Friday Eye Candy: Social Pool in the Middle of Mojave Desert

Austrian artist Alfredo Barsuglia built an eleven-by-five-feet pool, and placed it in an undisclosed location in the Mojave Desert, only accessible through GPS coordinates and a key provided by the MAK Center of Art and Architecture in West Hollywood. Called Social Pool, the pool seats two people and features an automatic, solar-panel operated filter and chlorine system.

A panorama of Social Pool in its beautiful surroundings; Image Courtesy of Alfredo Barsuglia.

According to Stephanie Weber, Assistant Curator at the MoMA, Barsuglia's work reminds us of Land-Art installations throughout the American West landscapes from the 1970s, commenting in part on the rampant destruction of our ecological systems. Barsuglia's piece also speaks to our consumption and entertainment driven lifestyle, where a journey of 2.5 hours by car via GPS assistance to get to a random pool is not viewed as an inconvenience, but rather a worthwhile and relaxing pursuit.

People enjoying Social Pool before the opening; Image Courtesy of Alfredo Barsuglia.

The pool opened for the public on April 1st, and will be available until September 30th. Reservations are now completely full, but in case one opens up, RSVP here.