Painters of the Desert Anniversary

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PAINTERS OF THE DESERT ANNIVERSARY–If Desertscapes weren’t enough excitement for one year, 2010 also marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of “Painters of the Desert”. It’s rare that a single book defines an entire genre of art, but that’s the case here. LA Times newspaperman Ed Ainsworth published this book profiling 13 desert artists in 1960 and it remains the standard text on the topic. Many of the painters were Ainsworth’s personal friends.

Ed Ainsworth’s daughter, Sheila Ainsworth Herron, will visit the Coachella Valley during the Desertscapes event in April. Sheila met many of the desert painters herself on camping trips as a child. Also, stay tuned for a possible reissue of Ainsworth’s out-of-print classic.