After seeing a show at Pappy & Harriet’s I decided I wanted to see Desert X, the latest southern California exhibition taking over the internet. It includes some amazing, celebrated artists as well. Doug Aitken, for instance, blew our minds when we saw his Electric Earth at the Geffen Contemporary earlier this year. Glenn Kaino is a leader when it comes to innovative social commentary. Despite the roster, it just wasn’t worth it.

We were on vacation, so we were feeling exceptionally relaxed— that relaxation turned to intense frustration after we scoured DesertX.org. It insisted that in order to see the exhibit’s map, I would need to download Google Maps. But what if I preferred Waze? Also why do I need a map— not like the maps you see in brochures you get at museums— but a map that had scattered coordinates over a course of nearly 40 miles. 40 miles to see 14 pieces. I don’t care how beautiful Doug’s mirrored house is, I consider saving my mileage and gas a work of art too.  And anyway, we usually go to exhibits when we want to escape, but it’s difficult to immerse yourself when you see more traffic than art.

You’ve definitely seen the exhibit while lying in bed perusing your Instagram feed, and honestly that’s the best way to experience it. When you’re there in real life the works were, without exception, blocked by shameless selfie-takers. We should also mention that Richard Prince’s Third Place is now no longer because of vandalism and theft, so we no longer had that opportunity for the perfect photo to tag #desertselfie.

We value the artistry. We love that the art is free. We admire the idea that the desert inspires, but this is less of an exhibit for art and more of an exhibit on the big problem with the social media generation—they’re more interested in looking like they appreciate the art rather than appreciating the art.