Aleksandra Zee: Geometric Wood Art Rooted in the Mojave Desert

In the heart of California’s high desert where sunlight carves shadows into geometry and time slows to a meditative rhythm - artist Aleksandra Zee has found her muse. Based in Twentynine Palms, her wooden sculptures, wall hangings, and installations breathe with the spirit of the landscape, forming a dialogue between light, form, and the quiet energy of the Mojave.

What began years ago as small experiments in a basement studio has evolved into a full-time practice now collected in homes, galleries, and public spaces across the country. For Zee, it’s not just about creating art, it’s about shaping experiences that connect people to nature, balance, and light.

“Working with wood became an intuitive language for me,” Zee shares. “It’s a way to merge geometry, light, and texture into something both grounding and transformative.”

From Oakland to the High Desert

Before finding her way to Twentynine Palms, Aleksandra honed her craft in Oakland, where she first fell in love with woodworking while creating displays for Anthropologie. That early fascination with materials and form became the foundation for a practice that bridges art, design, and architecture.

When she eventually moved to the Morongo Basin, everything changed.

“The desert became an essential collaborator in my process,” she says. “Its stillness, its light, and its vastness inform how each piece interacts with its environment.”

The slower pace of desert living reshaped not only her work but her rhythm. The expansive stillness of the Mojave allowed her to listen more deeply to her materials, her intuition, and her surroundings.

Geometry, Light, and the Desert as a Muse

Zee’s work lives at the intersection of brutalism and nature incorporating bold geometry softened by natural textures and warm tones. Each piece is a study in balance and light, inviting the environment to participate in the artwork.

“Some of my new pieces aren’t fixed,” she explains. “They let light pass through, adapt to their environment. In a sense, light becomes part of the sculpture.”

Her collections, including Illume and Let the Light In, embody this philosophy: a continuous exploration of light, shadow, and material that transforms every space they inhabit. These desert-inspired wood artworks evoke serenity and architectural precision, making them ideal for design lovers drawn to modern, nature-infused interiors.

Art That Lives and Breathes With You

For Aleksandra, creating is about connection between artist and environment, material and space, client and maker. Her practice includes custom commissions, made-to-order pieces, and large-scale installations, all designed to become part of a client’s personal story. Check our her handwoven textile collaboration with Soukie Modern and SUN SUN SUN collab with Papou.

“Customization is a conversation,” she says. “I listen to how someone wants to feel in their space, then design something that becomes part of their story.”

Her ideal collector values presence and authenticity. Someone who views art not as décor, but as a living piece that evolves with light, memory, and emotion. 

Sustainability and Creative Stewardship

Sustainability is at the core of Zee’s process. She works primarily with FSC-certified wood, repurposes materials whenever possible, and sources locally to minimize environmental impact. Beyond her studio practice, she also invites others to explore the tactile joy of woodworking through hands-on workshops and creative collaborations.

This October, Aleksandra is showing her work as part of the Highway 62 Art Tours Studio #21 - across the Morongo Basin, an annual open studio event celebrating local artists of Joshua Tree, Yucca Valley, and Twentynine Palms. Visitors can experience her process firsthand which is a rare opportunity to see how light, wood, and geometry come together in her desert studio.

“Living and working in the desert feels like being part of a larger creative ecosystem,” she reflects. “We’re all contributing to the cultural landscape of this place - artists, builders, dreamers. It’s a beautiful thing to be part of.”

Where to Find Her Work

You can explore more of Aleksandra Zee’s desert-inspired wood sculptures and wall art at aleksandrazee.com or follow her creative journey on Instagram @aleksandrazee .

From wood and shadow, Aleksandra Zee crafts more than art, she builds moments of stillness, connection, and light that remind us how deeply design can root us to the places we call home.