Every year, participants in the Burning Man Festival descend on the playa of Nevada's Black Rock Desert to form a temporary city – a self-reliant community populated by performers, artists, free spirits, and more. Last week, an estimated 68,000 people came to Burning Man 2013 from all over the world to dance, express themselves, and take in the spectacle. Gathered below are some of the sights from the festival, which lasted a week and came to its conclusion yesterday

An artist has discovered a bizarre way to create his work – by coating the feet of insects with paint who then crawl across the canvas creating intricate pieces of art. (Photo by Caters News)

“Lobsang and 66 fellow monks were imprisoned in 1959. When released 21 years later, he was one of only three survivors. While in prison his best friend, a rinpoche, died in his arms. Tensin was later discovered to be the reincarnation of that friend. Lobsang said there are so many characteristics of his old friend in the young boy”. (Photo and caption by Phil Borges)

Yu Jietao, 26-year-old wood carver, sits in his homemade wooden car along a street in Guangfeng county of Shangrao, Jiangxi province, China February 9, 2015. The car can travel as fast as 30 km (18.6 miles) per hour, local media reported. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

Yulin, a city in southern China, celebrates the summer solstice by throwing a festival that involves the slaughter and consumption of as many as 10,000 dogs. Not everyone in China supports such practices, however; 65-year-old Yang Xiaoyun, a retired teacher who runs an animal shelter in Tianjin, traveled more than 2,400 km (1,500 miles) and spent more than 7,000 yuan ($1,100 or €990) to save 100 dogs from certain death.

SpaceX, the space transportation company built from scratch by visionary billionaire Elon Musk, has the grand goal of space travel evolution through the use of re-usable rockets. Its technology – which has proven its worth several times – can reduce the costs of space transportation to its fraction, making it a more affordable way of reaching orbit or traveling beyond.

A tearful Beatle lover pleads unsuccessfully with a policeman to carry her fan button to Ringo, one of the four mop-top singers who drew squeals and shrieks from more than 30,000 spectators at two Indiana State Fair shows in Indianapolis on September 4, 1964. (Photo by Bob Daugherty/AP Photo)

An undated handout image provided by UNICEF Germany on 20 December 2016 shows the “UNICEF Photo of the Year 2016” by Iranian freelance photographer Arez Ghaderi. Ghaderi won the first prize for his picture of a girl in a makeshift tent city in the Razavi Khorasan province, Iran, it was announced at a ceremony in Berlin, Germany on 20 December 2016. (Photo by Ariz Ghaderi/EPA/UNICEF Deutschland)