July 8, 2010–On a recent morning, Kim Housken and Don Graybill (volunteer sleuths from the Historical Society of Palm Desert) squished into my Subaru and we drove off through the stately pines and meadows of Garner Valley in search of…
Oregon photographer Lin Moore explores the properties of desert rock in an exhibit at Maturango Museum in Ridgecrest through May 4th: “This Goodly Frame: Reveries Among the Origins of Order.” Moore has written about the link between poetry and photography…
Jolene Biss died suddenly on February 10th, 2011, after dropping off paintings at the Indio Date Festival, where she won three medals. Biss was a longtime member of the Desert Art Center in Palm Springs, an institution that has nurtured…
Many early artists painted the ancient lake in the desert, and recently a new parade of painters and photographers is trekking to the Sea. It was about time someone staged an exhibition celebrating this vibrant scene. The Salton Sea Museum–in…
There are so many publicists in Palm Springs that it’s hard to keep an event secret. But one well-kept secret—to locals at least—is the Palm Springs Photo Festival. (Thanks to Tom Brewster for cluing me in.) This high quality gathering…
For the second year in a row, the City of Palm Desert and organizations valley wide are hosting a monthlong tribute to early and contemporary desert artists. The event, known as Desertscapes, takes place in April at venues around the…
Captain Beefheart was a rock-n-roll wildman, too avant garde—if that’s possible–for the likes of his friend Frank Zappa. But Don Van Vliet (his real name), who died on December 17, 2010, was also a visionary painter of the desert. Van…
December 29, 2010–Lora Woodhead Steere taught for 16 years at the Idyllwild Arts Academy without ever taking a paycheck. She first came to the San Jacinto Mountains in 1890 as a toddler riding in front of her mother’s saddle. With…
December 4, 2010–In the first major magazine article to acknowledge the Smoketree School by name, the December Palm Springs Life features an article on the desert painters and this website. Included are masterpieces of the genre, courtesy of Edenhurst Gallery…
November 21, 2010–Anyone driving down Highway 111 last week saw that the long-dreaded demolition of the Carl Bray Gallery has begun. A crew first tore off the roof that the artist had painstakingly reinforced with steel beams salvaged from the…
