about

Yucca Valley Material Lab (YVML) champions a decentralized, inclusive, and affordable model for art education grounded in direct material exploration.

Located in the rural high desert community of the Morongo Basin, YVML offers a diverse range of core programs and services, including artist and musician residencies, workshops and public events.

The Residency Program provides lodging, 24 hour studio access and personalized instruction on a chosen material, alongside numerous community engagement opportunities.

The Workshop Program provides fee-based, artist-led classes in materials such as glass, metal, fiber, wood, neon, and experimental sound.

Lazy Eye Gallery is a 64 sq. ft. micro gallery housed in a former water tower. Dedicated to experimental and contemporary art, the gallery provides a platform for multimedia installations, sound art, and performance.

YVML is home to The Living Library, which was constructed from the remains of the Oregon College of Art and Craft’s book collection after it closed in 2019.

Yucca Alta, YVML’s record label and recording studio for local and visiting musicians, emphasizes the contributions of Black, Indigenous, and artists of color within its musician-in-residence program, and posts recordings of live performances on its YouTube channel.

Overall, YVML adopts an anti-ableist approach, challenging the dominant hierarchies of ability that often marginalize disabled voices while celebrating diverse learning styles and creative outcomes.

Join our mailing list or follow us on Instagram for announcements on the public events calendar.

Contact us for more information at info@yvml.org

who

Heidi Schwegler, Founding Director of Yucca Valley Material Lab.

Having taught at Oregon College of Art for nearly 20 years, and as the former Chair of MFA in Applied Craft + Design (PNCA/OCAC, 2015- 18), her professional aspirations have always resided in blending a career that includes a studio practice as an artist and a pedagogical practice as a teacher and administrator. Now based in Yucca Valley, CA she is driven to provide an educational platform for art that is financially accessible and in turn, supports its community. The quonset hut facility and surrounding compound have been designed to allow for material and process exploration free of intended outcomes. Releasing one’s creative practice from preconceived ideas can inspire unimaginable thought and form. Material curiosity, craftsmanship and provocative content have always been the force behind Schwegler’s studio and teaching practice, all of which now play a part at Yucca Valley Material Lab.

Derek Monypeny, Director of Yucca Valley Material Lab’s Music Program.

Born in the Arizona desert, a veteran of multiple explorations into the Sahara desert via Morocco and Western Sahara, and now a resident of the Mojave, Derek Monypeny sees his musical mission as adding to and expanding on what he calls the "desert continuum;" the psychedelic sirocco swirl of desert-based stringed instruments played with utter abandon by musicians the world over.

Derek is a former member of the bands Oaxacan (Oakland, CA), ALTO! (Portland, OR), and Sir Richard Bishop's Freak Of Araby Ensemble. In addition to his solo work, he has an ongoing duo project with Bryan Hillebrandt, OAE (Oakland Afternoon Ensemble). He has performed and toured with artists such as Bill Orcutt, Jozef van Wissem, Eva Aguila/Kevin Shields, Arrington de Dionyso, and many others.