BoxoPROJECTS is extremely proud to present the The BoxoHOUSE Survey 001:2012, an exhibition of works created through the BoxoHOUSE residency as well as works by selected artists working in Joshua Tree, California. 2012 saw the successful launch of the residency program with four artists participating: China Adams, Saul Melman, Tim Saternow and Gosia Wlodarczak. The residency is designed to bring artists to Joshua Tree for up to four weeks during which they are invited to engage with the site, the community and the environment at large. Local artists selected for this exhibition are Diane Best, Tina Bluefield and David Mackenzie.

Gosia Wlodrazcak inaugurated the program in February 2012 with a series of drawing performances in which she drew on the BoxoHOUSE windows and also on canvases at various sites around Joshua Tree, the National Park and Palm Springs. The program was titled FROST DRAWING FOR JOSHUA TREE and attracted a sizable and engaged audience. This project literally fused the key elements of the residency – site, community and the environment – into one compelling series of artworks dealing with being the essence of the now; of being present within space, time and language..

Diane Best, based in Joshua Tree, filmed Gosia’s drawing performances at BoxoHOUSE. She has created a dynamic video that is both a chronicle of the event and an expression of the impact of the interactions amongst the performance, the site and the audience.

Tim Saternow, a painter, came to BoxoHOUSE to seek inspiration outside of the industrial landscape of New York City. He researched extensively, attended multiple community meetings on various topics, created compelling sketches and studies and held a well received open house in which his work and process were generously shared. He returned to his studio to make several large-scale works which deal with history, dislocation and the meditative qualities of spaces.

Saul Melman, who makes sculptures and installations, converted the BoxoHOUSE studio-to-be into a camera obscura. He made his own photosensitive paper, painting silver gelatin onto heavy fibrous papers, and proceeded to create a series of atmospheric images incorporating performative elements over lengthy exposures. Saul also used digital photography to create a related stop animation that will be exhibited as a work in progress. The works consider aspects of memory, duration and natural resources.

China Adams, a conceptual artist who often works with re-purposed materials, carried out a dual track residency. One direction was an exploration of human energy as a material for art and involved research sessions based around energy work, meditation and lively debate. The second direction was an extension of a project in which discarded materials blowing in the wind are reconsidered for their formal qualities, as well as their labor value.

Tina Bluefield, based in Joshua Tree, is a painter who has enjoyed two solo exhibitions at BoxoOFFICE. New works which push further into Tina’s exploration of the space between the figurative and the abstract will be on view.

David Mackenzie is a painter based in Joshua Tree and upstate New York. His minimalist works on engineered canvases deal with the tensions inherent in working with color, structure and space.