How to Tie a Knot in Joshua Tree

When I invited Steed Taylor to submit a proposal for a project in Joshua Tree, I knew it would have a tribal bent and be community oriented. What I didn't know is that it would be 29 feet long, 5 feet wide and comprise of many tons of concrete.



Steed brought his idea of the Celtic Knot to me in the Fall of 2012. A large sculpture in the shape of a Celtic Knot to signify continuity and momentum. The sculpture would contain the Joshua Tree community's aspirations for its future in the form of objects contributed and then mixed into the concrete. To round out this ambitious agenda, Steed also proposed creating a series of demon bowls which would depict my anxieties for the development of the residency program as a proxy for the community's anxieties for its future development. These bowls would be buried around the perimeter of my property by community members, thus trapping the demons contained therein.

When we met to discuss the project, there were two main challenges at hand - funding and fabrication. Steed is well known for his Road Tattoos, large scale projects that involve painting tattoo designs on roads in places like Chicago, Washington DC and Hartford, CT. This was to be his first large scale concrete work however. After several discussions, Steed took on finding funding for the sculpture itself and I went looking for a concrete fabricator in the Joshua Tree area.
 

On returning from NYC on New Year's eve, I jumped into hosting the two residencies immediately at hand (David Goodman and William Lamson) and contracting the conversion of the garage to a studio. I put Steed in touch with a local concrete fabricator and got on with the busy-ness that was January. Some time in early February, I got a call from the fabricator saying he needed to come by, see the site and get going on site prep. I called Steed and found out that he had launched a wonderful USA Projects campaign and we were moving forward. Surprise!

Things then went into fast motion - Steed's campaign powered through to its goal and I took on coordinating the fabricator to prep for Steed's arrival. We created a production schedule, with Steed arriving in the second week of March and the dedication ceremony and open house to be held on Easter Sunday, March 31. The site prep was running quite behind when I decided to continue with my plans and head to NYC for Armory week. Steed and I had lunch at Pier 94 and compared notes on mica, diamond dust, phosphofluorescents and other such esoteric subjects. The trip was a great lesson in getting out of the way  - I got back to find the site fully prepped, two days ahead of Steed's arrival.

On my return, I put out the word for Joshua Tree community members to provide objects for the concrete and a steady stream of contributions were received. Once Steed arrived, the site work went back into full swing to prepare for the concrete pour. The forms themselves drew the curious and some wanted to be around for the big moment itself. We were lucky to have Susan Jordan and David Zimmerman come by to help set the energy of the community's aspirational objects and to witness the process.



  

 
A steady stream of visitors came by to see the piece in it's various stages of development including an economic development group from the Coachella Valley, Cathedral City Public Arts Commission members, arts festival producers and friends passing through over Easter break. Steed also worked in earnest on the demon bowls, interviewing me regarding my anxieties regarding the development of the residency program and synthesizing them as a proxy for those of the local community at large. He also attended local arts group meetings, my Transition Joshua Tree working group meeting and explored the local area some.



 























Suddenly, the Easter weekend was upon us. We finalized the clean up of sculpture site, sanded down some corners again and dug 16 holes for the demon bowls to be buried in. Steed also prepared material to show the process of the fabrication and explanations of the various demon bowls for the maiden use of the studio as exhibition space. In true desert style, we had guests on site at 1pm for a 2pm event. This is a regular occurrence I still have not completely come to understand. That said, I'm always grateful for those who come to BoxoHOUSE events, so bring it on - water will always be available one hour before show time.














The 1pm guests were up from Palm Springs and they heralded a good showing from the "low desert". Many more folks turned up - the local community, artists, art academics, art critics, curators, a gallery director and friends from as far away as LA. Steed led a dedication ceremony at 3pm and then every half hour a set of four demon bowls was buried at each corner of the property. Each time, guests were invited to carry the bowls down and assist in burying them, thus both doing the job at hand and witnessing the suppression of anxieties. I knew I would sleep better that evening.

 

















I am very grateful for Steed's time here and for his huge success in bringing this project to fruition. I am also grateful for the community participation which informed and enlivens the work. The Knot remains now as a permanent installation at BoxoHOUSE, a symbol of continuity and progress as well as a wonderful place to sit or lie and contemplate the rocks, the valley or the very large sky.

Joshua Tree Interventions

William Lamson arrived at BoxoHOUSE in late January, hot on the heels of having installed exhibitions at MOCA and Robishon Gallery in Denver, and at Whittier College outside of Los Angeles. Despite the pace, he jumped into a set of experiments using simple materials both acquired from supply stores as well as borrowed from nature.

Will's intent was to make simple gestures in the landscape using a set of materials (mylar sheeting, mylar strips, silver tape and lengths of 2x1 lumber), shoot images and be guided by what he found. Given that desert light is harsh for most of the day, he was intent on shooting at dawn and dusk. As some of the setups required two sets of hands to hold steady during the shoots, I was called to assist - a fun role from which I learned a lot. I also witnessed some amazing boulder climbing and contortions as Will moved around finding the best framing for his shots.



