Missoni, N.Y. Artist Eric N. Mack Prep for This Year’s Desert X

All are welcome at the complimentary contemporary art exhibition in Palm Springs, which is being curated by artistic director Neville Wakefield and this year’s co-curators Amanda Hunt and Matthew Schum. The desert landscape will provide the backdrop for 19 site-specific installations and performances by Mack and other artists like Sterling Ruby, Superflex, Iván Argote, Mary Kelly, Steve Badgett and Chris Taylor, Nancy Baker Cahill, Cecilia Bengolea, Pia Camil, John Gerrard, Julian Hoeber and Jenny Holzer, Iman Issa, Mary Kelly and Postcommodity, among others. Ruby is widely known as a favorite of Raf Simons, who tapped him to design an installation for the Calvin Klein Madison Avenue store. This year’s edition of Desert X will run through April 21.

By joining forces with the New York-based Mack, Missoni is providing the artist with colorful and patterned fabrics that have been selected by creative director for his artistic contribution. Mack will stage his site-specific sculpture in a car garage housed in an old gas station overlooking the Salton Sea. Missoni had to be extra generous with the yards of silks, knits and tulles need to drape some of the structure’s exterior with rope that adds another linear element to the space. Mack is known for melding sculpture, painting and fashion.

Photograph by Lance Gerber

The semi-secluded sculpture will be designed with contemplation in mind. As visitors wander from one area to the next examining the colorful, flowing fabrics, the experience is meant to remind them of an unfastened garment, an empty tent or an open umbrella. This year’s Desert x 2019 will include film projects and process-driven works that will span 50 miles across the Coachella Valley and beyond.

Supporting artists is part of the Missoni ethos. Two weeks ago, Angela Missoni collaborated with contemporary artist Anton Alvarez, who created an installation at the brand’s Milan showroom. His sculptures were the inspiration for the abstract motifs that adorn the brand’s luxurious knitwear. Traces of the colorful sculptures could be found in the collection, where abstract motifs were rendered on soft mohair sweaters as well as in textured, hand-embroidered, whirling patterns used for turtleneck knits. Missoni’s commitment to artists is something Rosita Missoni stands behind too. Last fall she flew from Italy to New York for the opening of artist Cheryl Donegan’s three-month installation at the Missoni store.