"Hidden Leisure"

Nestled among the brown hills spreading out from Highway 74 in Palm Desert is Aerie Art Garden, a two and a half acre nature sanctuary and art garden, where an array of activities and events take place through out the season. The peace, quiet and the art of Bruce and Clonard Thomas, the garden's guides and owners, offer an escape to wedding celebrants, corporation "big wigs" and ordinary folk interested in art.

A hike on one of the groomed trails often startles a covey of quail that resides in the underbrush. The quiet here is sometimes shattered with the rushing together, cooing and cawing, and taking-to-the-sky birds. "The male quail stands up on a rock, guarding the others. He tells them when it's safe to eat and he signals it's time to go when danger (people) is nearby," explains Clonard, delighted that such a show of nature takes place in her backyard.

Scattered throughout the garden are the sculptures by Bruce, an artist who captures free-form elements planting art here and there on the garden grounds. He is a builder of fiberglass and acrylic sculptures, one of which is called Wind Sail, representing a moment of fresh air caught in time. His outdoor work is just as peaceful as the surroundings.

In the sky, Clonard points to a red-tailed hawk, wings spread and gliding to seemingly nowhere. "The bird's tail gives a red glimmer when flying. The color is on the under side of the tail feathers," she says. "This bird of prey used to be a symbol for our garden, but with more people in this cove many hawks moved out. So we changed our symbol to a raven."

"Much of the wildlife here comes from the west where there's a 100,000 acre game preserve," explains Clonard. One lowly mountain lion makes an occasional appearance in the garden and most in the area know him. "He's looking for a female and has been for years," she adds.

The two and a half-acre garden sits on 20 acres of land scattered with old cabins. The Thomas' acquired the property piece by piece over several decades. "The government used to give you five acres of land called jack rabbit homesteads," Clonard says from the far end of the gallery's terrace which has sweeping views of Cat Canyon Wash and the Joshua Tree Monument. "We have eight old buildings. The property consists of eleven parcels and every time land joining us came up for sale we bought it."

Tucked deep under the long sloping roof that leads from the outside the 1936 structure is the art gallery, where Clonard's watercolor "jewels of the desert" in brilliant red, blue, green and yellow are hung. Hidden within many is Native American Kachina-doll-like images. Owned by a few past US presidents Clonard's work is known for its bright colors. Tribal spirit-uality is the focus of much of her paintings.

The Thomas' work stems from their knowledge of the desert culture and environment and also from their international travels. The couple has painted all over the world, and the gallery is filled with Bruce's extra-ordinary animal paintings that were conceived on several African painting tours. Bruce paints animals and plein air landscapes, while Clonard is known for her abstract "Sun" series.

The garden has a party pavilion that accommodates up to 200 people. There are also garden and gallery tours by appointment for art and nature aficionados. The couple's community involvement centers on their artist and naturalist lifestyle. Bruce presents "Create Your Life as a Work of Art" program to corporations, a hands-on watercolor class with top executives. "Even though art is a right brained process, they paint fabulous paintings," Clonard comments. The couple also represents the Indian Wells Tennis Master's Series as the official artists. In March some 100 paintings are displayed throughout the Stadium. They also teach plein air watercolor at the Living Desert February and March. A creative oasis in the desert, this sculpture garden, workshop area and nature conservatory offers an expedition in the rough-and-ready Palm Desert hills for groups who seek a getaway that's not so far from the maddening crowd.