As it ended up, the first few days of his time here were unusually cloudy, so there were many more hours of workable light. Will was able to experiment and adjust quite a bit during that time. He started working with mylar and wood in the boulder piles behind BoxoHOUSE and moved on to land adjacent to A-Z West to play with balancing rocks. We eventually ventured to a place known as Heaven on earth - 600 acres near Pioneertown stewarded by the legendary Garth. The day was spent there using all the materials at hand including a length of curled metal sheeting that allowed for some very strong images. 

William Lamson, untitled, 2013

Between setups, Will worked hard devising new concepts and framing up various props to support the materials in new ways. The final setup was involved 100 ft roll of mylar set on a frame and held taught with an improvised winching mechanism. The material was set on Coyote (Dry) Lake one afternoon in order to catch the dusk light. The results were so compelling that the whole setup was left overnight and we returned for a pre-dawn shoot that yielded yet more strong results.




Despite the continuing pace of work, Will also found time to meet up with Aurora Tang  from CLUI / HDTS (with whom he had worked on a previous residency), tour A-Z West, take in open mic at the Saloon, attend a screening at the wonderful bi-weekly Cosmic Monday film nights, view the Noah Purifoy Foundation site and have a sound bath at the Integratron on his way out. Phew.

Many thanks to Will for an action packed week and a day, and for the intriguing works which will be exhibited at BoxoOFFICE later this year.

Residency Goodness

David Goodman kicked off the second season of residencies at BoxoHOUSE with a highly productive couple of weeks. David's focus for the residency was to map his relationship to the desert environment based on a science of looking and understanding. His approach is comparable to archeology - reconstruction of a visual landscape based on traces. For materials, David turned to paper he brought with him that had been immersed in the snows of Santa Fe as well as found materials lying in the local landscape.

 

Courtesy of Douglas Wolfe

To kick off the residency appropriately, a couple of activities were called for. First, a walk in the landscape along the north ledge of the National Park boundary adjacent to BoxoHOUSE. This was the first of many walks that David took in which he comprehensively experienced the section of Joshua Tree sandwiched between the National Nark and Highway 62. On the morning of day two, a sound bath at the Integratron to balance energies for the days and weeks ahead.

Despite the fact that construction on converting the freestanding garage structure into an environmentally-controlled studio was not starting until February, David moved in and worked long hours during an unusually cold snap. His drawings evolved, informed by his daily perambulations as well as interactions with the local community through our participation at the monthly art crawl, periodic outings to local eateries and attendance at the Cosmic Monday film series.




David also began to work with fabrics he had found in the landscape, eventually creating several fabric works as well as incorporating some fabric into his drawings. As the works grew in number and scope, David began installing them on the walls, initiating the use of the raw space for exhibition.

On the second weekend of David's time here, he was joined by Douglas Wolfe a friend and photographer who came out to do his own exploration of the environment as well as to be part of documenting David's work. 

On Sunday January 13, we held an open house for the community. To address the cold, David prepared a very large pot of chicken soup and several dozen hearty souls appeared to consume both the broth, engage with the artworks and create a sense of warm community. David whitewashed some of the walls and installed a large fabric piece in the courtyard between the house and the structure. Both art and soup were very well received.

Courtesy of Douglas Wolfe

Courtesy of Douglas Wolfe

Courtesy of Douglas Wolfe

David had also created a participatory sound piece, Tuningfield, inspired by his experience at the Integratron. Participants are invited to enter the land in front of BoxoHOUSE, carrying a wooden stake fashioned by David from found wood. Once they find a spot that resonates with them, based partially on experiencing the sense of being surrounding by sounds as they echo off the rock face behind, participants insert the stake in the ground. This is an ongoing project, initiated that day and now living on beyond David's time here. He ahs offered to keep making and sending stakes as the Tuningfield continues to be fertile.

Courtesy of Douglas Wolfe

Tuningfield  is a very apt legacy for David to leave behind - an inspired project that maps back his experience here, links across geography and time and allows the community remain connected to the art, the artist and the site. Many thanks to David for his impactful presence.

David has also comprehensively documented his residency under the title ANATOMYOFADESERT, and you can read all about it here.

Boxo

A Bash for BoxoHOUSE

On Tuesday November 13, BoxoPROJECTS held 'A Bash for BoxoHOUSE', a celebration of the first season of residencies in Joshua Tree, CA and a fundraiser to take the program to the next level.



 
 











A lively group of collectors, artists, advisors and friends gathered at the home of Craig Harwood and Tim Saternow. A program reviewing the first season and introducing the artists for the second season was well received. Guests and resident artists mingled afterwards, discussing the various proposed projects.

 










 












 

 


































Many, many thanks go to the guests who participated and contributed toward the program's development, to the artists who inspire the program, to the hosts who provided a generous and welcoming attitude and to the Advisory Committee who support BoxoPROJECTS in myriad ways.