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The Antelope Valley is no stranger to influenza. In 1918, the Western Hotel was transformed into a clinic in response to the Spanish Influenza pandemic that infected approximately 500 million people worldwide. Despite its name, the Spanish Influenza did not originate in Spain. Research during the late 20th and early 21st century indicates that the Spanish flu first developed in Haskell County, Kansas in March of 1918. The 1918 influenza’s namesake stems from the fact that the Spanish government was the first government to officially recognize the pandemic. Haskell County was home to a large United States Army base called Camp Funston. Later renamed Fort Riley, the base housed all army personnel from the county. The first case of the Spanish flu within Camp Funston was reported on March 4th, 1918. A total of 1,127 cases were confirmed to have developed among the enlisted personnel at Camp Funston. The exact number of soldiers infected with influenza was likely much higher. The development of the Spanish Flu coincided with the latter portion of World War One, which had been raging in Europe since 1914. The United States officially entered the war in April of 1918 and was making preparations to mobilize the troops in early March. As such, army personnel from Camp Funston were being transferred to other army camps throughout the United States and overseas to Europe. It is within this context that the Spanish Flu was able to spread across the world so rapidly. Despite its relative isolation and lack of development, influenza eventually made its way to the Antelope Valley. Western Hotel owner Myrtie Webber assisted Mom Evert and Dr. Arwine in the treatment of locals afflicted with influenza. Mom Evert was universally admired by the residents of early Lancaster as she often helped to care for the sick and personally aided many townsfolk in the delivery of their children. Dr. Arwine was one of two doctors known to have resided in early Lancaster. As one of the few medical professionals available to the fledgling community, Dr. Arwine relied heavily upon volunteers willing to put themselves at risk for the community. Due to the generosity and courage of individuals like Mom Evert and Myrtie Webber, many early Antelope Valley residents were able to recover from the Spanish Flu. Ultimately, the Spanish flu presented as only a minor setback in the development of the Antelope Valley. It did not take long for the various industries of the Antelope Valley to bounce back from the pandemic. The railroad and aqueduct, as well as the mining and agricultural industries, would continue to serve as sources of employment and income for local residents. The Spanish Flu not only serves as a case study for how to respond to a modern pandemic but also as a message of hope. Despite the Spanish Flu's massive impact throughout the world, society recovered and life returned to some semblance of normalcy. Through collective sacrifice and generosity, society persevered.

The experience of walking the Lancaster Museum by myself during the stay-at-home mandate was surreal. My mind went back to a time when, as a young man, I visited the large sacred temples in Guatemala. Those walls were filled with so many wonderful art pieces and images larger than life, and the museum walls were the same, but with art created during the life of the #countmein project. The blueish color on the MOAH walls made me feel tranquil and calm. It wasn’t selected at random; the blue walls produce that calming effect on purpose, which is so needed in these difficult times. I asked Robin Rosenthal to write some final thoughts about this project. She worked extremely hard to make this project a success and showed not only her leadership skills, but also her natural ability to approach and engage with the community. Robin inspired me to do the best I could in my small role, and she positively affected all of us involved in the project. She wrote: “Naturally I feel a bittersweet mix of emotions. Yes, there is sadness and disappointment that MOAH can’t just throw open the doors and have everyone in to see their beautiful contributions to the exhibit. At the same time I have so much gratitude for the amazing experiences of the last year—for the deeper understanding of this neighborhood surrounding the Museum; for its people, so many of whom I now count as friends; and for the pleasures of working with my fellow Artists-in-Residence and Artist Partners.” Jane Szabo stepped in as the photographer for the #countmein project. Her task was to capture the faces and spirit of the community, and she did an amazing job. The subjects of the photographs, which were all taken before the stay-at-home orders went into effect, are full of hope and life. Her style is straightforward, and the way she captured the light and shadows is fabulous. This pandemic changed the perspectives and lives of so many people in our community. Right now, life is not what we are used to, but it is our new normal. Jane’s photographs are indeed a testament of how the community was and how we all now look forward to beginning the healing process. I also asked Jane to share with me her final thoughts about working with the community. “The photographic portraits I created for the series #countmein celebrate the people that live, work and visit the area surrounding MOAH in Lancaster, CA. It was a powerful experience to make frequent visits to the area, and explore businesses and venues I might never had the chance to enter if it weren’t for this project. I worked long days, meeting and photographing so many people during each visit. And as I drove home each evening, I was exhausted, but exhilarated by the spirit of the people I encountered. I send a hearty thank you to Lancaster and all the participants in this project that trusted me, shared their stories, and welcomed