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Robolights:  A holiday surprise

Last spring, my bestie and I were tooling around Palm Springs after a nice spa day, when we decided to check out real estate in the area.  She’s a real estate agent, so she’s into that kind of thing.  If you are in the market for an agent in Southern California, I have included her info at the bottom of this post.

As for me,   I’m a joiner, so off we went.

We were driving around the Movie Colony area in search of Frank Sinatra’s former house, we turned a corner and . . .

“ . . . the heck?”

It slowly dawned on me what it was. 

The Robolights! 

I remember hearing about this, but I had never sought it out.  We went around the whole block, peeking over the fence like a couple of burglars.  I was able to get a few shots from the sidewalk. . .

I wanted to get the shot of the Nutcracker, since I collect them.  Hmm, I don’t think I have this one, with a baby doll head on a scepter.  . .

A little history:

Kenny Irwin, a Palm Springs artist, has been sharing his artistic fantasyland made from recycled or donated materials during the holidays for over 30 years.  January 2, 2019 however, was the last day the Robolights was on display on his property.  Irwin settled a lengthy legal fight with the City of Palm Springs and has agreed to dismantle his backyard installation.

After checking it out from the street, it had been a plan to get back here over the holidays when the exhibit is open, especially once we learned it would be taken down and possibly relocated.  The holidays finally arrived and we headed over at dusk to check out the inner sanctum of this exhibition.

Back for the Real Show:

Your donation is literally dropped down the drain of a kitchen sink installed at the ticket booth. 

As soon as you enter the property, you are completely immersed in Mr. Irwin’s vision of holiday art and light.  It’s as if Mad Max invited you over for Christmas dinner. 

Irwin’s art seems to be focused on guns:

 

Mannequins and doll heads:

Many multiples of things –

And of course, Christmas!

All in all, a colorful kaleidoscope cake of quirkiness frosted with holiday songs of all the languages on the color wheel.  It challenges one’s notion of art, holiday imagery and tradition. 

Peeking over the fence was one thing, experiencing the whole display at night with all of the lights and music proved to be quite another.

This was a weird but unforgettable holiday trip.  My only regret?  As I was taking this picture –

My friend asked me what Kenny Irwin looked like.  “Does he have a long beard, and Muslim clothing?”  When I told her that sounded like a pretty fair description of the man, she told me, “When you were taking that picture, he walked right past you and went into the house.”

Lovely. 

Note to self:  don’t be so absorbed in my photography that I totally miss what I actually came to experience.

The future of the Robolights

This remains to be seen.  Irwin was quoted by the Desert Sun newspaper as saying he was dreaming of going to the next level and was optimistic that he would be able to find a commercial property where he can grow his vision further.   I am curious to see what Irwin will artistically do next. He may decide 30 years is a good run and will move on to a different project. Another option would be to dismantle some of the robots and sell pieces to collectors. Or he may open his own amusement park. Who knows? I will be waiting to see.

http://www.facebook.com/ROBOLIGHTS

*****

My friend, the Real Estate Agent’s info:

Christiene Dodson – 562-277-0085

Berkshire Hathaway

https://www.bhhs.com/california-properties-ca305/long-beach/christiene-dodson/cid-107149