Below is a rant I wrote immediately after coming back from the Playa in 1998. I've altered it a tad from then, but it still gives a decent representation of how I feel about Burning Man. As a capital-A Art event it is a sham. As a cultural phenomenon it is incredible. As an experience it is terribly difficult to describe, with or without photos, press clippings or mud covered props.
Many Black Rock veterans sound cult-like when they speak about it.
Others who have never been deride it for being too commercial. Pragmatism doesn't seem to ever arrive on the Playa. 1998 for me the best year I have ever had at Burning Man. I became better friends with the people I knew already, made new friends with people I met, and confused an endless bounty of strangers. The experience in the desert engenders optimism about culture and society.