MISSION

The mission of the Noah Purifoy Foundation is to preserve and maintain the environment of sculptures Noah Purifoy is creating in the high desert of Joshua tree, California as a permanent cultural center and sculpture park to be open to the public and to promote greater public appreciation for the values to be found in Purifoy's work over four decades as artist and educator.

BACKGROUND

Since 1989, Noah Purifoy has filled 2 1/2 acres of the high desert in Joshua Tree with a sculpture garden that has synthesized the concerns of his life. Working freely with all kinds of materials and at every possible scale, he has pushed himself and his work to create what many of us who have experienced his desert site feel needs to be preserved for posterity.

Noah now. receives five to ten visitors a week, people from all over the world who have heard about him and his project largely through word of mouth. A caring and dedicated group of individuals has established the Noah Purifoy Foundation as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The land upon which Noah has lived and worked for the past ten years has been donated to the Foundation.  An additional two lots adjacent to Noah's site has been purchased and donated. This will provide a total space of 71/2 acres for the sculpture garden and planned cultural center.

GOALS

As volunteers, we are in the process of defining both medium-term and long-range plans for the preservation, expansion, and use of the cultural site. We have identified two immediate goals:

(1) Preservation and maintenance of existing work so that it can be permanently protected from the harsh desert environment.

(2) Curatorial assistance that will provides future visitors with a coherent explanation of the project, its development and its relationship to the story of America during Noah's lifetime.

Much more will need to be done in the future. We will need to build a reception center for visitors without taxing the natural environment of the desert. We would like to launch a series of talks and symposia exploring the issues Noah's work raises about art and memory, creative process in contemporary society, and the role of the arts in creating community. We are also considering inviting artists to collaborate with Noah or make their own work to place in the desert environment.

The Foundation is asking those who already know and love Noah Purifoy's work to help us launch this initiative. A contribution of any size at this time would get us going in the right direction. You can make your taxdeductible contribution to the Noah Purifoy Foundation.

Experiencing and seeing firsthand what Noah has created is inspiring. We want to keep this art experience for future generations. Thank you for helping us create a wonderful space in the desert celebrating Noah's art.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND PARTICIPATION, PLEASE CALL OR E-MAIL: