The loss of Larry Harvey hit us hard. We had made plans to hold a Cotatitarod volunteer appreciation party this last weekend, and it ended up being on the day Larry died. We found out midday, and it was like a gut punch. I thought I had processed it when I heard he had a massive stroke, but getting the final word still hurt. We turned last weekend into a celebration of Larry’s life, and came together at Jeremy’s place in his honor.

At 8pm on Saturday night we all raised a glass to toast our friend and Founder, and held several moments of silence. We talked about what he started and what it meant to us, and told some stories about seeing Larry or talking to him over the years. I thought I didn’t have anything to say, but ended up speaking at length about looking for the cutting edge of cultural development and finding Burning Man. I have wanted to write something to commemorate this moment, but really I haven’t the faintest idea what to say.

It all sounds like I’m making it about me, and it’s not about me. It doesn’t matter what Larry said that one time we talked, or what I think he meant. There is this impulse to share those moments, not so much to prove that we knew him, but to share with others what he shared with us. I only met him a few times, it’s not like I was a part of some inner circle. Still, to me it was important. The time he teased me about being a regional contact, and how they really need to rethink their vetting process. Or when he showed up at a Temple build day and I wanted to introduce him to the group, but he shook his head at me, and stayed invisible to most of the people there. Without the hat he could pass as one of us, and I think that was something he really enjoyed doing.

The time he threw his hat out into the crowd at a conference, and we passed it from one person to the next, and then took turns wearing it. There’s a funny picture of me in his hat, but I can’t post that. It just doesn’t feel right. It was this symbolic gesture that everyone got, he was passing the torch on to us. To the regional network. He didn’t wear the iconic stetson as much after that. It became harder to spot him in a crowd.

There was this guy I knew who burned himself in effigy, and it turned into a global movement. The Man and its evolution, its design and relationship to the playa, that was how I knew Larry. Larger than life, safe in a structure, bared to the world, and different every time. It was symbolic of his state of mind, at least that was how it seemed to me. I enjoyed imagining him coming up with the theme, and working on how the Man would stand, and what it would look like each year. I liked running into him and saying nothing, just sitting in the same space and being. I didn’t want to bother him, mostly. But also he made me shy somehow. I think I liked not knowing him well, because then I could imagine anything.

All I really meant to do is share links to the journal articles, and give you the message as it was passed to me. But here I am, blabbering on, and I apologize if it seems presumptuous. I just wanted to say something, mark the time and honor Larry in my own way. On Sunday we decorated hats. We had planned to do this in preparation for our Permanent Breakfast next weekend. It became dedicated to Larry Harvey – the man, the hat, the legend. He would have hated that. Larry never wanted it to be about him. He was good at that. I think it’s ok to make it about him today. Just for a minute. Somehow I don’t think he would mind.

You will be missed! And you are loved. We wish you a safe journey to wherever you are off to now. Please swing by and see us on the playa, we’ll have dedicated the Temple to you. Goodbye Larry Harvey. It was an honor. Until we meet again, may the dust connect us. Thank you for bringing us together. For the inspiration and all the creativity that it has wrought. Most of all thank you for not making it about you. Because that would have been weird. Instead it has been fun, and strange, and always worth the effort. We will go on, Burning Man will go on, and we will celebrate the man, and the Man, but it will not be the same. Then again, it never is.

Friends,

I have very sad news to share with all of you. Larry Harvey passed away at 8:24am PST this morning. He passed peacefully, with his family at his side.

We resolutely held out for a miracle. If there was anyone tenacious, strong-willed and stubborn enough to come back from this challenge, it was Larry. Your outpouring of love, support, and prayers was felt deeply by his family and friends as we each spent time at Larry’s bedside 24/7 these past three weeks. I truly believe Larry felt your thoughts, healing energy and prayers. I know I did. The love sent to him filled more than his room in the hospital — it overflowed onto each of us at his bedside.

Larry was never one for labels. He didn’t fit a mold; he broke it with the way he lived his life. He was 100% authentic to his core. For all of us who knew or worked with him, he was a landscape gardener, a philosopher, a visionary, a wit, a writer, an inspiration, an instigator, a mentor, and at one point a taxi driver and a bike messenger. He was always a passionate advocate for our culture and the principles that emanate from the Burning Man experience in the Black Rock Desert.

As he told one of us recently, Larry liked to create “scenes” that made people consider the world in a new way. He was extraordinarily successful at doing just that.

The Burning Man Project has lost our original Founder. He liked to joke and say “finders, flounders, founders, a little bit of all of those… at our best we are finders.” The culture has lost a great leader and inspiring mind. He adeptly interpreted the manifestation of what became a movement. I have lost a dear friend who I’ve known, loved, and worked beside for nearly 22 years. The loss of his presence in our daily lives will be felt for years, but because of the spirit of who he is, we will never truly be without him.

We have begun a meditation vigil to help guide Larry on his journey through Monday morning, and invite you to join. Please feel free to participate from wherever you are. We also encourage those in San Francisco to visit Baker Beach, the original home of Burning Man, to honor and celebrate Larry this weekend.

We will also be planning a celebration of Larry’s life in the weeks to come and will share details when we have them. If you would like to share your photos, stories, and videos, you can post them on larry.burningman.org. You can also send your thoughts to TheHat (at) burningman (dot) org which will also be shared directly with Larry’s family.

Stuart Mangrum, a dear friend of Larry’s for 25 years, has written a tribute to Larry. You can read it on the Burning Man Journal. And Larry’s brother Stewart Harvey has shared a photo essay of Larry’s life, which is also on the Burning Man Journal.

Larry would be the first to say this isn’t an ending, but the start of a new chapter, and we all have a hand in where we go from here.

With love, ❤
Marian