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Open Studio with JTHAR resident BA Thomas
Sunday, April 10, 4-6pm
8321 Via Rocosa, Joshua Tree, CA

BA Thomas paints interiors and still life. Mixing reality and fantasy, she constructs domestic spaces replete with weird furniture, lamps, windows, pictures, and plants. She looks to architecture and interior design for inspiration, but considers how the medium of paint and properties of a flat canvas can be used to distort spaces, light, and objects in playful formats. Space breaks apart and behaves irrationally and objects tilt at strange angles, as if seen from different viewpoints. Through her layering process, she creates enigmatic narratives with vibrant patterning and color contrast. With a touch of humor and melancholy, she questions traditional social and behavioral constructs of spaces, identity and meaning in material pleasures, and what they say about us. During her residency, BA engaged her work in a call-and-response process, experimenting with isolating certain social and behavioral ideas and observing how they interact with physical objects, such as furniture, elements in nature, and various architectural structures seen in the Joshua Tree region that inspire the compositions for her work.

Remembering Steve Rieman:
Steve Rieman and his wife, Ruth Rieman, have been long-time advocates for desert conservation and art appreciation in the Morongo Basin. Steve is best known for creating larger than life kinetic metal and stone sculptures inspired by the harsh desert environment and the human impact on its fragile ecosystem. His art is about balance and harmony between advancing technology and the preservation of the natural environment. Besides advocating for the protection of the Mojave Desert by being long-time members of the Morongo Basin Conservation Association, Steve and Ruth have hosted artists from all over the world as board members of the Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency and their home that includes Steve's innovative building designs, handmade furniture and a variety of his artwork, has been a favorite stop on the Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council's annual Hwy 62 Open Studio Tours. In an op-ed published on December 16, 2015 in the Press Enterprise, the couple writes in favor of the arts as a vehicle for strong desert protections: "As an internationally collected artist and advocates for artists and their work, our backgrounds give us insight into what we have to lose. When we relocated from Orange County to the high desert more than 36 years ago, it was like entering another world. We noted the expansive sky, the changing seasons, and the abundant wildlife adapted to the challenges of a dry and harsh climate. Walking in Pipes Wash for more than three decades, we noticed that our footprints are significant and our impact cannot be denied. This kind of immersion in the wide-open, rural landscape here gives us a unique perspective about what it means to be responsible citizens in the Mojave Desert."

Our community mourns the recent loss of such an iconic figure, and we support Ruth as she continues to work towards advocating for their shared beliefs in his memory. Please consider donating to the Morongo Basin Conservation Association, Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency, and the Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council.

"If I serve as an example to others to follow their dreams, I consider that success" - Steve Rieman

Visit https://linktr.ee/steverieman to learn more about Steve Rieman and his body of work and the local non-profit organizations the Rieman's support.

about JTHAr:

Established in 2007, Joshua Tree Highlands Artists Residency (JTHAR) is a nonprofit artist residency that awards an international community of artists the gifts of time and space amidst the extraordinary natural beauty of Joshua Tree National Park. Solo residencies of six weeks include scholarship funds, living accommodations, studio space designed to accommodate a broad range of artistic activity and open studio events.

Artists selected for this program are at all stages of their careers and work in all media, including drawing, painting, photography, film, video, new media, installation, fiction and non fiction writing, interdisciplinary, social practice and architecture.

JTHAR fosters creativity through opportunities for exploring, experimenting, quiet reflection, engagement and cross-cultural exchange with the vibrant local artist community. We establish spaces where inspiration happens on a daily basis, so artists can do the work of innovating, changing the cultural landscape and generating a fresh look at the way we connect to each other and to the world.

As a 501c3 non-profit artist residency, we rely on the support of individuals like you to fulfill JTHAR’s mission of being a place that inspires creativity and provides the resident artists with the time, facilities, support essential to give that creativity form. In return, we provide unparalleled access to the creative processes of regional, national and international artists Donors are an integral part of the Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency community: your unwavering support means the world to us.

Board Members: James Berg (Co-founder), Frederick Fulmer (Co-founder), Judy Hearsum, Timothy Hearsum, Ruth Rieman & Steve Rieman
Honorary Board Member: Alma Ruiz and Advisory Board Members Barbara Gothard and Adam Gross.

This year, your support can change an artist's life. Help support the arts through Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency. JTHAR is a 501c3 non-profit that provides free studio space and living accommodations for artists to create new work and focus on their individual projects. Your donation will help JTHAR continue to invite artists to Joshua Tree and create and learn from the vibrancy of California.

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