Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/641424
When taken literally, the desert—hot, devoid of life, brutal—is not an environment known to nurture. But next February in Palm Springs, one swath of desert will serve as fertile ground for a host of artists during the inaugural Desert X. Under the artistic direction of Neville Wakefield, the three-month-long exhibition will bring to light works that explore the contrasting landscapes, ethnic and social divides and architectural legacies of the Southern California desert. desertx.org 86 CULTURED 5 4 A THING OF BEAUTY Seven perspectives on what constitutes beauty—extravagant, intricate, ethereal, transgressive, emergent, elemental, transformative—provide a thematic organization to Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum's new Design Triennial. Assistant Curator Andrea Lipps and Senior Curator of Contemporary Design Ellen Lupton have chosen more than 250 projects by 63 international designers for "Beauty—Design Triennial," from makeup artist Pat McGrath to Neri Oxman's 3D-printed wearable objects. Through August 21. cooperhewitt.org Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg's Rewilding With Synthetic Biology, 2013 Ed Ruscha's Desert Gravure, 2006. COURTESY COOPER HEWITT. SMITHSONIAN DESIGN MUSEUM; ©ED RUSCHA