College of the Desert to Present Artists Phillip K. Smith III and Sant Khalsa

From the College of the Desert: College of the Desert’s (COD) Visual Arts program is excited to announce two great events on March 9.

The first features Phillip K. Smith, III, an internationally known desert artist who will give an artist’s talk in the Pollock Theatre at 1 p.m. Then, the Walter N. Marks Center for the Arts will host a reception for artist Sant Khalsa at 5 p.m.

Both events are parallel programs to Desert X, an exhibition of 15 site-specific artworks scattered across the Coachella Valley from Feb. 25 to April 30.

Smith, a valley native and former College of the Desert student who received bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and architecture at the Rhode Island School of Design, creates two- and three-dimensional works that change the viewer’s perception of the location in which the work is installed. His Desert X installation, The Circle of Land and Sky, will feature two long mirrored posts to provide a reflective space within the desert, composed entirely of the environment’s two most prominent physical characteristics: land and sky. It will be installed in Palm Desert.

Sant Khalsa: Confluence features the artist’s photo-based works focused on the theme of water and its relationship to the American West. Over the past 25 years, Khalsa has investigated the spiritual, economic and environmental concerns around water. The exhibition runs from Feb. 27 to April 13.

The nonprofit Desert X features established and emerging artists from around the world who were selected to use the desert as a canvas for art installations from Desert Hot Springs and Palm Springs to Indio and Coachella. The art will respond to various issues such as the desert’s history, ecology, sociology and economy as well as the landscape itself. For more information, visit www.desertx.org.

Image via Pixabay