me in to their worlds. One day, social distancing will be a thing of the past, and I will happily return to Lancaster to further explore this welcoming city.” As I walked past the art installations, my eye was drawn to a couple of the art pieces, quilts made of yarn and Polaroid pictures. The yarn frames each picture, which were taken at #countmein events, at the Antelope Valley Senior Center, and the HCA Senior Housing. Like a grandmother’s blanket enveloping the picture subjects in a hug. Though the show will not be in person, all viewers will still feel the comfort of the quilt. It also reflects the City of Lancaster embracing its different communities, especially in this time of need. Even though the world will look different when it starts up again, the city has kept us and will continue to keep us safe. The core belief of the #countmein project was to invite everyone to participate in the Census process and be counted as a member of the community, because every individual makes a big difference in our community. While we are keeping our distance and protecting our loved ones at home, the much needed resources the city receives when people fill out the census were put into use immediately by our Governor and our City Managers. This is why it is imperative to fill out the Census, in 2020 and beyond, and to be counted. Our state will get the resources and representation it needs to provide necessary assistance to each of its communities and keep them running, but only if people do their part. While many places will soon begin to open their doors again, the MOAH will remain closed to the public until further notice. However, our work continues. The museum administration and staff are continuing with their mission to make this #countmein show, one of the most important shows of the year, happen. Andi Campognone and Robert Benitez will present a virtual tour of the entire art show. No matter what, the MOAH is with and for the community. The museum is leading, innovating, and focusing their efforts on becoming one of the best museums in the world, regardless of circumstances, and this show is proof that they are on their way there.

Laura Aguilar, Stillness #26, 1999, gift of the Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016, jointly acquired by the Vincent Price Art Museum Foundation and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, © Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016 Today, we're excited to share new acquisitions by Laura Aguilar (1959–2018) and rafa esparza (b. 1981). LACMA and the Vincent Price Art Museum (VPAM) will jointly own these works, thanks to the museum's AHAN group, generous donors from LACMA and the VPAM Foundation, and the Laura Aguilar Trust. LACMA and VPAM have a long-standing partnership centered on collection sharing which has manifested through several exhibitions, including Chinese Ceramics from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2017), Passing through the Underworld: Egyptian Art from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2018), and Mariana Yampolsky: Photographs from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2018). This joint acquisition, the first acquisition collaboration between the two museums, is a strong example of two Los Angeles institution's commitment in elevating Latinx art and artists. Acquired works include a four-panel adobe painting by rafa esparza and 21 photographic prints by Laura Aguilar, including major pieces such as Three Eagles Flying (1990), Don't Tell Her Art Can't Hurt (Part A-D) (1993), and works from Aguilar's Nature Self Portrait, Stillness, Clothed/Unclothed, Plush Pony, and Grounded series. Laura Aguilar, Three Eagles Flying, 1990, jointly acquired by the Vincent Price Art Museum Foundation, with funds provided by the Foundation and the Newton Family, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, with funds provided by Frank Masi and Donna Kolb and the Ralph M. Parsons Fund, © Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016 Laura Aguilar, Plush Pony #18, 1992, gift of the Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016, Jointly acquired by the Vincent Price Art Museum Foundation and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, © Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016 Laura Aguilar was an American photographer from the San Gabriel Valley who was active in local, national, and international art and activist circuits. Her photographs and videos traverse performative, feminist, and queer art genres, and grapple with deeply personal and political subject-matter. Her practice intuitively evolved over time as she struggled to negotiate and navigate her ethnicity and sexuality, her challenges with depression and auditory dyslexia, and the acceptance of her body. While the artist struggled most of her life to communicate with words, she emerged as a powerful voice for numerous and diverse marginalized groups. In 2017, VPAM organized Laura Aguilar: Show and Tell, the artist's first comprehensive retrospective and one of the most important exhibitions the museum has produced. Curated by Sybil Venegas, the exhibition prompted a surge of interest in Aguilar's practice, seeding pathways for acquisitions by major national institutions such as the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Whitney Museum of American Art. Aguilar passed away shortly after the exhibition closed. Laura Aguilar, Clothed/Unclothed #34, 1994, gift of the Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016, jointly acquired by the Vincent Price Art Museum Foundation and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, © Laura Aguilar Trust of 2016 In 2021, the exhibition will travel to the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art, one of the nation's premier organizations dedicated to LGBTQ art and culture, completing a national tour that