Dinner, Full Moon and Local Art

Last night we artists were invited to dinner at the property of Steve and Ruth Rieman. They have lived there for 32 years, first in the smaller house which is now a studio where our artist JoJo is living. Later they built a beautiful larger house, surrounded by sculpture by Steve. He does amazing outdoor work for both public and private settings. Check out his gallery of artwork here.

Here JoJo shows Lola and Wendy the studio's view of Pipes Wash, miles and miles of desert scrub that sometimes courses with storm water.

Above, JoJo's drawings for her outdoor installation of rock paintings, and the studio interior (below).

A short walk from the main house to the studio is a gallery of Steve's sculptures. Most of them are kinetic, moving with the continuous desert breezes.

I got home last night under a full moon surrounded by a curtain of clouds.

Drawing to a Close

We have only 1-1/2 weeks remaining of our 6-week residency, and all of us are taking full advantage of the time and location. Most of us are beginning to complete one or several of the art pieces that will be exhibited at the August 19-20 show.

Below is Cyrus looking over some of his completed pieces. His art and work process reflect an interest in the places where carefully planned civilization and the encroaching wilderness meet and interact. Cyrus has divided up his house and outside areas into "morning studio," "afternoon studio" and "evening studio," depending upon the prevailing shade and breezes.

Joshua Tree's daytime temperatures have been between 90 and 100 or so, lower at night. My routine is: lower all east-facing window shades at sunrise. Raise them and lower west-facing shades around 1:00 PM. Open all shades and windows at bedtime to catch the breezes. Rinse and repeat...

Below are some closeup details taken from my own completed paintings, and several digitized photos I will be incorporating into other pieces later.

Sunset Stories

We five artists gathered at Cyrus' place for dinner Saturday night. I neglected to take photos, so a few shots will be forthcoming later. The more important activity of the night was watching the sun set, stars fill the sky, and STORIES.

Less than a mile south of our location is the Joshua Tree Southern Railroad Museum, with fully operational 15" gauge, 7 1/2" gauge, and G-scale trackage and rail cars amid the rocks, sagebrush, trees, and cactus. Cyrus (sire) had taken his 2-year-old son (Cyrus IV) there that day, and they were the only visitors at the isolated wilderness site the entire time. Cyrus IV was playing by himself, making his own sound track of "choo choo's," etc. Cyrus sire suddenly heard a clear, deeper-sounding "echo" of his son's sound effects, right behind his left ear. He looked around. Nothing there. Then Cyrus IV looked up and said "People here, Daddy."

Lola was working on her art piece, standing on her feet all day, wearing an old pair of sneakers. Her left toes seemed to be going to sleep, with a noticeable throbbing on the tops. Eventually, she ended her day and removed her shoes. When she saw the lizard in her left shoe, she threw both at the opposite wall. The lizard lived, and so did Lola.

We artists know how to have a good time in new environments!

The Creative Process Mystery

This painting may be done. Never sure until it's sold...

This one's still going to get some lichens, I think.

I have no idea how this abstract based on a yucca leaf will turn out.

Same with this canvas, which will be more abstract, drawn from mold and lichens.

The plan for this canvas is up in the air, literally, the night sky.

Snakes on a Plain!

Here is the trail in to 49 Palms, an oasis on the north edge of the Joshua Tree National Park. The hike is around 3 miles, with a 300-foot elevation gain and drop each way. I left my car around 6:00 PM to miss the daytime heat. The sun was setting behind me as I set out and the trail was easy, although I stopped every few minutes to rehydrate in the shade. I was thinking about how I wished I could walk silently like Native hunters were said to do, so I might see more wildlife. Rocks and larger boulders everywhere, positively Biblical, beautiful and relaxing... Until.

That buzzing, vibrating, rattling sound registered immediately. I froze, calculating that the sound was at least 10 feet away, so no attack eminent. Before I realized what I was doing, I found myself slowly backing up the trail behind me. I saw him then, winding toward me, but he didn't seem too committed about it. I kept going until I was about 20 feet away and commenced firing.

I hoped the rocks would send him on his way so I could continue down the trail. After a while he crossed the path and I didn't hear any response to my launches. It took a while to see him when I passed, since he hadn't gone as far off the trail as I'd hoped, but he seemed settled there so I took the time to photograph him.

The rest of the hike you can bet my feet made as much noise as possible.

I've seen rattlers a few times before, mostly as a kid, and don't really remember it. This confrontation, alone on the trail, is a memory that will stick around for a while!

Approaching 49 Palms at dusk.

Here's the view back down the valley (north) to the town of 29 Palms in the distance.

Here is where two of the other artists are staying, Wendy and Lola, north of the 29 Palms Highway near Pioneer Town. Wendy sleeps in the cute little trailer, and they both work in the cabin and a separate studio.

Below is the studio, where Lola's quail mask is progressing nicely.

Credit to Susan Lowe for the blog title today.

Rain and Noah Purifoy

Rain arrived, with lightning and thunder, many spot drops like this one, all over the landscape. Some fell on me, and then I watched the fronts pass me to the north.

Last night we visited the Noah Purifoy Outdoor Desert Art Museum of Assemblage Sculpture, in Joshua Tree town. Noah was an artist who moved from LA to Joshua Tree in 1989. In 13 years he filled a 10-acre landscape with sculptures. His public art is known locally, nationally and internationally. Check it out! Here are some of my favorites.