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Desert X

With installations spanning Coachella Valley, the site-specific contemporary art biennial Desert X creates a unique opportunity to explore the desert while engaging with provocative art that touches issues like ecological loss, systems of oppression and overlooked histories.

"Namak Nazar," a wooden pole sculpture, stands in the middle of the dessert. The base of the pole is encrusted with white salt that climbs up the sculpture. The top of the pole is covered with trumpet speakers that point in various directions. A person stands next to the sculpture, looking at it. They are about half the height of the sculpture. The sculpture stands in the middle of a desert landscape. A snowcapped mountain range stretches beyond.
Article

Everything You Need to Know About Desert X 2023

Desert X 2021
Episode
56:34
Artbound

Desert X 2021

Mirage at Desert X by Doug Aitken | Still from shoot
Episode
51:30
Artbound

Desert X 2019

Desert X 2023

A yellow, maze-link sculpture made of chainlink fences of various heights (shorter on the outside and taller in the middle) stands in the middle of a desert landscape. The sun is low in the sky and shines through the sculpture, casting shadows of the chainlink fences onto the sand in the foreground. A person walks towards the sculpture.
The Ultimate Guide to Desert X 2023
Desert X 2023: Lauren Bon's 'Smallest Sea With the Largest Heart,' - Credit Lance Gerber
2:51
PMGSoCal Extras
Lauren Bon's 'The Smallest Sea With the Largest Heart' Underscores the Environmental Crises of the Salton Sea
Desert X 2023: Gerald Clarke
2:04
PBS SoCal Extras
Gerald Clarke's 'Immersion' Challenges Viewers' Knowledge of Indigenous History and Culture
A pile of shipping containers arranged to look like a cubist rendition of a sleeping figure lays in the middle of a desert landscape with a large snowcapped mountain behind it. She sleeping figure is laying on its side, propping its sleeping head up with its elbow and crossing its legs. The container that is meant to be the figure's head has two closed eyes and a smile painted on its surface. Behind the sculpture is a railroad track where actual shipping containers move across the landscape via train.
2:33
PMGSoCal Extras
Matt Johnson's 'Sleeping Figure' Highlights a Global Supply Chain in Distress

Desert X 2021

Desert X 2021
56:34
Season 12 Episode 4
Artbound
Desert X 2021
Nicholas Galanin's "Never Forget" installation consists of the words "Indian" and "Land" writ large like the Hollywood sign.
Artbound
Hollywood Sign-Like Artwork Asks Difficult Land Rights Questions
Christopher Myers' "The Art of Taming Horses" is installed at Tahquitz Canyon Way in Palm Springs for Desert X 2021.
Artbound
Six Sculptures Pay Homage to Forgotten Cowboys of Color
Zahrah Alghamdi's installation "What Lies Behind the Walls" for Desert X 2021 stands in Desert Hot Springs.
Artbound
Artist's Wall in the Desert is All About Connections
Xaviera Simmons' billboard art installation, "Because You Know Ultimately We Will Band a Militia," for Desert X 2021 stands along the Gene Autry Trail. Four billboards stand in a line. The one closest to the foreground reads, "You are entering the reparations framework." A car drives down the road that runs along the billboards.
Artbound
Palm Springs Billboards Prompt Heavy Road Trip Conversations
Kim Stringfellow's Jackrabbit Homestead created for Desert X 2021 is a 122-square-foot cabin
Artbound
What a 122-Square-Foot Cabin Says About Life in the Modern World
A triangular maze made out of Mexican petate created by Eduardo Sarabia is part of the Desert X 2021 exhibition.
Artbound
A Maze in the Desert Depicts the Risky, Uncertain Reality for Immigrants

Desert X 2019 and 2017
Mirage at Desert X by Doug Aitken | Still from shoot
51:30
Season 9 Episode 902
Artbound
S9 E2: Desert X
doug_aitken_-_mirage_02_-_photo_by_osceola_refetoff.jpg
Artbound
Desert X: Land Art at the Edge of the City