HullabalU is an all-ages event that upholds the ideals of the Burning Man Festival. It is a time when burners old and new can gather to discuss the burn season, make plans for future gatherings, and have a crazy good time with their burner family. Come celebrate with Midwest Burners and many, many others as we extend this social phenomenon into America's Heartland!
Haven't been to Burning Man? No worries! Many Midwest Burners have never been to Burning Man but are drawn to it because of the close friendships and spontaneous culture it produces. HullabalU has a very laid-back atmosphere that allows you to really get to know us. If you want to get a feel for the community ahead of time, please join our yahoo group and introduce yourself.
To become a member of Midwest Burners, register at our Membership & Event Registration site.
Midwest Burners is a Burning Man-inspired organization. As such, we strive to uphold our understanding of the 10 Principles.
- Radical Inclusion
- Anyone who desires to pursue this Association's values and purposes is welcome to participate. A person does not have to know a member of this Association or be from the Midwestern United States in order to join this Association. We do not discriminate on the basis of gender, sexual preference, race, or religion.
- Leave No Trace
- We want to leave the environment, where we gather, in the same or better condition than when we arrived.
- Radical Self-Expression
- We believe in the freedom of each individual to express him or herself as that person sees fit. Self-expression is the essence of art. Self-expression is a gift to the community and is a part of our gift culture. The giver should keep this social context in mind and respect the rights and liberties of the recipients.
- Personal Responsibility and Self Sufficiency
- Personal freedom and happiness starts with the individual. We are committed to a Do-It-Yourself mind-set. The individual is primarily responsible for creating and maintaining his or her own reality.
- Participation
- Individual and communal happiness are achieved through personal participation. Our community is only as great and enjoyable as each person makes it. Participation is the Do-It-Yourself mind-set applied to the social realm. Everyone is welcome to work and play.
- Communal Effort
- We constantly work to improve and enrich our interaction with each other. We build and maintain an environment of creative cooperation and collaboration.
- Gift Culture
- We reject any form of commerce during our events. We focus instead on gift giving, which does not require a gift in return.
- Decommodification
- We are participants rather than consumers. Thus, we bar commercial sponsorships, transactions, and advertising from our social gatherings.
- Civic Responsibility
- While we value individual freedom, we realize that it exists within the context of society. Each member is responsible for the impact of his or her actions on the Association and society in general. We strive to avoid harming each other and to operate our events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.
- Immediacy
- We seek immediate experience of ourselves, each other, society, and the cosmos. We attempt to remove barriers to this experience. The pursuit of immediate experience underlies all of our other values and objectives.
The Effigy
It's the reason for the season. Build 'em up. Burn 'em down. It's what we do.
Each year, a member of the community volunteers to gift an effigy to HullabalU*. An individual, group, or camp designs the effigy and is responsible for its construction. As HullabalU has no theme, the effigy can be and represent anything at all**.
This does not mean that the one who designs the effigy must build it alone. There will be plenty of volunteers on-site to assist with construction efforts. And the HullabalU Event Coordinators, leads, and the Midwest Burners community at large are always willing to provide input on design and construction questions when asked.
Glance through our HullabalU effigy archive below and contact the HullabalU Event Coordinators if you are interested in taking the reins.
2009
"We went with a jack-in-the-box design because it was HullabalU's first year in its new incarnation and we wanted to do something that represented the whimsical and fun nature of the event. We encouraged people of all ages to help us decorate the box and they definitely took advantage of the opportunity. It truly was a community art project." --Stormy
2010
"My basic design was a Fountain of Life. The bottom was hollow with a small figure inside and a door closing off the space. This represented loved ones lost and the pain locked inside of us. When burned, the door opens and releases the pain, returning our loved ones to the stream of life. Hovering above the fountain is the Book of Life. Attendees added names and messages to its wooden pages throughout the day to have them released by the nighttime flames." --Brad
2011
Photos by Perspectives Photography
* It might be possible for Midwest Burners to provide some compensation for effigy materials. If you require compensation, mention that in your message.
** As HullabalU is an all-ages event, the effigy design may not be pornographic. The HullabalU Event Coordinators reserve the right to refuse an effigy design that breaks any rules of the event or local, state, or federal laws.