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Elisabeth Higgins O’Connor at MOAH, "blame/thirst," 2018. Los Angeles, being what it is—a big, sprawling desert grid with almost as many art galleries these days as there are Starbucks—can seem overwhelming when it comes to actually hopping in the car and making the point to go and see some art. Let’s face it, we sometimes spend more time on the freeway getting to the gallery or museum than we do actually viewing the work itself! That said, the amount of good work being made in this city necessitates that we go the proverbial distance. MOAH, the Museum of Art and History located in Lancaster, is one such destination, set within the hot and arid backdrop of the desert landscape. At the helm is Andi Campognone, whose program over the last several years has reflected both a keen eye and a decisive awareness of new art made and exhibited today. The exhibitions at MOAH are always imaginative and intellectually stimulating, often merging science, history and art. Current exhibition Woven Stories charts the narrative structure of art-making as it relates to fiber and the history of storytelling through visual form. The results are visually arresting, the stories familiar, yet fresh. Installation view of Ray Blender at MOAH, 2019. Photo by Mido Lee In the opposite direction way down south lies the Laguna Art Museum, where shows span a variety of cultural disciplines. Most of the exhibitions feature an inherent narrative structure that ties the work into a broader social consciousness. This is true of the current exhibition, Self-Help Graphics, 1983–1991, which celebrates the East Los Angeles printmaking workshop and arts center that emerged from the pivotal and groundbreaking Chicano Art movement of the 1960s. Helmed by Executive Director Malcolm Warner, the Laguna Art Museum continues to mine the rich cultural heritage that exists in Laguna Beach while also expanding the museum’s program to include other modalities and ways of seeing. Elisabeth Higgins O’Connor at MOAH, “hate stayed the ending” (detail), 2018. Still, some venues are closer to home for some of us. Such is the case with Cal State Northridge’s Mike Curb College of Arts, Media and Communication gallery, which (lucky for me) is located a few hundred yards from my CSUN classroom. Again, as with the other two venues I mentioned, the Northridge galleries are committed to socially conscious art that reflects the ever-changing culture in and around the Northridge area, and the surrounding metropolis. Many exhibitions endeavor to support former alumnae including Judy Baca and Jeffrey Vallance, who both had solo shows on the campus last year. Again, these artists’ work speaks to issues of identity and personal responsibility, engendering a deeper awareness of our past and present political climate. In Los Angeles, “going the distance” can sometimes be challenging given the city’s vast expanses, but if you have a reliable set of wheels and a will to see some really good art, go ahead—burn some rubber!

Snezana Saraswati Petrovic’s current show, “Collateral Damage” is on view at MOAH:CEDAR through August 18. The immersive installation speaks of the harm humans do to nature unintentionally. In this Q&A Snezana shares her connection to nature, her first impressions of the Prime Desert Woodland Preserve, and why art matters. Q: Snezana, when did you first become interested in looking at nature from the perspective of an artist? A: This is hard question. I believe that we are the nature. We might be separated superficially by the urban boundaries, but we all experience the day/night rhythms and respond to changes in weather. The most of art production is happening in the cities. The disconnection with the nature is resulting in the need to create arts. While in art school I learned about Andrew Goldsworthy works, his “collaboration with nature” and Earthworks art. I came to realization that I was doing the same since my childhood. Snezana Saraswati Petrovic within her exhibition Collateral Damage I was occasionally spending summer at my grandparent’s property that was secluded and not accessible by the cars. I would go into the forest where the path would take you down to the roads collecting on the way the leaves, twigs, corn “hair,” grass, rocks and wild snail shells. On the pathway to where my parents would eventually climb up on the weekends to see me, I was making dolls, “things” with unknown and mystical purpose while placing them inside of marked spaces that now, I see it as some form of shrines. I always felt to be a part or one with the nature and not separate from it. Artist are in some ways echoing an image of a Creator, while creating instead of imitating. This was a common stance in Renaissance. Titian painting “St. Sebastian” was described as “the hand that emulates the hand of the Creator” or “la mano imitratice de la man creatrice”. Life, nature, creation are all one. Artist is just a vessel. I think I knew this since my childhood days sitting in the forest and creating by the rhythm of the spring water and winds. Q: Have you always been drawn to nature? Img:Snezana Saraswati Petrovic, Collateral Damage A: Yes, and in unexpected ways. I grew up in an urban environment surrounded by bricks and concrete with occasional trees and parks. My US friends refer to Belgrade, the city of my youth, as “low budget New York” with over one million population. In this high concentration of people, cars, and buildings, magic happened every early spring when the trees blossomed. The white petals and light green leaf cheered up the gray streets and in early summer this all turns into the saturated scent of linden trees blossoms and deep green shadows. I wanted to experience more of this verve and tingling energy and as a child I asked to