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Experience the fourth edition of Desert X, the biennial exhibition in Greater Palm Springs. This year, discover 11 meaningful artworks about society, the environment, and climate change.
Sleeping Figure by Matt Johnson
Sleeping figure is an assemblage of containers imitating the resting Buddha. These shipping containers are from the Suez Canal crisis (1956). If you look closer, you will see the name of their country of origin.
This installation is located amid the highway and railroad, the liaisons between the Port of Los Angeles and the inland United States. L.A.-based artist Matt Johnson questions trade interconnection, mundialization, and consumerism.
Location: I-10 Exit 110 Haugen-Lehmann Way to Railroad Ave
Amar A Dios En Tierra De Indios, Es Oficio Maternal by Paloma Contreras Lomas
Mexican artist Paloma Contreras Lomas addresses Mexican societal issues, focusing on the expanding power of cartels. For this artwork, she combines multiple “soft” materials: a car, multimedia tablets, crochets, and plush-armed hands to speak about violence.
According to the volunteer, the purple flowers on the trunk are a reference to cartel victims. Relatives grieving over missing and/or dead persons place purple flowers along the roads.
Location: Sunnylands Center & Gardens, 37977 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage
The Smallest Sea with the Largest Heart by Lauren Bon and Metabolic Studio
Enter in a private backyard to discover a pool fill in with 22 gallons of Salton Sea (What’s the Salton Sea? Check my latest article here). Inside, a scale blue whale heart is fully submerged. At night only (to avoid corrosion), Desert X volunteers levitate the steel sculpture, covered now by salts and minerals.
Beyond art, this massive organ is pumping and cleaning the water thanks to solar panels. After a few weeks, volunteers have been seeing encouraging results: a decrease in toxicity and clearer water. At the beginning of the exhibit, it was impossible to see the sculpture in the pool!
Why a whale? Once, Coachella Valley was an Ocean, and the blue whales have the largest animal heart.
Why a pool? Today, water shortage is a challenge for the local communities.
Why the Salton Sea? The Salton Sea is an ecological disaster impacting fauna, flora, and humans.
Environmental artist Lauren Bon created Metabolic Studio in 2005 to explore “self-sustaining and self-diversifying systems of exchange that feed emergent properties that regenerate the life web. »
Source: https://www.metabolicstudio.org/about
Location: 2249 N. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs
Immersion by Gerald Clarke
Cahuilla artist Gerald Clarke combines Native American culture – Cahuilla basketry tradition – with American culture – a gameboard. To engage with viewers, he plays a trivia game. There are questions related to Native American culture and History. He mentioned that: ” What I really want is for visitors to understand what they don’t know about indigenous people*.”
As an example of True or False:
- There were over 60 Cahuilla villages within Cahuilla territory?
- True, there were over 60 Cahuilla villages in the mountains, deserts, canyons, and uplands surrounding the Coachella Valley.
- California has the second-highest population of Native Americans in the U.S.?
- True. Alaska has the highest Native population.
Ready to play? Check Gerald’s website https://www.geraldclarkeimmersion.com/
‘*Source: Desert X website
Location: 480 W. Tramview Road, Palm Springs
No. 1225 Chainlink by Rana Begum
This maze appears as a mirage in the middle of the desert.
As you navigate the path, the yellow chain-link fencing is expanding higher.
British-Bangladeshi artist Rana Begum uses negative seen material to question different aspects of fences. Is it protection or division? Ultimately, she demonstrates that everything is moving in life like visitors, and natural elements (air, sand, and sun), within this artwork.
Location: 74184 Portola Road, Palm Desert
Namak Nazar by Hylozoic/Desires
From Hindi Namak = Salt and Nasar = palindromic gaze, this wooden pole stands in the middle of Desert Hot Springs. There are no homes surrounding it, yet seven speakers emit sounds and poetry. The voice claims that a grain of salt is the response to climate change.
This pillar of salt is a metaphor for conspiracy theory and positive magical power. Artists Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser were inspired by the Salton Sea and their travels to India. They connected these two landscapes, incorporating South Asia-inspired announce prayer speakers to this Southern California environment.
Location: Worsley Road between Pierson and Mission Lakes Boulevards, Desert Hot Springs
Originals by Tyre Nichols
Billboards as a political statement against police brutality. On January 7th, 2023, 29-year-old Tyre Nichols was pulled from his car for a routine traffic stop. Beaten by Memphis police Officers, he died three days later in the hospital.
Tyre was an amateur photographer. This installation is an homage to his work and a celebration of emerging talents.
Location: N. Gene Autry Trail, Between Via Escuela and the I-10
Liquid A Place by Torkwase Dyson
Liquid A Place is an iteration of an artwork developed in 2019 by New York-based artist Torkwase Dyson. This geometric wood structure is filled with water. Additionally, there are stairs on both sides of the structure to step up to the top. This installation represents the Human and Earth connection as bodies of water.
Location: Homme Adams Park, 72500 Thrush Road, Palm Desert
Article based on my visit in April 2023
Tips:
- Location: Coachella Valley, California
- On view from March 4th – May 7th , 2023
- Hours: Sunrise to Sunset
- Admission: Free
- More information at https://desertx.org/dx/dx-23
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