Desert Forest: Life with Joshua Trees

September 7 - December 29, 2024

The Lancaster Museum of Art and History (MOAH) has partnered with the Getty, and 70+ other organizations, for PST ART: Art & Science Collide. On Saturday, September 7, the Lancaster Museum of Art and History will open Desert Forest: Life with Joshua Trees, as part of the Getty PST ART: Art & Science Collide initiative. The exhibition sheds light on the threatened Joshua tree and the fragile Mojave Desert ecosystem that sustains it. The project integrates natural history, indigenous knowledge, public policy, scientific research, and artistic expressions to emphasize the challenges facing the Joshua tree and conservation efforts. With a focus on the impact of climate change, development, wildfires, and other threats, the exhibition explores the symbiotic relationships between Joshua trees, soil fungi, and moth pollinators, engaging a diverse audience interested in arts and environmental issues. Desert Forest features more than 50 historical and contemporary artists who have produced artworks that exemplify a range of ideas across myriad practices. The exhibition will remain on view from Saturday, September 7, 2024 to Sunday, December 29, 2024.

Southern California’s landmark arts event, PST ART, returns in September 2024 with more than 70 exhibitions from museums and other institutions across the region, all exploring the intersections of art and science, both past and present. Dozens of cultural, scientific, and community organizations will join the latest edition, PST ART: Art & Science Collide, with exhibitions on subjects ranging from ancient cosmologies to Indigenous sci-fi, and from environmental justice to artificial intelligence. Art & Science Collide will share groundbreaking research, create indelible experiences for the public, and generate new ways of understanding our complex world. PST ART is presented by Getty. For more information about PST ART: Art & Science Collide, please visit pst.art

Sant Khalsa, Curator and Juniper Harrower, Associate Curator

Featuring contemporary artworks by Linda Alterwitz, Marthe Aponte, Madena Asbell, Nancy Baker Cahill, Diane Best, Darin Boville, Matthew Brandt, Fred Brashear Jr, Bill Leigh Brewer, Claudia Bucher, Bureau of Linguistical Reality, Gerald Clarke, Maryrose Crook, Torreya Cummings, James M Dailey, Scott B. Davis, Department of Floristic Welfare, Dani Dodge, Edgar Fabián Frías, Rob Grad, Jennifer Gunlock,
Juniper Harrower, Jessie Homer French, Christine Huhn, Monroe Isenberg, Adriene Jenik, Jetsonorama (Chip Thomas), Jenny Kane, Yulia Kazakova, Sant Khalsa, Casey Kiernan, Stevie Love, Rebecca Lowry,
Meg Madison, Aline Mare, Chris McCaw, Paloma Menéndez, Eric Merrell, Chelsea Mosher,
Daisuke Okamoto, Michelle Robinson, Cara Romero, Catherine Ruane, Ed Ruscha, Hiroyuki Seo,
Kim Stringfellow, Ruth Wallen, Jennifer Valenzuela, and Danielle Giudici Wallis; and historical artworks by Sarah E. Blanchard, Ralph D. Cornell, E.O. Hoppé, Olive Jackson, Gerald D. Jeffers, Charles Koppel,
Jane Pinheiro, Betty Warner and Carleton Watkins.