spend summers at my grandparent’s property that was not in use for decades. Beside my walks through the forests while hearing inner music and stories, I was talking to the trees, spring water, and winds. I would spend half of a day laying on the top of the walnut tree learning how to be a branch and moving with the wind. This experience is something that I was trying to evoke in my recent installation at MOAH Cedar with a focus on the oceans, balancing the dry desert hot weather with coolness of the blues and serenity that water brings. Q: You recently visited the Prime Desert Woodland Preserve. What were your thoughts? Img:Snezana Saraswati Petrovic, Collateral Damage A: I was visiting on the early morning the preserve, before installing my work at MOAH. It is place of contemplation and beauty. The morning breeze, the bright but not hot sun, intensified the green and vigor of Joshua trees. I was hiking happy, knowing that bikes, noise, any wheels are banned from this space. Similarly to this preserve, the idea of having community-based conservancy is of the essence in my current piece ”Collateral Damage” at MOAH Cedar. The Prime Desert Woodland Preserve exemplifies the idea of grass-root community care for the nature. It also shows that determination, care and respect for our habitat can rejuvenate and flourish. By having more examples like this perhaps, there is hope for the Earth? Q: Do you feel that you saw the Preserve differently through the eyes of an artist? How? ImgSnezana Saraswati Petrovic, Collateral Damage A: We all have ability to connect to nature as we are nature. An artist way of seeing it is perhaps, ”larger then life”? The experience of walking down the Preserve’s path of sand and small rocks, while listening to your own footsteps, hearing birds and buzz of life can inspire an artist to create. I can imagine that feeling of rejuvenation and cleansing might be shared experience with everyone else. I contemplated for a long time Pablo Picasso’s statement that “Through art we express our conception of what nature is not.” I could not find any evidence in my practice for it. Artists do have unique perspectives individually, even from each other, but we are the creators. Nature is of the same essence. Creating in disconnect from the nature may be the reason for Picasso’s statement? Hegel was of the opinion that art “cannot stand in competition with nature…and if it tries it looks like a worm trying to crawl after an elephant.” My position is the middle ground. My morning inner dialogues in Prime Desert Woodland Preserve reassured me that my choice of topic in my MOAH CEDAR exhibition is of relevance to the current moment and all of us. Img: Snezana Saraswati Petrovic, Collateral Damage Q: Why does art matter? A: In this time and age, globally and nationally, art might be the only voice of serenity and wisdom. Art heals, encourages us to be better humans, proposes questions and helps us find the answers. Art is necessity of humanity since the dawn of civilization. The return of tattoos and graffiti art shows the need to visually communicate and express our existence, even without art training or knowledge of art history. I agree with statement by John F. Kennedy: "We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth." Q: Your exhibition at MOAH:CEDAR is stunning. Do you know what your next project will be? A: I will have to continue with different incarnations of this project and in multiple locations. The dedication of saving and preserving our habitat and humanity is life-long project. After my yogic studies in India and upon receiving my spiritual name Saraswati (Indian goddess of knowledge and art), I was not very clear on my goals. The “Collateral Damage” installation clarified the direction to me as an artist that brings the knowledge of science and art to the benefit of all. Q: What is your artistic background? A: I have BFA degree in painting and scenography from University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia. The five years program embodied the Renaissance artistic training where the artist emulates the nature and works of Master of Art, while discovering unique perspective in the process of growth. I was trained to replicate any style of drawing or painting from Durrer to Van Gogh to Picasso. My first job in LA was making the exact replicas of Van Gogh such as “Night Café,” “Starry Night” and Picasso’s “Portrait of a Harlequin,” for the galleries abroad represented by Platinum American Express My MFA is from the University of California, Irvine with double emphasis in video/digital arts and theater design. I continue to wear multiple hats as studio artist, designer and emerita art professor. My video/installation practice is inspiring my theater design practice and vice versa. I am recipient of numerous awards both in US and Europe, such as “Golden Arena” for Production Design in feature movie “Harms Case” or “Ovation 2010, Los Angeles” for the costume design in Large Theatre category. I was awarded UC Regents Grant and National Endowment for the Arts. I have exhibited my work nationally and internationally in Amsterdam, Singapore, Tokyo, Prague, Los Angeles and Belgrade, at the venues such as Los Angeles MOCA and Stedijilk Museum, Amsterdam. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Collateral Damage By Snezana Saraswati Petrovic at MOAH:CEDAR July 6 - August 18, 2019 Artist talk from 4-6 p.m. August 17. 44857 Cedar Ave, Lancaster, California 93534 Hours: 2 to 8 p.m. Thursday to Sunday ------------------- Los Angeles artist Dani Dodge is the 2019 artist in residence for the Prime Desert Woodland Preserve in Lancaster, Calif. In this blog, she documents her journey, art activations, highlights of activities at the preserve and the Lancaster Museum of Art and History (MOAH).

