Whether you love it, hate it, or can't understand it, ticket registration for the infamous weeklong art festival known as Burning Man is open until January 26. Every year since 1986, the event has drawn tens of thousands to Nevada's Black Rock Desert, where participants erect the temporary community of Black Rock City.

With 10 guiding principles presiding over the festival—including radical inclusion, decommodification, and radical self-expression—it's no wonder that a visionary spirit presides over the architecture and infrastructure of Burning Man as well. After having documented the city from 1996 to 2010, photographer Philippe Glade published The Ephemeral Architecture of Burning Man in 2011. A new volume, The New Ephemeral Architecture of Burning Man, includes 200 new images that were snapped from 2011 to 2015.

From alien-like tarps to elaborate structures, the selections below are a sample of the unbelievable designs that appear and disappear like mirages in the desert each summer.

The New Ephemeral Architecture of Burning Man is available to order through Real Paper Books.

Appears In

16 Otherworldly Photos of Burning Man Architecture