In Conversation: Alma Allen & J.B. Blunk

At the Palm Springs Art Museum Architecture and Design Center, Edwards Harris Pavilion.

In Conversation stages an encounter between two people who never met but whose work shares a deep affinity. The work of Alma Allen and J.B. Blunk blurs the line between design and sculpture, with both men creating evocative organic work from natural materials.

Both men are self‐taught and each began making work on a small hand-made scale, Blunk in ceramic and Allen in wood and stone. Working alone in rather remote locations, Blunk in Inverness, CA, and Allen until recently in Joshua Tree, CA, gave them the space and freedom to expand the scale and range of their practices to encompass not only housewares, furniture and sculpture, but also the design and building of their own homes and studios. The exhibition also features photographs by Lisa Eisner and Leslie Williamson, showing how each man shaped his own environment, and creating a parallel dialogue between these two contemporary photographers.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.