Name: Monica Marks - ABANDONED, Artist Talk
Start: 2025-11-01T14:00:00-07:00
End: 2025-11-01T16:00:00-07:00
Location: Los Angeles Art Association/Gallery 825

"Abandoned" - Solo Exhibition by Monica Marks
Date & Time:
Artist Talk: Saturday, November 1st, 2pm
Exhibition runs through November 21, 2025
Location:
Los Angeles Art Association - Gallery 825
825 N. La Cienega Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90069
Phone: (310) 652-8272
Event Description:
Step inside a reconstructed abandoned desert homestead and discover the haunting beauty of dreams deferred through Monica Marks' immersive installation of photography, painting, and found objects.
Abandoned explores the vacant homesteads of Wonder Valley and the greater Mojave Desert through an innovative combination of immersive installation, photography, painting, and found object art. These structures, built as part of the Small Tract Act of the 1950s and 60s, awarded 5-acre parcels to people who agreed to build homes on the property. Many original homesteaders abandoned their cabins after just a few years, leaving behind poignant reminders of the area's history, unfulfilled dreams, and the harsh realities of desert life.
The centerpiece of the exhibition is a partially reconstructed Jackrabbit Homestead featuring graffiti-covered walls, discarded furniture, and nostalgic representations of lost comfort. Desert sunset projections and recorded desert sounds create a fully immersive experience that allows visitors to step into both the history and present condition of these forgotten places.
During her residency at the Desert Dairy Artist Residency, Monica allowed the desert atmosphere to guide her process, creating mixed media works that combine paintings of large desert objects (trucks, boats) with found materials collected from the vicinity of the abandoned structures. The exhibition includes photography documenting these homesteads, sculptural assemblages, and installation pieces using only items discovered near the structures.
The implications of *Abandoned* inspire deep introspection about isolation, the transient nature of human efforts and dreams, and contemporary issues of displacement. The abandonment of desert homesteads parallels the forced displacement of unhoused communities, while the criminalization of people existing in public spaces echoes how abandoned homesteads are sometimes viewed as "dangerous structures" to be demolished.
About the Artist:
Monica Marks is a multidisciplinary artist living and working in Los Angeles. She earned her BA in Art from California State University, Northridge, and her MA in Marital and Family Therapy at Loyola Marymount University with a specialization in Clinical Art Therapy. Monica's training and experience in the mental health field influences her work and she believes strongly in the power of expressive arts to promote emotional growth and healing.
In 2021 Monica had her first solo exhibition, *What We Hide: An Exploration of Hidden Disabilities and Identity*, through Shoebox Projects online. Her work has been exhibited at Lancaster Museum of Art and History, Torrance Art Museum, and the Bristol Art Museum in Rhode Island. Her work was selected for the 2021 Los Angeles Open and the 2022 Made in the USA at TAG gallery. Monica is also a gallery artist at Bird Dog Arts in Tejon Ranch, CA, and is collected nationally.
Special Note* The opening reception is on October 25th, 2025 10-5pm, which also happens to be Monica's 60th birthday!
Gallery Information:
Gallery 825 is open by appointment. Please call (310) 652-8272 or email [email protected] to schedule a visit during the exhibition run.
Website: monicamarksart.com