Sailor Days

Biddy Connor, composer, musician, and vocalist, arrived in February from Melbourne Australia and kicked off the 2013 residency season. Biddy's aim was to delve into the Joshua Tree experience and compose music which would be used as a soundtrack for Megan Evan's video work entitled Stranger in the Desert. Megan completed the residency last summer and Biddy had received an Australia Council grant to create this collaborative sound piece based on the work in progress.




















As Biddy was here for only two weeks, we jumped right in. Straight from the airport to a showing of Eva Soltes ' documentary about the composer Lou Harrison which was screen at Furstworld, our local world class venue. The next evening we dined with Eva and the musician in residence at Harrison House, Saba Alizadeh. 
















Biddy setup in the studio and started to work - coming back from a sound walk, she told me she had played a barrel cactus and I listened to the recording pleasantly surprised. I learned a lot about sound art over the two weeks as Biddy went from one inspiration to another sharing the highlights. 



Toward the end of the first week, we ventured to the Integratron for a sound bath and Biddy brought along her musical saw. After the group present had woken up from marinating, Biddy played in the acoustically perfect space and the effect was quite haunting. later that evening, Biddy played a working draft of her new piece while we watched the video with a neighbor. Live soundtrack is quite a joy.



Early into the second week, Biddy performed at the Culver Center for the Arts in Riverside. She played several of her songs from her album, Sailor Days (available here), and then finished with the new piece for Stranger in the Desert. At points, Biddy's viola, voice and saw were all looped live through electronic controls and she became a veritable one woman band. It was a wonderful performance and the audience was most appreciative.








 





 

The Riverside gig was ultimately the warm up for Biddy's performance at BoxoHOUSE. She played in the studio/exhibition space which had works by Diane Best and David Mackenzie hanging. The film in progress was projected on a wall over Mackenzies' minimal works. There was a capacity crowd that listened quietly throughout and then participated heartily as Biddy invited all to chant "home" as she looped the word repeatedly through the software. A very touching moment for all. 

 

On her last day at BoxoHOUSE, Biddy and I took a walk and she used the opportunity to play one more unusual instrument - a sculpture on the nearby HDTS land. Biddy then headed off to New York and Princeton to play and record for a few days before returning to Melbourne. Biddy's was the first non-visual artist in residence and I am very grateful for the new perspective she brought to the program.

Looking At Art

BoxoPROJECTS was very happy to welcome a group of 24 collectors and the art interested to BoxoHOUSE in Joshua Tree. Looking at Art is an effort led by Victoria Lightman out of Houston, TX. Victoria organized the group to travel to Palm Springs for the Palm Springs Art Fair and arranged to visit the BoxoHOUSE residency as an area highlight. A selection of works by local artists Diane Best and David Mackenzie was installed in the studio. The group toured the site, heard about past residency projects, enjoyed lunch and then viewed the exhibition which was introduced to them by the artists. Members of the group enjoyed the Joshua Tree vibe and promised to return. Thanks to Victoria and to all for a great afternoon in the High Desert.


 

2nd Annual Bash for BoxoHOUSE

On November 20, 2013, BoxoPROJECTS threw the 2nd Annual Bash for BoxoHOUSE, a celebration of the year's residency projects and a fundraiser for the year ahead. The event was once again hosted by Craig Harwood and Tim Saternow at their home in Chelsea. On this occasion, it was announced that Tim had joined the Advisory Committee.

A lively group gathered for the evening: artists (past residencies and future), collectors, galleriests, advisers, supporters, Advisory Committee members and staff. Artworks inspired by the last season were on exhibition and Bernard Leibov addressed highlights of the year and introduced the projects for the 2014 season.

 























Many thanks to all who came out to support the program - we look forward to celebrating again in 2014.

Mapping the Unfamiliar

From September 28 to November 15, 2013, BoxoOFFICE NYC hosted Mapping the Unfamiliar: The BoxoHOUSE Survey 002:2013. This exhibition featured works by the six artists who completed the BoxoHOUSE residency in 2013: David Goodman, William Lamson, Steed Taylor, Saul Melman, Heather Johnson and Megan Evans.


 
















There was a large crowd in attendance at the opening on September 28. Major contributors to the residency William Kentridge and Anne Stanwix were present and were able to discuss the residency experience with the artists first hand. 













  














 













A smaller, yet lively, closing reception was held on November 15. The exhibition can be viewed online here.

 

Stranger in the Desert

Artist, and good friend, Megan Evans came to BoxoHOUSE immediately following a three-month residency in Liverpool, UK where she was hosted by the Liverpool Biennial as part of the Australia Council International Residency Program.  Without taking a breath, Megan dove right into her project which involved exploring the history of original inhabitants in the Desert Region and examining the effects of  being cut off from this rich past on those who do not engage with the story of the land they inhabit. This residency project is part of a larger effort Megan is undertaking in which she examines colonialism and its effect on her personally, and on colonial cultures in general. 





























When Megan first asked me about my knowledge of the history around Joshua Tree, I realized that it was very thin. I responded  that there wasn't much material and that it seemed to me that the history of Joshua Tree and the region is very new, largely dating to the granting of 5 acre plots under the Small Tract Act of 1938. My view was that the land had not been inhabited prior to that - a wilderness under the control of the Bureau of Land Management. Megan did some preliminary research and corrected me very soon. There is a host of information and there are people willing to enter into dialog on the subject. My view on habitation of the land is a typical preconception born of ignorance. The original inhabitants of the area moved around depending on season, setting up more temporary encampments. They did not see land occupation in the same way we do - the whole region was their playground.




  

Megan's research took her to the Agua Caliente Cutlural Museum, conversations and a meeting with Tony Soares, a local ceramicist keeping the traditions of Native American pottery alive, and even to the Marine Corps Base at Twentynine Palms which maintains a curatorial center at which artifacts from the field are cataloged and made available for research. Listening to the rich conversations that ensued, I became much more attuned to Megan's point that by losing touch with the traditions and teachings of original inhabitants of the area, we may have lost our way. So much time is spent now developing new alternative methods for treating the land and ourselves, ways of being that had been discovered centuries ago and then swept aside during the colonization of the West.




 

Megan Evans, Celtic Stranger 2, 2013

  


























 
Besides diving into the research, Megan also spent much time in the studio creating work in diverse media as response to the context she was uncovering. Beading, watercolor painting, embroidery and large scale collage all began to emerge around the walls and on the shelf. Megan brought with her a re-creation of her grandmother's Victorian gown, as well as some Celtic items namely a plaid bodice and a sporran, as a nod to her Scottish heritage. She undertook several shoots, creating both stills and video. Wearing the gown, she explored the contrast of Victorian restraint with the expansiveness of the Joshua Tree National Park. The Celtic shoot took place on Celtic Knot for Joshua Tree, Steed Taylor's project from March of this year.

Megan Evans, Stranger in the Desert 4, 2013

Megan engaged with the local community in many ways: working with me on facilitating a Transition Joshua Tree Heart &Soul workshop, attending a Memorial Day concert by local musicians held in the cemetery, posing in the Victorian gown with local stalwarts down at the Joshua Tree Saloon and preparing her work for the wonderful open house we held in mid-June. I'm very thankful to Megan for the contribution she made to both my understanding of the history and context of original inhabitants of my land, and to that of the community at large. No longer a stranger in the desert. Artwork from the residency will be exhibited at BoxoOFFICE in the Fall.

Bash West

On Tuesday May 21 2013, BoxoPROJECTS held a Bash for BoxoHOUSE at the Los Angeles home of Advisory Board Member Brenda R. Potter. A wonderful crowd of collectors, museum and gallery professionals, artists and Joshua Tree community stalwarts mixed over conversation and great food. Guests were also treated to a viewing of the amazing collection installed throughout the house. A short presentation included Heather Johnson's insights into her project, an overview of BoxoPROJECTS' core mission and activities, and a presentation by Daniel Rothman of the video installation with original soundtrack that he will complete at a future BoxoHOUSE residency. Much gratitude to Brenda Potter for her generous hosting, to the guests for their engaged attendance and to the artists who helped bring the effort alive. Boxo

 

Long Distance Residency

Toward the end of last year's residency season, a friend got in touch to alert me to the work of Heather Johnson. I was immediately taken with the detailed delicacy of Heather's embroidery and the striking quality of the juxtaposed imagery she utilized. The site specificity and topicality of her work made it seem right for the BoxoHOUSE program. When I got back to NYC, I contacted Heather and asked if she might be interested in considering a residency in Joshua Tree. I was not prepared for the strength of her enthusiasm or the scope of the project she undertook.

