In 1986 Noah Purifoy (1917- 2004) retired from his position of many years on the California Arts Council and moved to a remote desert site north of Joshua Tree National Park, where, over the last eighteen years of his life, he created an ambitious series of over a hundred assemblage sculptures which sprawl over acres of the harsh, arid land.

Tsherin Sherpa, devoted Tibetan Buddhist artist, trained by his father in the art of traditional Tibetan Buddhist thangka painting, moves to San Francisco from Kathmandu and reinvents himself to fit in with his surroundings. In doing so, he skyrockets a career as modern artist, and launches the next wave in Tibetan contemporary art.