SPACE STUDIES —Artist Shana Mabari stands in front of the 100-inch-diameter infrared telescope at the heart of NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA, when she took part in a recent science flight on board the world-class flying telescope. She plans to use her observations during the flight for a 2020 exhibit at the Museum of Art and History in Lancaster. NASA’s Stratospheric Ob­ser­vatory for Infrared As­tron­omy, or SOFIA, reg­u­larly carries international astronomers on board its night­time flights to study the far reaches of the galaxy. The flying telescope also is employed to bring its sci­ence to life for ed­u­ca­tors and others, including most recently an artist as­so­ciated with the Museum of Art and History in Lancaster. Shana Mabari joined a flight from the ob­ser­va­tory’s home base at NASA Armstrong Flight Re­search Center’s facility in Palmdale on Dec. 11, where she gathered information to further her goal of communicating aerospace science through art. “Shana Mabari was given the opportunity to fly on a SOFIA mission to observe science being con­duct­ed first-hand. Her observations and inter­ac­tions with SOFIA’s in­ter­national team of as­tron­omers will become part of her interpretation of light along the magnetic spectrum for Antelope Val­ley’s Museum of Art and History,” USRA Manager of SOFIA Communications Nick Veronico said. SOFIA is a highly modified 747 airliner that carries a 100-inch-diameter infrared telescope. By fly­ing at altitudes above 41,000 feet, the world-class telescope is above most of the atmospheric water vapor that blocks in­fra­red rays, which as­tron­omers use to study such cosmic phenomena as the formation of stars and the building blocks of the universe. Throughout the course of her 10-hour flight aboard SOFIA, Mabari observed astronomers at work, and intends to use what she saw as inspiration for an upcoming museum exhibit in 2020, which will examine light in space. Mabari is known in the Antelope Valley for her mon­u­mental sculpture “As­tral Challenger” at Chal­len­ger Way and Avenue L. “It was an honor and a privilege to experience the elegant complexities of infrared astronomy, as­tro­physics, and as­tro­chem­istry with the NASA team,” Mabari said. As an extension of Mab­ari’s project, the artist and the museum will part­ner with publisher Grif­fith Moon to create a book dedicated to the in­ter­pre­tations of the term “space” through text and images. This exhibit will also include the spatial in­stal­lation work of Laddie John Dill and photographs by artist Jay Mark Johnson. “This exhibit will forge an important connection between the arts and sci­ence, especially given the region’s deep history with aerospace and its creative innovation,” Lancaster As­sistant City Manager Ronda Perez said. “It is due to historic expeditions such as the one taken by NASA and Mabari earlier this month, that our community has become synonymous with the aerospace industry,” Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris said. “A new space race is underway, as so many in this ever-evolving field work to make civilian space tourism a reality. Our city champions innovation; this partnership between NASA and MOAH is yet another ‘first’ for the city of Lancaster.” SOFIA regularly hosts ed­ucators on board its flights as part of the Air­borne Astronomy Am­bas­sadors program, including several from the Antelope Valley over the years. Additionally, actress Nich­elle Nichols, best known for her role as Lt. Uhura on “Star Trek,” took part in a SOFIA mission in 2015, part of her longtime work as an ambassador for NASA’s programs and to educate and inspire future generations.

Together with the Museum of Art & History, MOAH:CEDAR is a catalyst for engaging a diverse audience through captivating exhibitions, innovative artists and dynamic programming. The gallery aspires to encourage progressive ideas and experimental genres of artwork, highlighting performance, education Discover the Next Generation of Artists at MOAH:CEDAR's 40th Annual High School Student Art Exhibition selected works in 2D, 3D, and multimedia 180+ Learn More April 3 - May 18, 2025 View our full event calendar >> FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM Follow

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