Burning Man 2024

I don’t mean to be so ungrateful, but I was weirdly apathetic during a significant portion of the week this time around. I’m used to arriving with a strong sense of familiarity, but I was worn out from a summer of traveling nonstop, and as much as I was happy to be there, I just didn’t really care.

This doesn’t fare too well for making art or telling a story, but maybe I’ve managed to turn it into something beautiful. How many of the most memorable movies and songs have been made about “negative” emotions? Henri Kisielewski cracked me up recently when I revamped my website: “It’s so funny looking through your images, everyone is just having a great time. Everyone is happy in Julian Walter Land!” He didn’t mean this as a jab at all, and I am very comfortable with my style of work. 

But apathy as a photographer keeps you as an outsider, which is exactly what I aim to avoid in my images. Most of the subjects in my images have been interfered with. It’s funny to me that some photographers think this ruins it, but connections between me and my subjects are what make this whole damn thing worth it to me. No shade to those who prefer the observer style, but I’d hate to never interact, it would simply feel way too impersonal. My experience comes first. I need to have fun, and need to be having the whole entire experience in order for me to tell a good story!

The dread I felt one sunrise as I made my way to the two usual photogenic deep playa parties… “Why the F am I here” As I pulled my bike up to the crowds, which are not my crowds. Wallowing in my disinterest, I made a lap around one, packed up and went to the other, did the same thing there, and left without taking a single picture. Was I so different or was it these scenes that have changed? I bounced it off of Jamen Percy, Duncan Rawlinson, and Scott London at their camp, and we had a brief chat about overcoming redundancy and honing in on what calls to us. Sure enough, during Lee Burridge’s amazing Saturday sunrise set, I was having a great time. I ran into Duncan who exclaimed to me over the booming bass: “Keep an open mind! There’s all types in this crowd! Have fun with it!” It was so simply put, but damn it was a good reminder to be grateful for the privilege I have in being there to take part in this eclectic project. 

Anyway, as much as I’m happy with all of these individual images, I’m still struggling with the cohesiveness of it together. Looking back at other years, I can tell I was more in it, and maybe this year was a bit distracted. That’s ok. I’ll make sure to have a very boring month of August next year, so I can be excited as hell making it back out to our special little city.

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