“Backyard Oasis” symposium

drawing done from the view of my hotel room window,

Palm Springs, CA, November, 2010

+  1 December 2010  +


On November 20 and 21 I was in Palm Springs to attend “Backyard Oasis”, a symposium on the swimming pool in Southern California in the post WWII period. “Backyard Oasis” took place at the Palm Springs Art Museum and is part of a much larger project called “Pacific Standard Time.”


I never thought that an event such as "Backyard Oasis" which focused exclusively on the swimming pool would ever be considered and executed. But there it was. Fourteen speakers—historians, writers, museum professionals, educators, all had incredible and well researched presentations on swimming pools. I was enthralled to have been witness to the presentations and to meet some of the presenters. With a few pockets of brief opportunities I introduced some of them to my work. One of the speakers and I were in agreement, that had we had longer lead time she could have included me in her presentation. Those of us who were there at the symposium reconfirmed our beliefs that there is much to be said at many levels about a swimming pool and its history and relationship with mankind.


At "Backyard Oasis" the single greatest literary and repeated reference in my drawings and photos and swimming experiences is John Cheever's "The Swimmer" and it was presented several times by the speakers. Boy, did I feel moments of affirmation and a happy tap of the fingers with every mention of Cheever's story. Artists Richard Diebenkorn and David Hockney, especially Hockney were also mentioned at the symposium. They too exists as important and continuous influences in my work. I am a fan of the television series "The Sopranos”, "Man Men" and “Breaking Bad”. Imagine my delight at seeing familiar film clips of Tony Soprano and the ducks in his backyard pool, Don Draper swimming during a period of reflective moments in his life, and Walter White, the main character in "Breaking Bad" who has a backyard pool.


Busby Berkley, Esther Williams, "The Graduate", "Sexy Beast", "Sunset Boulevard", "The Springboard in the Pond" by Thomas A.P. van Leeuwen, The Beach Boys, Jan & Dean, Levittown, they were all at the symposium. When I was in grad school, one of the many papers I wrote was on the Case Study House project. Six months before her passing in 1988, as part of a group of grad students I visited with Ray Eames in her much publicized quintessential and centerpiece Case Study House home in Pacific Palisades. The Case Study House project and L.A. Modernism were also frequently mentioned in "Backyard Oasis." In fact the symposium centered on Southern California/L.A. Modernism.


I had approximately ten days to plan for my trip to Palm Springs. Not a lot of lead time there. But, I knew for certain that at the symposium I would have a chance to meet Jeff Wiltse, author of "Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America." Jeff was also one of the speakers. He and I initially exchanged email messages back in 2007. 


Back in 2007, my friend Susie Knoll arrived at the Betty Wright pool with a copy of Dick Cavett's review of Jeff's book that appeared on the New York Times website. "Here Dennis" Susie said to me "this might be of interest to you." She was correct. With my interest in the histories of many disciplines—art, jazz and pop music, design, social/political, architecture, swimming, I found Jeff's book to be the perfect square that I could never draw. As the title states, Jeff's book thoroughly takes the reader through the development of the public swimming pool in the Unites States in the first half of the 20th century with a focus on the Eastern/Northeastern part of the country. I highly encourage reading of it because of the social history narrative. It was nice to have met Jeff three years later after our initial correspondence exchange.


I thank my friend Susie and her husband Scott for pushing me, without missing a beat for me to go to the symposium at a time when I could least afford to go. Susie and Scott, as you know, my passions and commitments are to art and swimming. (Duh, no kidding.) 


And everybody I hope you remain as true to your passions and commitments as I do to mine. 


Carry on.