Hi-Desert Artists hosts reception for Matt Wall exhibition tonight (1/17)

Hi-Desert Artists Gallery will present Life Thru Chaos, a solo exhibition by contemporary artist Matt Wall, on view January 16 through February 15 at the gallery.

An opening reception for the exhibition will be held Saturday, January 17, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the gallery. The public is invited to meet the artist and view the work. Wall will also present an artist talk at 4:30 p.m., offering insight into his creative process, materials, and the ideas that shape Life Thru Chaos. Both events are free and open to the public.

The exhibition includes selections from several recent and ongoing series. Wall’s Mad World series attempts to make sense of a world he describes as spiraling through chaos, with individual works addressing the art world, higher education, dating, politics, cultural division, and the loss of personal and cultural heroes. His Black Sand series incorporates sand and ocean water collected from Santa Monica Beach during the Palisades fires of January 2025, grounding the work in a specific moment of environmental and emotional impact.

Also on view are works from The Forest Through the Trees, a contemplative series about navigating uncertainty and seeking meaning in the unknown, and ATTENTION! (2025), which comments on how art competes for focus in the age of smartphones and constant digital distraction. Each painting in the ATTENTION! series features a black rectangle the size of a cell phone, prompting viewers to consider what they notice first—the device-shaped interruption or the artwork as a whole.

Born in 1978 in Anaheim, California, Matt Wall is a multidisciplinary contemporary artist who lives and works in Los Angeles and Joshua Tree. He works primarily with organic materials combined with acrylic, oil, spray paint, and collage, and is known for integrating natural textures with expressive abstraction and symbolic imagery. His work has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout Southern California and is held in private collections.

Hi-Desert Artists Gallery hours are Mondays and Thursdays from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; and Sundays from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m. Admission to the gallery, opening reception, and artist talk is free.