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The Wicker Man
Believe it or not, it all
started with Julius Caesar. He got himself all caught up in a war of
choice with the Celts, and wasn't doing all that well with it. Folks
back home were asking hard questions about costs and casualties, and
the Celtic insurgency was growing stronger. What he needed was some
hair raising propaganda about threats to the homeland and all the values
that Romans held dear. And more cash. And more troops.
The Celts had a festival in which they constructed
a giant man-like effigy, filled with offerings and then set alight.
The Man represented variously "Bel" (from which we get Beltaine,
the still celebrated Rites of Spring) or perhaps "The Green Man,"
the archetype of all things wild and growing within nature. All harmless
enough and good fun if you were a Celt. A pleasant peasants' party,
if you will.
But Julius, being a clever guy, saw an opportunity.
He spread the word that those dastardly Celts
were hiding something horrible behind their pleasant little party. Human
Sacrifice! Egads! Call the Legions. To Arms, To Arms! The media of the
times ran with the story and before you can say "Weapons of Mass
Delusion" the rest was history. So it goes.
Which brings us to today. Political parallels
aside, we be burnin' The Wicker Man. Why? Because it's fun. Why else.
Because since Roman times The Wicker Man, that is The Green Man; has
represented the personification of the wiggly, wild and rambunctious
energies of the Earth, and its custodians. That would be us. Emphasis
on wiggly, wild and rambunctious.
It's what Wicker Man is all about.
 Building
the Wicker Man
 Our
design intent is as follows:
* Firstly, to build a simply stupendous effigy,
visually stunning, technically challenging; and burn it to the ground.
To do so in a way that is sustainable, reusable and as earth friendly
as possible.
* The effigy should incorporate an interior
"Temple" within itself, a place of space for contemplation
of the energies of The Burn. And of Spirit.
* The effigy should incorporate an elevated
deck, for observation and contemplation of "self" and "other."
And to provide a platform for burnable offerings.
* The effigy should be animated.
* The effigy should incorporate rather technical
pyrotechnics. The equipment developed should be reusable, evolutionary
and expandable.
* The effigy should be designed in such a way
that primary structural construction takes place prior to and during
the setup weekend. And final finishing and decoration takes place during
the Burn weekend, as a participatory art project
* Materials should be natural, local and from
the local woodlands where ever possible. Plastic and chemical coatings
are to be avoided.
* The Wicker Man must burn down into its own
footprint.
And...
We need help. Are you a thing builder or would
like to be? Handy with tools or learning? Got an edge on decoration
and finishing? Techno-nerd with a desire to design propane control systems,
electrical, pyrotechnical and ignition? Sound and light?
A lot of skills and a lot of work will go into
the Man. Just go to the discussion forum to join in.
We will start construction the second weekend
of May, that's Friday the 9th through Sunday the 11th. We will have
open camping for the weekend, and covered space too if the weather dictates.
We will be planning shared meals through Four Quarters, so again, log
in.
The following weekend is Setup Weekend, May
16-18, and we plan on our final assembly and erection of The Man. Then,
the Burn. Decoration and polish Thursday and Friday. Burn him to the
ground Saturday night.
Got an idea? Share it!
Go to Design and Construction for more.
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