Family & Art History

Gretchen Grunt Artist      Printmaker      Educator Gretchen Grunt is a fourth generation pioneering entrepreniual family member of 29 palms: The Family Lineage began in 1928, when Gretchen's great grandfather, Harry Johansing from pasadena, purchased the Oasis of Mara & the 29 Palms Inn as an investment & love for the desert landscape. Then in 1939, Gretchen's grandparents, Robert "Doc" & Claire Van Lahr (born Mary Claire Johnasing) moved to 29 Palms to manage the 29 Palms Inn. Immediately, her grandparents decided to have the Stubbs Brothers build the adobe cabins & entrust the east end of the Oasis of Mara to the Joshua Tree National Park Service, where the Joshua Tree National Park Headquarters & Visitor Center resides today on Utah Trail. Thirty-eight years later, in 1977, Doc & Claire decided to put the Inn on the market to sell. That is when Gretchen's mother & Father, Ronald Nicholas & Jane Grunt (born Jane Van Lahr) decided it was time to change their way of life, from living on the waters of San Francisco Bay with their houseboat & almost finished family home at Strawberry Point, to moving to the dry desert landscape to be the next caretakers of the Oasis of Mara & the 29 Palms Inn. (The Houseboat built by Jane & Ron still floats on the Inn pond) Today, Jane & her second husband, PaulFrancis Smith, caretake the property with much love & admiration for ALL of the previous generations of people that lived & cared for the Oasis of Mara: Paiute, Chemehuevi, Cahuilla, Serrano Indians, & the Pioneers who Followed! Mojave Desert Indians Oasis of Mara 29 Palms Inn 29 Palms Creative Center & Gallery PROFESSIONAL: 29 Palms Creative Center & Gallery Proprietor, Educator, Artist, Gallery Director 29 Palms, CA 2003 to Currently Annual Morongo Basin Open Studio Art Tours Participant 29 Palms, CA 2003 to 2009 Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council, Inc "Black, White & Red All Over" Group Show Audience Favorite Award, 3rd Place 29 Palms, CA 2008 Desert Institute at Joshua Tree National Park Printmaking Instructor 29 Palms, CA 2008 & 2009 Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council, Inc Events Director Joshua Tree, CA 2004 to 2006 Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council, Inc President  Joshua Tree, CA 2005 to 2006 Copper Mountain College Student Services Printmaking Instructor 29 Palms, CA 2004 to 2006 Frame Works Custom Picture Framer & Gallery Director San Luis Obispo, CA 1997 to 2003 Cuesta Community College Extended Education Instructor San Luis Obispo, CA 2003 to 2004 San Luis Artist's Gallery San Luis Obispo, CA 2001 to 2002 The Creamery Mural Project Mural Director San Luis Obispo, CA 2002 Direct Art Magazine, Vol. 7 New York, New York 2002 Limner Gallery "Spring Salon" Group Show New York, New York 2002 San Luis Obispo Arts Council Open Studios Los Osos, CA 2000 Fast Frame Group Show San Luis Obispo, CA 1996 The Pasadena Arts Council "Between the Dark and Daylight" Group Show Pasadena, CA 1995 Sonoma State Juried Student Show Rohnert Park, CA 1995 Cuesta College Juried Student Show San Luis Obispo, CA 1992 and 1993 29 Palms Inn Easter Celebration 29 Palms, CA 1992 EDUCATION: Idyllwild Arts "The Artist's Book" Workshop Laura Wait Idyllwild, CA 2010 Idyllwild Arts "Beyond Monotype" Workshop Ron Pokrasso Idyllwild, CA 2006 & 2007 Private Printmaking Instruction Melissa Paca 29 Palms, CA 2005 Private Printmaking Instruction Debora Iyall 29 Palms, CA 2004 to 2006 Sonoma State University Bachelor of Arts with Distinction Rohnert Park, CA 1993 to 1995 Cuesta Community College San Luis Obispo, CA 1989 to 1993 ISOMATA Summer Arts Idllywild, CA 1981 to 1984

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