Heather Johnson, Crankshaft, embroidery on linen

 



When Heather and I got talking, it emerged that she is an avid motorcyclist, a wonderful contrast to the image of embroidery maker. Coming to Joshua Tree tapped into her long held desire to ride cross country, visiting places of artistic interest. On a studio visit to her home in Weehawken, NJ, the outline of the project began to emerge. Eventually named In Search of the Frightening and Beautiful, Heather undertook to ride a southerly route to Joshua Tree and return on a northerly heading. On the way, she was interested in stopping at sites of natural beauty as well as sites were man has interfered with the landscape in some way. Or, as we say it in the desert, places where the land has been disturbed. Many of these sites are on a database created by the Center for Land Use Interpretation. At places that provided a particularly strong experience for Heather, she placed small embroideries that she prepared for the journey in an act of exchange. These artworks also contained information on how to learn more about the project and how to reach her.



Heather set out for Joshua Tree on April 3, 2013 and a detailed account of her preparations and journey can be read here. She carried a tracker which allowed anyone to see where she was at any one point as well as what her speed was. I tracked the journey enthusiastically also following her progress on Facebook. Despite a shortish delay in Lake Charles, LA owing to a flat tire, Heather arrived at BoxoHOUSE on April 24. She was tired and rail thin though happy and safe. That evening we attended a guitar recital at Harrison House, a wonderful way to introduce Heather to the community and vice versa. And the next day was her birthday, an opportunity to sleep in, eat well and just relax.

 

The relaxation phase did not last long. Late April into early May is a very busy period in Joshua Tree - perfect weather that stimulates a wide variety of events and activities. Heather got a comprehensive tour of the area on the landscape tour which ranged from Twentynine Palms all the way to Landers. The following day, she attended a large groupwide meeting of Transition Joshua Tree and learned about the water challenges we face locally and throughout California. During her four weeks, Heather participated in a wide range of activites ranging from social encounters with artists and the wider community to the monthly artwalk to a sound bath at the Integratron, the JT Music Festival and a swanky birthday party in Palm Springs just for balance. One of the stand out days was a comprehensive tour of the Marine Corps base complete with simulated humvee rollover. Wherever she went, Heather made friends and fans, gaining insights and more material for the Frightening and the Beautiful.



Heather also hit the studio hard, creating templates and sorting through the wealth of material she was amassing. One of the key developments for her work was a change in scale - a move to go to larger pieces using burlap linen and larger stitching. One of the hero images she is developing is an almost full scale template of her motorcycle (Triumph Tiger) superimposed over an aerial map of the BoxoHOUSE surrounding area. The work is painstaking and it was rewarding to witness Heather stitching away. The contrast of the medium with the subject matter - motorcycle parts and rugged topography - continually creates a strong sense of engagement for me.



Given that the last weekend of Heather's time at BoxoHOUSE coincided with both the JT Music Festival and Shaktifest, we decided to do an open house for the community the previous weekend. Heather shared works in progress, templates and images from her adventures and the community came out in strong support. As there was still a week to go, Heather offered guests the opportunity to provide an interesting experience to her in exchange for one of the pieces she had made to leave along the road. There were some weird and wonderful suggestions with the winning suggestion coming from local artist and good friend Diane Best.

 

 


During her last week of the residency, Heather also made further excursions to an abandoned mine site that just recently was saved from becoming a major landfill site, as well as to the large windturbines that fill the valley above Palm Springs. Another local artist heard of her trip to the mine site and went in search of the piece she had left there - successfully snagging it.



















Heather's last contribution before she headed out on the road for more adventures, was to attend and speak at the BoxoPROJECTS fundraiser held in Los Angeles on May 21. Her support was much appreciated and she made yet more fans out of the guests at that event. I am very grateful to Heather for having undertaken such an ambitious project and look forward to featuring the resulting artworks at the upcoming exhibition in New York at the end of September. Boxo