Artist Kenny Irwin, Jr. was born in Palm Springs in May 1974. You could argue that Robolights was born with him. The artist claims that dating back to his infancy, he dreamt of a galactic realm populated by advanced robots, unknown life forms, and a vivid coherence rare for the human subconscious. The first son in a family in which he was preceded by eight older sisters (though he’d later have a brother), Irwin expressed an instant creativity that his large family nurtured. At just nine years old, Irwin crafted his first robot; a looming wooden effigy of technology measuring in at 10 feet tall.
Irwin’s upbringing allowed him plenty of liberty to explore his interests. He converted to the Muslim religion while continuing to serve as an active receptor to inspirational dreams that transcended spirituality and technology. With a rare gift of recalling dreams (estimated in the thousands) with crystal clarity, Irwin drew inspiration from a myriad of sources including his own subconscious world.
As he grew older, Irwin’s creativity held no regard for boundaries. And when it did, it simply incorporated them. Take, for example, his one-bedroom apartment where he resided while studying at Oakland’s California College of the Arts. Incorporating thousands of rolls of duct tape, thousands of pounds of tin foil, 61 televisions, and 33 personal computers, he redesigned the midcentury apartment to resemble a retrofuturistic spacecraft.
But what would easily become Irwin’s masterpiece was still growing back at home in Palm Springs. The family property at 1077 E Granvia Valmonte had become consumed by neon cybernetic superbeings, dayglo obelisks of absurdity, and lights upon lights upon lights. Since 1986, when Irwin was just 12 years old, he’d been toiling away at a DIY sci-fi epic that would become synonymous with Christmas in Palm Springs. That first year, Irwin installed over 15,000 Christmas lights accentuating robot statues assembled from discarded circuitry and junkyard scraps. A little over a decade later, the Christmas lights would number just over 6 million.
Surrounded by angry neighbors and with an entire city against him, Irwin decided to dim the lights after the 2018 holiday season. Guests turned out like it was the last Christmas in Palm Springs. But Irwin was already contemplating a less restrictive future for RoboLights. As early as 2015, he had publicly discussed expanding the attraction into an amusement art park. In this way, RoboLights somewhat paralleled the Luna Luna art installation .
As Irwin continues to raise money for RoboLights’ future, his artistry has also gained more recognition. In 2019, the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit held an exhibition of Irwin’s work. They also published an accompanying book entitled Kenny Irwin: The RoboLights Project, Palm Springs 1986 – 2017. Irwin is directly raising funds by selling robot sculptures through his Facebook page. Appointments to see RoboLights can be made by sending a text to (760) 774-0318. In the meantime, those ready to trade a white Christmas in Palm Springs for a neon pink, yellow, green, or orange one with golden mannequin reindeer are just going to have to hold on a while longer.
Photo credit: RoboLights Facebook Page