Desert X 2023
Desert X 2023 is the fourth edition of a biannual art event that takes place throughout the Coachella Valley, California. Many of the pieces include impressive installation art which visitors can climb over, under and through. In addition to the artwork itself, a great feature of this event is the journey. All of the pieces are laid out on a map in the Desert X app. Often they are located in very random, off the beaten path locations, so the map app is critical to finding your way.
The next thing you know, you are driving in the middle of seemingly nowhere, looking for the mysterious Desert X logo on a sign to let you know you are on the right track. There is a lot of walking involved, through the sandy desert (please stay on the path and don’t disturb the wildlife!). As you venture along a path, over a hill, finally, the art piece emerges from the sand like an oasis. Even if you have seen the photos online, you never know what to expect in real life. The pieces are impressive and large and you wonder how they installed the thing in the middle of the desert?
I was not able to visit all of the pieces this year. Some were only open on the weekend and I was there on a Tuesday. I was able to see six of the pieces, scattered throughout the desert from Palm Desert, to Desert Hot Springs, to Palm Springs to further out.
“Liquid A Place”, Artist: Torkwase Dyson
This one was located at one of my favorite desert spots, Homme Adams park, the trailhead for the famous ‘Cross hike’, a two mile up and back hike to a large cross on a hill. This piece was my first stop and true to Desert X form, it was an impressive black, semi-circle, with stairs over the top and a large keyhole you could walk through.
Again, the whole experience is immersive and there is a feeling you get as you walk over the stairs or walk through the middle. As the title of the piece indicates, liquid, more specifically water, is at play here. A central theme not only to desert communities and the planet but also to our own bodies, made up of so much water. Dyson is a painter but her piece examines the interaction of nature and architecture.
“No. 1225 Chainlink”, Artist Rana Begum
In artist Rana Begum’s installation piece, visitors can meander through a yellow chain link maze. This piece afforded very different views, depending on the vantage point, whether from afar or within the maze itself. There were a few other visitors and I enjoyed that, although we didn’t know each other, we all ended up discussing the piece and how it felt as we wandered through.
Artist Rana Begum is another artist blurring painting, sculpture and architecture. In this piece, rather than a fence enclosing and entrapping someone or keeping someone out, it provided easy access in and out of the maze. No one viewpoint was the same and the shifting sand and sun creates a fluid piece out of material usually meant to keep people out.
“Immersion”, Artist Gerald Clarke
This piece represented a life size board game, with a path you could walk through with QR codes to scan along the way, where you could listen to voices and sounds related to the piece.
Artist Gerald Clarke is a Cahuilla tribal member, so the piece weaves together a traditional Cahuilla basket with American board games. Like the previous pieces, visitors are invited to wander through the “game” board and one can’t help but notice the breathtaking, snow-covered mountains in the back. We all wished we could view it from directly above, but, lacking a drone, I walked up to a little dirt pile on the side and did the best I could to take a photo of the whole, circular piece.
“Searching for the Sky (While Maintaining Equilibrium)”, Artist Mario García Torres
In this piece, visitors couldn’t get too close to these strange, moving objects or risk getting hurt. (See my Instagram reel to see the items moving). At first I thought of the solar panel fields, like the enormous one out by Las Vegas. But then I had an image of a bucking bronco or a bull. The sunlight flickers and flashes as these bizarre beasts move in the desert. Some of them weren’t moving – were they broken? Had they died?
Artist García Torres is referring to cowboy culture in both Mexico and the Western United States. The desert and the beasts that cowboys ride or rope can be beautiful but also dangerous.
“Pioneer”, Artist Tschabalala Self
One of the more distinct features of this piece was how far it was off the path, away from the parking. In fact, it was tucked away in a mini-oasis. It was probably a few degrees cooler at the site than at the parking lot, or so it felt. The piece was surrounded by, really protected by, green plants.
In this piece, a headless but distinctly female figure straddles a humble horse. Artist Tschabalala Self’s art tends to focus on the Black female body. Here, in this palm oasis, does she ride the horse with pride or with pain or both?
“Sleeping Figure”, Artist Matt Johnson
This was my last stop but it was probably my favorite because it was just so absurd. Enormous freight bins stacked up to create a sleeping figure, complete with a silly face. And, just as I was leaving, a long freight train came in the background to emphasize the point.
From the Desert X website, “Conceived at the time when a Japanese-owned, Taiwanese-operated, German-managed, Panamanian-flagged and Indian- manned container behemoth found itself for six days under Egyptian jurisdiction while blocking the Suez Canal, Johnson’s figure speaks to the crumples and breaks of a supply chain economy in distress.” To really emphasize the point, the piece is located right off the 10 freeway, a huge connector from the Port of Los Angeles to the rest of the country. And all the while it sits there with a ridiculous look on its face.
Desert X 2023
Desert X is definitely not art for art’s sake. Each piece has a message – political issues, social justice issues, cultural issues, issues of race, native peoples, climate change. Personally, I like to see the piece first and try to imagine what message the artist is trying to convey, and then look at the app to see what the artist actually meant. The first edition of Desert X, back in 2017 felt much more whimsical. The show has grown up a lot since then. The 2023 edition felt very heavy and besides the bright yellow pop of the chain link in Rana Begum’s piece, overall, it was fairly monochromatic. That isn’t to say it wasn’t good. It was amazing, but quite different than years past.
Here is a short You-Tube video of what I saw:
Desert X is now on display throughout the Coachella Valley from now until May 7th 2023.
Check the app to see exhibition opening times, as different pieces vary.
Also, check out Windmill City in Palm Springs for official Desert X merchandise!
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4 More Amazing Desert X 2019 Artists
Hidden Gem Series: El Rancho Vista Estates in Palm Springs, CA
Perched Above the Desert: The Cree House by Albert Frey
Modernism Week Fall Preview in Palm Springs, CA
Walker Guest House/ Palm Springs Modernism week
More on Palm Springs Architecture & Design:
I’ve rounded up a selection of books to provide more information the unique and distinct mid-century architecture and design found in Palm Springs, CA and the surrounding Coachella Valley.
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