began at VPAM and made subsequent stops at the National Museum of Mexican Art, Chicago and the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, Miami. The accompanying publication, co-produced with the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center, situated Aguilar's work in relation to feminist and Latinx scholarship and won several book awards. Locally, Aguilar's seminal work, Three Eagles Flying, will be included in the touring exhibition Golden Hour: California Photography from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2021). As part of an ongoing program funded by the Art Bridges and Terra Foundation, this exhibition will bring selections from LACMA's collection to a range of Southern California institutions, including its first stop at the Museum of Art & History in Lancaster (January 23–April 11, 2021). rafa esparza, ...we are the mountain, 2019, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, purchased with funds provided by AHAN: Studio Forum, 2020 Art Here and Now purchase, and the Vincent Price Art Museum Foundation, with funds provided by Kevan and Norma Newton, Los Angeles, installation view, staring at the sun, MASSMoCA, North Adams, MA, January 19, 2019–January 2, 2020, © rafa esparza, photo by Kaelan Burkett, courtesy of the artist and Commonwealth and Council Best known as a performance artist, rafa esparza began his career in visual arts as a painter yet was unable to relate to the "old master" works he studied as a student. He turned instead to performance, making art with his body among the landscapes of Los Angeles. esparza's multidisciplinary practice over the past decade reveals his interests in history, personal narratives, and kinship, his own relationship to colonization and the disrupted genealogies that it produces. His recent projects are grounded in laboring with land and adobe-making, a skill learned from his father, Ramón Esparza. In 2019, esparza presented a series of adobe paintings as part of staring at the sun, his solo exhibition at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Massachusetts. Curated by Marco Antonio Flores, the exhibition showcased the artist's return to his painting practice and included portraiture, landscape, and abstraction against the backdrop of an earthen floor and walls. The artist's hand-crafted brown space, located within the white walls of the museum, raised poignant questions around art, beauty, historical narratives, decolonization, and institutional access for queer people of color in the Americas.

The Tuskegee Memorial was established in 1999 as part of the “Aerospace: Walk of Honor.” It is located immediately adjacent to the Western Hotel Museum and can be viewed from Lancaster Boulevard. The plaque depicts a P-51 North American “Mustang” in flight. At the beginning of World War Two, the United States military was still highly segregated and many jobs within the US armed forces were restricted from minorities. With social pressure from the Black community and an ever-increasing need for capable pilots, the military enlisted approximately 1,000 Black men as fighter pilots. These men trained at a base near the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and were sent overseas as the first African-American fighting squadron. The first Tuskegee combat squadrons were tasked with harassing enemy supply lines in North Africa. As the war progressed, the Tuskegee airmen continued to distinguish themselves as excellent fighter pilots. Eventually, they were entrusted with increased responsibility and began flying missions in Italy and Germany. In 1944, the Tuskegee Airmen started painting the tails of their aircraft red. From this act, the famous nickname of “red tails” was coined. At that point in the war, the Tuskegee Airmen were mainly tasked with escorting bomber crews through heavily defended, Nazi-controlled skies. These bombing runs were of extreme importance to the allied war effort and had a profound impact on enemy morale and manufacturing potential. The Tuskegee Airmen were so successful that the bomber crews they escorted began referring to them as “Redtail Angels.” By the end of World War 2, the Tuskegee Airmen had flown more than 1,500 missions, shot down over 400 aircraft, and never lost a single bomber aircraft to enemy fighters. Photos courtesy of MOAH Collections

Edwin with Light Refractions at MOAH Edwin Vasquez works in photography, installation, mixed media painting and assemblage, videography, and the written word to express a combination of social critique, environmental activism and pure aesthetic delight. Drawn to vibrant colors, inspiring accidents of juxtaposition and synchronicity, and with a restless, relentless attention to the details of glorious ordinary life, Vasquez takes a lyrical, poetic approach to organizing the world around us to better reflect our true nature. L.A. WEEKLY: When did you first know you were an artist? EDWIN VASQUEZ: I grew up in Xelaju, the second most important city in Guatemala, known as the cradle of culture. My father was a renaissance man and took me to visit his friend artists, which inspired me to start painting since I was very young. What is your short answer to people who ask what your work is about? My work is fearless in its social commentary, I use rich forms and colors to provoke passionate responses to ideas about the environment and human nature. What would you be doing if you weren’t an artist? I recently retired, after having worked for a grocery store for 35 years. I could be writing poetry and short stories, since that’s one of my passions. Did you go to art school? Why/Why not? My priority in this country was to learn the language as soon as possible. I took some art classes in a community college; however, in order to survive, I had to find a regular job. Why do you live and work in L.A., and not elsewhere? I live in the Antelope