Intersect Palm Springs

GW Contemporary presented a curated selection of works at Intersect Palm Springs 2026 exploring light as both subject and material. The presentation brought together historic figures associated with the California Light and Space lineage alongside a younger international generation of artists whose practices extend perceptual abstraction into contemporary materials and processes.

Across painting, sculpture, and optical surfaces, the works shared an interest in how an artwork activates space rather than simply occupies it. Reflective glass, resin, sprayed aluminum, chromatic cut canvas, mica, and light-reactive finishes created subtle shifts in color and luminosity as viewers moved through the booth. Rather than a stylistic grouping, the presentation considered perception itself — how light, atmosphere, and viewer movement continually alter the experience of an artwork.

The installation emphasized dialogue across generations. Historic works demonstrated the foundational investigation into phenomenology and optical awareness that emerged in Southern California in the late 1960s, while contemporary artists expanded these ideas through new fabrication techniques and material technologies. Together, the works positioned perceptual abstraction not as a closed movement, but as an evolving language that continues to develop internationally.

Intersect Palm Springs marked an important moment for the gallery, presenting a cohesive curatorial vision beyond the walls of Laguna Beach and introducing several artists to new West Coast and desert collectors. The presentation also coincided with the U.S. debut of Australian painter Will Cooke, whose atmospheric sprayed paintings were exhibited at the gallery immediately following the fair.