We are living in a modern society with countless rules, regulations, and social norms.
It's very rare to find a community that's "free" nowadays - where people can live however they want, without laws or limitations.
In Southern california, there is a campsite called slab city where people are living freely, off the grid.
The artists have created art installments like the Salvation mountain and East Jesus, representing the local culture and supportive community.
Slab City is located close to Niland, California and is a free campsite and alternative living community.
The people here live without electricity and running water - but instead, there are no mortgages to pay either. Everyone lives their own way of life.
Originally, the location of Slab city used to be an old WWII base, Marine Barracks Camp Dunlap, and the name originated from the slabs of concrete that remained of the old military names.
A small group of people from all over the world lives here year-round, but the population is ever-changing as most people come here during the winter and only stay for a few months.
Most of the people living in Slab city are either retirees or victims of poverty and homelessness.
This place offers them a social community and activities a golf course, sculpture garden, live music stages, social clubs and a community library.
Salvation Mountain is an art construct located at the entrance of Slab City.
It was created by "slabber" and artist Leonard Knight, who worked on the "mountain" for over 25 years.
He created it from adobe, straw, and thousands of gallons of lead-free paint, and covered it in positive religious messages like "God is Love".
The Christian artist was spreading God's message of love with hot air ballons, but after the balloons had failed several times in this remote location near the salton sea, he got inspired to get active in a different way.
Knight knew that God wanted him to continue spreading his positive message of love.
Leonard Knight passed away a few years ago but his work is being honored and sustained to keep the spirit of the project alive.
Salvation Mountain is a literal man-made mountain 28 years in the making, covered in half a million gallons of latex paint. What started as a small monument made of dirt and painted cement became, over time, a sprawling adobe and hay-bale mountain complex, with peripheral structures made of telephone poles, tires, and car windows, as well as art cars and sculptures, all painted in a patchwork of stripes and color blocks of whatever paint was donated that week.— Aaron Huey, National Geographic
'East Jesus' is a sculpture garden located within Slab City.
The founder of East Jesus, Charlie Russell, originally came to Slab City to work together with Knight.
He quickly got fascinated by the idea of Slab City being the "last free place on earth", quit his job, packed all his belongings, and started creating sculptures to create his two car art pieces.
Russel's vision was to create a sustainable, habitable, ever-changing art installation, mostly from discarded materials that were repurposed, reused or recycled.
The name East Jesus doesn't actually hold religious meaning, it's a colloquialism for the middle of nowhere beyond the edge of services.
East Jesus encourages visitors to imagine a world without waste in which every action is an opportunity for self-expression. Assemblage and mixed-media art covers nearly every inch of the interior and exterior of the operations and hospitality facilities. Sculptures and installations are constantly in development throughout the campus. East Jesus is a living, growing, and ever-changing artwork that embraces the varied voices of the thousands of contributing artists who have added to the installation in the past and will continue to do so in the future. The primary purpose of the curators and the artists in residence is to maintain and protect this unique collaborative canvas for the enjoyment, expression, and inspiration of artists of all mediums.
© Sirwinchester
