The Calzona Prize was a contest in 2016 that aimed “to transform the land by means of creation, as well as transform the idea that the desert is an empty place.”

In early 2016, the Calzona Collective released a call for participation in the first, and maybe occasionally offered, Calzona Prize. The theme was to relate the  Colorado Desert Region. Proposed projects were to be of some significance to the Calzona area and the interests of the collective.

In June of 2016 the prize was awarded to a proposal presented by Debby and Larry Kline! The lot in Calzona was formally conveyed to the Klines in August of 2016! Congratulations and welcome to the Collective!

We would like to continue the prize, but none of the artists involved currently hold lots in Calzona that they are willing to give away as a prize. We are busy making our own various projects. If a lot became available through the kindness of philanthropy, the Collective would be very interested in holding another Calzona Prize in the future. Inquires can be sent to Brett Stalbaum through his easily discoverable UCSD contact info.

The Prize

Location Note: Google might locate the coordinates of the site as existing in on Main Street in Joshua Tree CA. This site is actually much closer to Big River, CA and Parker, AZ. Coordinates are:  34.12679504497572,-114.4207355797621. You can view it on Google Maps.