Valley because housing is more affordable and I have plenty of space to make art. When was your first show? It was at the former Lancaster Museum, which was located near Sierra Highway, in 1993. When is/was your current/most recent/next show? The Light of Space at Lancaster MOAH, February 8-April 19, 2020. I had an installation of 200 8 x 8 inch digital images entitled Light Refractions. It was a series using fractals and photos of planets and constellations from NASA. Currently also at MOAH, my collaboration piece with Jeanne Dunn, The Bird House Where Nobody Lives, is part of the exhibit Collaborate & Create. Also, I am included in their #CountMeIn exhibit as an Artist in Residence. What artist living or dead would you most like to show with? I would love to show with Bradford J. Salamon because his work is inspiring. Do you listen to music while you work? If so what? I do. My favorite Guatemalan singer-songwriter is Ricardo Arjona. Also, I love to listen to Italian singer Laura Pausini and French singer Lorenzo Jovanotti. On Friday mornings, I listen to WHRB 95.3 (Harvard Radio), when they play the best jazz from around the world. Website and social media handles, please! edwinvasquez.net Facebook: facebook.com/edwin.vasquez.963 Instagram: @edwinvasquez YouTube: edwinvasquez100 Edwin Vasquez, Country in Distress (June 2020)

Is your museum still open and operating with certain staff members coming in to work? We are closed to the public but we are definitely still working. We understand losing income is real so we gave our staff new assignments and tasks so they would still receive a paycheck. Many of them are working from home. This closure has actually been a very productive time for us. We have managed to complete some long overdue maintenance and upgrades to our galleries and it has challenged all of us to think outside of the box on ways we may continue to serve the community while our buildings are closed. Andi Campognone MOAH Staff Emily Krebs completing condition reports Are you in touch with your members, fans and donors? Are they still interested in going to the museum or your programming or are they showing hesitation due to their finances due to the stock market slump or fears of the virus? Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised to see so many of our members and donors renew their memberships and additionally make donations to our Artist Relief Fund. StartFragment In your opinion, how long will this temporary shutdown of the LA art world last? MOAH plans to be open by July, maybe before that, but we will definitely be implementing some new policies and procedures during our open hours, including staggered/timed entry, lowering attendance limits in galleries, providing multiple sanitation stations throughout the museum, requiring gloves, masks and other protective equipment for staff interacting with the public, requiring visitors to wear masks, posting signage requesting/reinforcing social distancing behavior for visitors and discontinuing large group events like public receptions, performances, etc. MOAH’s Young Artist Workshop take home craft kits. How are you overcoming the challenges we are now facing? This is an excellent time to reevaluate the effectiveness of programs, community engagement and exhibition opportunities. Obviously the virtual exhibition is an option but not really a new idea. We will continue our regular video presentation of all of our exhibitions on our website but with feedback from our artist community we realized other opportunities are needed. We have partnered with Destination Lancaster for our annual juried exhibition, which will obviously be online this year, to offer paid opportunities to artists for their work that will be used in the promotion of Lancaster as a travel destination. The artists will receive a stipend for the work and the art will be dispersed through marketing campaigns in the form of postcards at trade shows, in hotels and at the visitor center. We are also expanding our monograph and catalog publication program to include some fun options for both artists and visitors like all ages coloring books. We reinvented our monthly Young Artist Workshop to a weekly free take home craft kit for parents with children at home looking for educational activities. This program regularly served around 50 families monthly. Now we are serving 300 families a week with these fun take home kits. Also, with families in mind, MOAH staff developed a children’s YouTube channel @JoshuaJackrabbit complete with dozens of workshop videos and will soon include our educational trunks too. MOAH staff member Kacey Manjarrez designing marketing campaign. How can Artillery’s readers help museums and artists while they are closed? I think the obvious response here is to donate money if you are able. We are fortunate that MOAH is a municipal museum and we have a very strong fundraising Foundation that supports our programming. We are not forced to rely on donations to operate which puts us in a unique situation. However most museums do rely on donations for operations – give if you can and buy art! There are a number of affordable art auctions online right now that are supporting artists in need. MOAH staff Emily Krebs, Carlos Chavez and Andi Campognone laying out art for upcoming show. Some art professionals are optimistic, and others worried. How do you feel? Is there anything surprisingly positive you have noticed so far? Or something you feel you or we all could learn from this? I have been working in this industry for over 30 years and I have never before experienced the kindness, generosity and spirit that has appeared in the last month. Community actually means something right now, it’s beautiful to see. It’s great to see artists helping artists, businesses helping businesses, all creating a sense of hope that is palpable. I am proud to be a part of this community.

The Lancaster Museum of Art and History, in collaboration with Los Angeles’ Thinkspace Gallery opened The New Vanguard which featured works by over 55 artists from the New Contemporary Movement. The exhibition presented one of the largest cross-sections of artists working within the movement’s diverse vernaculars, ever shown within a museological context in California to date. Click Here to take a look at all the pieces with a series of images from Birdman and keep your eyes peeled on StreetArtNews for more updates.

Local artist Tina Dille, who is best known for her stunning Raven watercolor and acrylic creations, has been invited to participate in POW! WOW! Antelope Valley by painting a 16 feet by 25 feet mural during the event. The public is invited to come and watch Dille paint a mural featuring her raven muse, Penut, during the week-long event from Oct. 14 through 21. "I am so excited and honored to be among 24 top-notch contemporary artists, most flown in from across the nation, for a festive week of creating murals where everyone can watch the process from start to finish," Dille said. Dille's mural will be located near the Lancaster Museum of Art & History, at 767 W. Lancaster Blvd. Hosted by MOAH, the POW! WOW! will conclude with a block party from 2 to 6 p.m. Oct. 21. Dille said she typically creates her watercolors using 26 inch by 40 inch synthetic paper. Her participation in the mural event will stretch upon her talents, including size, working vertically and by using spray paints in addition to acrylics. The cultural event originated in Hawaii, but has since grown into a global network of artists, gallery shows, lecture series, mural projects and more. According to the MOAH website, founder Jasper Wong described the event as POW!, for the impact art has on a person, and WOW!, as the reaction that art has on a viewer. "Together, they form POW WOW, which is a Native American term that describes a gathering that celebrates culture, music and art," writes Wong. Dille explained her inspiration. "That little Penut sure did open up a door for me," Dille said. "I had the extraordinary experience of sharing my home and studio with Penut back in 2014. I am still painting ravens and proud to be a part of this event." By participating in the POW! WOW! event, Dille said she will be switching gears as an artist. "I want to continue on with this public art," she said. "Museum and gallerias are wonderful venues, but public, outdoor art is a great concept." The event will include a car show, live music and new exhibit opening at MOAH. For more information, visit www.lancastermoah.org.

POW! WOW! AV is coming back to the city of Lancaster. POW! WOW! originated in Hawaii, in 2011, as a week-long event. The festival has since inspired similar street art festivals in cities and countries around the world, such as Taiwan, Long Beach, Israel, Singapore, Jamaica, Washington D.C., Guam, New Zealand, Netherlands and Germany. Lancaster did its first POW! WOW! in 2016, curated by POW! WOW! Hawaii. “We were excited because we were allowed to incorporate a couple of Antelope Valley artists, which turned out to be a great project,” Andi Campognone, operations manager for the Museum of Art and History said. POW! WOW! AV will celebrate its second year in Lancaster, from 2 to 6 p.m., Oct. 21. Antelope Valley artists contributed to this year’s POW! WOW! as well: Tina Dille from Tehachapi and Nuri Amanatullah. “We had more walls than artists in 2016 and so this year, everyone came out of the woodwork and said ‘We want a wall,’” Campognone said. The original 12 murals will be joined by an additional 18. The 2018 POW! WOW! AV artist line-up includes: Hueman (California), Super A (Netherlands), Lauren YS (California), Ekundayo (California), Jeff Soto (California), Christopher Konecki (California), Emily Ding (Texas), Amir Fallah (California), Mikey Kelly (California), Scott Listfield (Massachusetts), Carly Ealey (California), Andrew Hem (California), Aaron de la Cruz (California), Amy Sol (Nevada), Tran Nguyen (Vietnam), Julius Eastman (California), Dan Witz (New York), Jaune (Belgium), Slinkachu (Great Britain), Spenser Little (California), Darcy Yates (California), Craig “Skibs” Barker (California) and MOUF (Texas). Only one of the murals from 2016 will be painted over — a graffiti-style “Lancaster” mural near the Arco gas station at 10th Street West and Lancaster Boulevard, that was the only mural from 2016 to be tagged. By 2020 POW! WOW! AV will expand outside of the city’s downtown area, into residential neighborhoods. POW! WOW! AV comes together with a block party on Oct. 21, that is free to the community. “All the artists will be in attendance to sign autographs and we’ll have special merchandise. It’s a really fun day,” Campognone said. There will be a car show along Lancaster BLVD, workshops including the POW! WOW! AV Print Lab hosted by this year’s artist-in-residence Amy Kaps, at MOAH: CEDAR, a workshop at Lancaster Performing Arts Center and special tours at the Western Hotel Museum. Six bands are scheduled to perform on the MOAH stage: Vultures of Vinyl, from 2 to 2:30 p.m.; Lazy Beam, from 2:45 to 3:15 p.m.; Thanks, Weird Puppy, from 3:30 to 4 p.m.; Jimini Picasso, from 4:15 to 4:45 p.m.; New Character, from 5 to 5:30 p,m.; and Witchin Alleys, from 5:45 to 6 p.m. In addition to the murals, the 2018 POW! WOW! will include temporary public art by artists who will hand-wire sculptures from telephone poles. Slinkachu, a London-based street installation and photographic artist “abandoned” little people on Lancaster Boulevard. “He’ll be setting up these little vignettes everywhere on the boulevard.” Campognone said. The whole project is curated like an exhibition between MOAH, Thinkspace Projects in Los Angeles and POW! WOW! Hawaii. “The artists all know that we need to be positive in sending messages and family friendly, celebrating life in a positive way,” Campognone said. Oakland-based artist Hueman (Allison Torneros) painted, on the Burns Pharmacy building on Genoa Avenue, off Lancaster Boulevard, a figurative and abstract mural inspired by renaissance drapery studies. She has contributed murals to POW! WOW! Hawaii previously and Long Beach. “The street art community is really small, so when I do get together for these mural festivals, I end up seeing a lot of my friends,” Hueman said. “And it’s really cool because all these murals are going up at the same time and you get to go down the street and see just so much creativity happening at once it’s really cool.” L.A-based artist Andrew Hem painted a mural of the giant robot Gundam on an Elm Avenue building, south of Lancaster Boulevard. “I always wanted to paint a Gundam, so this is a perfect opportunity,” he said during a break from painting. Hem grew up watching Gundam as a young boy. “He’s like a hero in Japan, so if you go to Japan there’s like a three-story figurine of a robot, it’s pretty incredible,” Hem said. “While I’m doing this, there’s kids that will ride their bike by, or walk by and it’s pretty awesome that they know about it, too.” He also has work featured in “The New Vanguard II” exhibition at MOAH, curated by Andrew Hosner of Thinkspace Projects in Los Angeles. The highly anticipated follow up to 2016’s successful first iteration of The New Vanguard, on view in tandem with this year’s POW WOW! Antelope Valley, will feature special solo projects by artists Chevrier, Barker and Brooks Salzwedel. A sequel to what was, in 2016, the most extensive presentation of work from the New Contemporary movement in a Southern Californian museum venue to date, The New Vanguard II, in keeping with the first, will present a diverse and expansive group of curated new works. Additionally, the exhibition will feature site specific installations by HOTTEA, Lawrence Vallieres and Hem, along with a group exhibit in the main gallery of more than 40 international, new contemporary artists. For details, visit www.lancastermoah.org or call 661-723-6250.

