Events Calendar

These 16 days of performance art events are dedicated to James Luna (Luiseño/Diegueño, 2/09/1950-3/4/2018), one of the most important performance artists of our time, who passed away last year. Luna’s connection with Idyllwild Arts spanned many years, beginning with his seminal piece, “Surreal Post Modern Indian Blues” performed here in 2001. His performances were provocative, fearless, full of humor and humanity, and were often a critique of western views of the Native American experience.

The first week of Luna Eclipse will feature the creation of a large-scale sandpainting installation by world-renowned artist Joe Ben, Jr. (Diné). He will be working closely with the students, and introduce them to new understandings of performance art, including ritual engagement and the notion of impermanence.

Following this week-long event, ten additional artists will perform on successive days. Performances vary from interactive to purely performative, but each one follows the common theme of Ritual Engagement. As the performances unfold they will be documented with videos and these will be part of a permanent installation in the gallery for the duration of the exhibit.

Idyllwild Arts has a strong tradition of performance art exemplified by the work of James Luna, as well as former and current Visual Art Department chairs Gerald Clarke, Jr. (Cahuilla) and David Reid-Marr. This showcase is a continuation of that tradition, and is a result of a close collaboration between the Visual Arts Department and the Native American Arts Program