Palm Springs, California
UFOs at Joshua Tree National Park
Why we were there: La Quinta Art Celebration
When we were there: November 2021
How was the show: We had a great show at La Quinta! Many artists noted that the audience was down due to the postponement (usually this show is in March) and the lack of Canadian Snowbirds (borders have been closed due to covid), but since it was our first time there, we had nothing to compare it to. It was unseasonably warm, mid-90s, but the park where it was held is beautiful with duck ponds and shady trees. The organizers were very nice and they threw an unparalleled gourmet artist appreciation dinner - the cold cucumber soup was unreal! It was a 4-day show with 2-days of travel each way and the expenses in California were considerably more than elsewhere, but we had a great little working vacation in Palm Springs and would love to return.
Where did we go: Our first stop on this trip was the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway (aka The House of Tomorrow) which was…closed. Despite the fact that there is a website online for it, it had been sold and was closed for renovations. The beauty of this house, built in 1962 by Architect William Krisel, was that you could tour the inside of it. Most of the other houses in Palm Springs are closed to the public and behind large gates or on private drives. Needless to say I was completely disappointed. So instead we visited the Tramway Gas Station, built in 1965 by Architects Albert Frey and Tobson Chambers, that is now the Palm Springs Welcome Center, bought a $5 map of Palm Springs Modern and drove around for a few hours taking snapshots and videos from the car. On Tuesday morning we woke up at 5am (thank you timezones) and took a drive through Joshua Tree National Park. Starting from the south entrance we meandered across to the west entrance stopping to visit the exhibit and scenic spots along the way. Truly amazing. Rocks, tree, cactus, clouds, take a look at some of the pictures below. Our only completely free day for sightseeing was a Tuesday, plans were to visit the Palm Springs Art Museum which also has an Architecture & Design Center. Nope, closed. Instead we found The Moorten Botanical Garden which is the home to a Cactarium founded in 1938. It was amazing and full of weird and wonderful cactus. Blake convinced me, and rightly so, not to purchase loads of mini succulents to take home with us in our packed Honda Fit for the car ride home. Next we visited the Shields Date Garden, where we learned about dates, bought date gifts, and indulged in a date shake. Shields is an area mainstay that was opened in the 1920’s. Lesson - a little date shake goes a long way.
What is on our list for the next visit: We would love to visit during Modernism Week in February so we can tour inside of some mid-century houses. A friend showed me pictures of Bombay Beach (to late for us to visit ourselves) but itlooks like a surreal morning exploration. Near Tucson, AZ we passed an Ostrich Ranch, I need to hang out with more ostriches.
Snapshots:
