Two years ago, the arts organization Desert X in Palm Springs, Calif., canceled a Jenny Holzer light projection to be shown on a local mountainside during its biennial exhibition for fear of endangering bighorn sheep that roamed there. Now, Judy Chicago’s plans for creating an ephemeral, atmospheric artwork at the 1,200-acre Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Palm Desert for the upcoming edition of the biennial have been scrapped after an environmental activist began a letter-writing campaign against the project, raising questions about its effects on sheep and other animals in the region. Jenny Gil Schmitz, the executive director of Desert X, said she had first learned of the Living Desert’s decision to pull out of their partnership in an email from its chief executive, Allen Monroe, on Wednesday. “The reason he gave is that they didn’t want to be part of a controversy regarding their environmental preservation,” she said. “The Living Desert specialists had assured us that the project would not damage the desert or any native or captive wildlife, so their backing out is incredibly disappointing and perplexing.”

Source: New York Times February 27, 2021 23:33 UTC