Don't Ask Permission
Maker Faire Bay Area 2026
September 25th-27th
A conversation with John Law, hosted by Dale Dougherty.
Co-founder of Burning Man, and a member of the Cacophony Society, Suicide Club, and the Billboard Liberation Front, John Law has been an artistic force shaping the Bay Area’s unique creative culture since the 1980s. He never asked for permission to do daring things and he always found other free spirits. He’s a neon artist who came up with the idea of using neon to light the man at Burning Man. His urban exploration of abandoned buildings in San Francisco is legendary and he has climbed the Golden Gate Bridge several times — without permission.
Schedule
John Law
John Law is an American artist, culture jammer, and neon sign technician based in San Francisco. He is best known as a co-founder of Burning Man, having helped organize the event's move from a Baker Beach solstice bonfire to the Black Rock Desert in 1990, and as one of its original founding partners. Law was an early member of the Cacophony Society and the Suicide Club, and a co-founder of the Billboard Liberation Front, a culture-jamming group known for altering billboard messaging. He has worked for decades as a commercial neon contractor and has maintained the neon signage and clock face of Oakland's Tribune Tower since 1996. He is also a longtime urban explorer and the co-author of two books, including Tales of the San Francisco Cacophony Society (2013).
