Founded in April 2018 by a photographer and a choreographer/graphic designer, Compound YV is a presentation space for artists working in various media and at all stages of their careers. Through free and affordable programming that includes three to six solo and group art exhibitions per year, educational workshops, performances, and a podcast series called Art Personals, Compound artists initiate and influence conversations about a range of culturally relevant, sociopolitical, and personal topics.

Exhibiting artists use Compound as a container for themes that are central to their artmaking. For those who travel from outside the Mojave region, the physical distance of our gallery from their home base acts as a type of reset, inviting them to experiment in ways that offer a departure from their normal practice. For others, our space is inseparable from the desert landscape, inviting themes of humans’ interdependence with nature, the perceived hostility and resilience of our vast surroundings, and even use of natural materials that become part of the artworks. We extend opportunities to local, national, and international artists to transform our gallery with few limitations, make work in our space or outdoors, and display and sell their artwork.

Together, we engage a diverse in-person audience that lives and works in the greater Mojave Desert region in addition to the many global travelers who pass through it physically or who experience our work online.

Compound YV hires early- and mid-career artists and creatives, exposing some for the first time to the operations side of the art world. In dialogue with visitors, our staff and interns encourage further reading regarding the making and content of the work. Our podcast is another form of conversation between artists and gallery, providing listeners with a more intimate sense of the artists’ ideas and inspirations.