This Land, Desolate Press, 2022

an exhibition catalog by Ayin Es.

This Land, 2022, This Land is a solo exhibition by Ayin Es that surveys the high desert of Southern California. It is their personal inspection into what it means to possess, own, or hold land in the Mojave.

Through a series of oil paintings, watercolors, and preliminary drawings, Es expresses their sense of play in an attempt to change the conventional perspective of ownership of property by removing the limitations of how we formalize these ideas. By addressing the meaning of place and belonging, they are asking questions in the most psychological sense. What does it mean to occupy the desert, and whose land is it anyway? In their work, they suggest we instead hold the land in the limitlessness of our imagination where we can build upon its curiousness and visual possibilities. By looking into this otherworldly terrain, maybe we can find room to "possess" freedom rather than domination or control over land. Isn't it this point of view that attracts folks to come to the high desert in the first place?

Since we are all stewards of the land, we should all be accountable for its wellbeing. Monetarily retaining ownership seems almost as absurd and abstract as possessing an acre of the galaxy. Essentially, enjoying our presence in the here and now is an experience that cannot live on a piece of paper, as these are holdings of the heart to explore within our psyche.

The catalog includes 36 full-color pages of the work in the exhibition and includes a essay by the artist, as well as a short bio. It also includes images of a large drawing installation from the exhibt.

Pages: 36 p.
Book Dimensions: 8.5 x 8.5 in.
Cover: 100# cardstock.
Edition: Open.

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