Before the 14 Freeway that we know today, Fremont Pass (also known as "Beale’s Cut" or "Newhall Pass") was one of the primary ways to enter the Antelope Valley from the Newhall area. The cut dates to the 1860s, serving as one of the oldest pathways into the Antelope Valley. In an interview with early pioneer Harold Sandberg in 1937, Harold recalls moving to the valley from Placentia in May 1890. Harold explains that they had a wagon, drawn by two horses, which they loaded all their belongings onto. On the back of the wagon, they hitched on a two-wheeled cart and the family cow, “Susie.” On the morning of the third day, as they got to Fremont Pass, they found an adjacent saloon with a sign that said, “Take a drink when you go up the pass, and take another drink when you go down,” along with another sign that read: “Team to pull you over the pass $2.00.” Harold thought it was too much to spend, so he decided to try and make it over the pass without help. When he was unable to make it over the top, he reluctantly ended up paying the fee for the team. According to Harold, the saloon keeper laughed upon his retreat saying, “I knew you’d be back… they all start up bravely, but they have to come back.” With the aid of the team, Harold was able to get over the summit and continue on. Eventually, Harold obtained land in the west Antelope Valley where he built a farm (c. 1893), raising pigs and potatoes. On April 2, 1897, the 160-acre homestead was officially recorded and in 1904, his wife (Marion Grant) began operating an apple orchard. In 1914, when construction of the new Ridge Route began, Harold decided to start a hotel and cafe business. Sandberg built his hotel at a site south of Quail Lake, formerly an old stagecoach stop, and named it the Sandberg Summit Hotel. Here travelers could enjoy a meal, relax, or stay the night while their automobile was being serviced in the adjacent Sandberg Garage. A travel guidebook (c. 1920) listed the as having “25 good rooms, most with running water and toilet," that cost somewhere between $1.50 and $3.00. Lunch at the cafe was 85¢, while dinner is listed as being $1.00 While Sandberg’s Garage offered “nearly complete service" and was "never closed.” "Gurba, Norma H. Lancaster. Arcadia, 2005. MOAH Collections and SCVHistory.com"

Southern California was a booming metropolis for budding car culture due to the availability of dry lake beds to the east of Los Angeles, eventually allowing the development of “legal” drag racing or "hot rodding" to begin. Dry lakes were ideal for racing as they were secluded and provided a hard, flat surface where creative car folk could get together to share ideas, learn from the masters, and compete to be the fastest for the weekend. The Ralph De Palma Racing Test Camp, located on Rogers Dry Lake (also known as "Muroc" and the current site of Edwards Air Force Base), was used to test race cars and set speed records from 1926 to 1933. Over time, Muroc played host to many racing events including the Southern California Champion Sweepstakes (1927) and one of the first known amateur speed trials, named the "Muroc Roadster Races," sponsored by the Gilmore Oil Company of Los Angeles. Before the season ended in 1931, the "Muroc Racing Association" had formed which helped formalize the meets; the association was complete with officers, a race program, and an electrical timer to clock speeds. Courtesy of MOAH Collections and The Glen and Forey Wall Photo Collection

The earliest recorded burial in Lancaster took place in March of 1885. At this point there was no established cemetery or burial grounds, so the rancher was laid to rest beneath a Joshua tree on the eastern outskirts of town. The first official cemetery was established during the 1890s, owned by the Lutheran church. In 1902, Benjamin F. Carter donated five acres of land to the town of Lancaster for use as a cemetery, which was officially named the Lancaster Cemetery and first used in April of 1903. During this time, local barber Sam McCracken used his barbershop's cellar as the town's morgue. He eventually left Lancaster, forcing the transportation of the deceased to Los Angeles for embalming. Wesley S. Mumaw saw an opportunity arise with the departure of barber/undertaker Sam McCracken, and set up his obituary and funeral home establishment in 1913. At that time, the location was on the corner of Date Avenue and 12th Street. 12th Street has since become Newgrove, with the original building still standing at the same corner. Wesley would be the first to introduce a horse-drawn hearse to the Antelope Valley in 1916, converting it into a motor vehicle in 1920 by taking the coach portion of the horse-drawn hearse and modifying it to fit the back of a Studebaker pickup truck. During the Great Depression, most businesses suffered to an extent, and Mumaw was not exempt. Records of the funeral home’s transactions from this time show a trend of payment through barter – such as a trade of so-many dozen eggs per month, saddles, tack, or exchange of physical labor. Founder Wesley S. Mumaw passed away in 1931, with his son Roy taking over the family business. Roy’s son Wesley J. Mumaw, an experienced military undertaker, purchased the business from his father in 1957. Wesley had a son, Jim, who also took over the family business after his mother’s death in 1991. Still family-owned and operating today, over 100 years and five generations later, the Mumaw Funeral Home is one of the longest-running businesses in the Antelope Valley. "Gurba, Norma H. Lancaster. Arcadia, 2005. Photo courtesy of MOAH Collections"