29 Palms: An Oasis of Murals

As you enter our City's downtown area, either from the west or the east, you will begin to see a series of huge, colorful murals reflecting our history from its early beginnings to recent events.  Painted by internationally renowned muralists, they have been commissioned by the City's Action Council for 29 Palms, Inc., a volunteer group of citizens interested in enhancing the City's cultural activities. The majority of murals are painted on exterior walls of the commercial buildings on both north and south walls along Adobe Road and east and west facing walls on 29 Palms Highway throughout the downtown business area. Several exceptions include a three-dimensional tableau at the Joshua Park Mining Town plaza on Mesquite Ave., north off the highway just east of 4 Corners downtown; a mural honoring the Oasis of Mara at the historic 29 Palms Inn, south off the highway at National Park Drive to Inn Avenue; and the "SKYCLIMBERS" sculpture located at the 29 Palms Historical Society's Old Schoolhouse Museum on National Park Drive. Two murals located in Luckie Park and another at Twentynine Palms High School were designed to celebrate the local youth community. Most mural sites have a parking area where visitors may stop and view and read the legend describing the scene. The walls are all lighted for evening viewing.

Twentynine Palms "Oasis of Murals" is probably the best thing to happen to this desert community in many a decade.  Kick-starting the renaissance of our small town in 1994, the Mural Project has  spawned more than just beautiful, historical artworks painted on its commercial buildings downtown — it has, in fact, encouraged a whole new art scene and created a rebirth of local shops, galleries, and visitor-friendly businesses.  Gaining worldwide recognition, Twentynine Palms has received media coverage from L.A. to New York to London, and hosted a Global Mural Conference here in the October 2000. 

For more information on the murals, visit www.oasisofmurals.org.