisco. He proposed the ritual burning of an effigy of a man which later became the symbol of the event.
Above: People gather at the art installation Serpent Mother during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: People gather at the art installation Serpent Mother during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Smaller regional events inspired by the principles of the Burning Man have been held internationally. Some of them are officially endorsed by the Burning Man Project as regional branches of the festival.
Above: Light is reflected from the Temple of Promise during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Light is reflected from the Temple of Promise during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Every year, attendees volunteer to clean the territory after the festival ends.
Above: Astrid Perez (left) and Ramon Camacho lay on the Playa during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
Above: Astrid Perez (left) and Ramon Camacho lay on the Playa during the Burning Man 2015 festival in Nevada.
