Some of my photographs are included in a show, opening today, in Santa Rosa, California. The exhibition, “Bringing Back the Fire,” is a celebration of art and community at the annual Burning Man festival. According to the show’s press release, Burning Man “turns part of Black Rock Desert in Nevada into the ‘world’s largest outdoor art gallery’ for one week each August. Much of the art shown on the site is intended to burn — but many pieces survive, to be seen again. This exhibit celebrates some of these, and the community of participants who have created them.” The show runs through March 22, 2008 at the Santa Rosa Junior College Art Gallery.

The 2008 festival, which ran from January 24 to February 3, drew some 70,000 people and featured over 200 screenings, along with an impressive line-up of tributes, award shows, and panels with industry insiders. But the big story, as always, revolved around the celebrities, the beautiful people who came to town and, for a few days, transformed the place into the epicenter of the entertainment world. I was on a different assignment in Miami and missed the first few days of the event, including award presentations for Cate Blanchett and Javier Bardem. But I was lucky enough to get a front-row seat at the Directors Panel, a session that crackled with talent, intelligence, fast wit, and wicked one-liners. This slideshow pulls together some of my favorite images from the festival.