On Wednesday, July 11th the workshop, Folk Art Traditions and Beyond, started up in earnest.
We began our day with a trip to the Museum of International Folk Art. The group that I was a part of spent most of its time in the Girard Collection. Alexander Girard was an architect and collector of folk art. That last part just might be an understatement.
He also knew Georgia O'Keeffe. She and Juan Hamilton visited Girard and his wife in Morocco.
We were given the grand tour behind the scenes of the Museum of International Folk Art. We watched as pieces from the collection were photographed and labeled. It was a side of the museum that most folks never get to see.
From there we went back to the Ghost Ranch Santa Fe for lunch and a session with a young woman named Nancy Judd.
Nancy Judd makes recycled fashion. She combines unlikely materials (broken glass, junk mail, aluminum cans, plastic detergent bottles) into elegant fashion statements. If you'd like to know more you can check her out on line at www.colores.us/pulpfashion.htm
We began work on personal shrines using cardboard boxes and a variety of materials, both two- and three-dimensional. It is amazing the range of directions folks will go in when given an open-ended project!
Finally, John Reyna from Taos Pueblo came and talked to us from his personal experience as a member of the Pueblo and as an educator.
Thursday morning, July 12th, started with a lecture on Outsider Art by Mayra.
House with bottle fence and bottle tree in yard, near Madrid on The Turquoise Trail
This was followed by a visit from the potter and ceramicist, Joe Bova. He was unable to make an evening session with us, but dropped in for a few moments.
Nancy Walkup gave an overview of Georgia O'Keeffe's life with particular focus on her time in New Mexico.
We had a another scrumptious lunch and got aboard the vans for a trip to the village of Abiquiu and the home of Georgia O'Keeffe and the Ghost Ranch Abiquiu. Now, if you are like me, you are probably wondering how to pronounce this place name. Its Ab-e-q. Now that's phonetic, so don't fault my spelling.
Brandy and me at the Ghost Ranch Gate. The Ghost Ranch logo was designed by O'Keeffe.
O'Keeffe's home in Abiquiu is beautiful and the views are spectacular, but you're not allowed to take photographs or sketch or anything else while you are there. Still, it's definitely worth the trip.
The landscape around Abiquiu is dramatic. As you go further north it just gets better. From the Ghost Ranch Abiquiu, which is actually north of Abiquiu the village, you have a view of Pedernal, the mountain that O'Keeffe painted so often. She actually said that God told her if she painted it often enough, He would give it to her.
There is no open access to the O'Keeffe house at Ghost Ranch. The house itself was originally named Rancho de Los Burros. Arthur Pack owned Ghost Ranch when O'Keeffe first arrived in this part of the country. She eventually bought her house at Ghost Ranch and a few acres from him. She had hoped to buy the entire ranch, but Arthur sold it to the Presbyterians before she had the chance to make an offer. The word is that it infuriated her, but she got over it.
On our trip back from Abiquiu we stopped off in Espanola to check out the Sikh Gurdwara. That's a temple to the rest of us. The American Sikhs, followers of Yogi Bhajan, have a center on the edge of Espanola.
This part of the world seems to be a center for spirituality. There are a variety of religious retreats, monasteries, temples and mosques up here.
Friday, July 13th, we had a short day of workshops with free time in the afternoon and evening.
In the morning Nancy gave a talk on Dia de Los Muertos or Day of the Dead, followed by a hands-on session making papel picado, the tissue paper banners that you may have seen in restaurants or other establishments.
El Santuario de Chimayo
After lunch my friend, Brandy, and I headed for Chimayo. We wandered around the area of the Santuario de Chimayo taking pictures, then we hit the High Road to Taos.
We drove out to the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge so that I could watch the effects of the view on someone (Brandy) who was, as yet a virgin to this experience. It was worth every second. The river was running yellow from rains up north of us.
The Rio Grande Gorge
We went by the Taos Pueblo Pow Wow. It hadn't started yet, but we went by anyway and visited the venders. The sky was overcast and we decided to get back to Santa Fe before the rains caught us.
Since we had come in on the High Road, we decided to take the Low Road or River Road back. We laughed ourselves silly driving along. We watched the mountains disappear and reappear as the rains moved along on either side of us.
Once back at the Ghost Ranch Santa Fe we found out that those "Watch for Falling Rock" signs are not a joke. Another group of folks from the workshop had also headed up to Taos, but they got caught in the rain. They came down the River Road not too long after us. They didn't find it quite so funny. The rain had loosened rocks and gravel and their car was pelted as they drove. Not a relaxing experience for any of them, but they did arrive alive back here at the Ghost Ranch.
Today, Saturday July 14th, was the big day, the first day of the International Folk Art Festival. We took a shuttle over to Museum Hill and it was a good thing. The place was packed.
There were 118 booths with folk art from around the world. Venders and artisans were dressed in the costumes of their various countries. Many of the artisans demonstrated their skills. There were weavers at their looms, basket weavers, doll makers. It was a feast for the eyes. Color, texture, pattern beyond belief.
I took photos until I ran out of space on one card, switched cards and took photos until I ran out of charge on my battery. I switched cameras (Yes, I carried two cameras.) and kept on shooting. When that camera lost its charge I switched batteries in the other and continued on through the crowd. It was great.
Happy folk art creators and consumers!We had to wait in an incredibly long line for a shuttle back to the truck, but it wasn't too bad.
The only money I spent was on a nice cold gelato, yummmmm, hazelnut and chocolate chip.
Once back at the Ghost Ranch Santa Fe, I unloaded pictures into my printer. Afterward Brandy and I headed over to the O'Keeffe Museum and lunch at the O'Keeffe Cafe.
Back to Ghost Ranch and a well deserved nap.
We had a good meatloaf dinner with ice cream for dessert.
The final event of the day was another hands-on session on
milagros. Milagros are the small metal charms or amulets that you see sometimes in churches. They represent requests or prayers. I bought several at Chimayo. We made them from sheet copper and used counter-repousse, pushing into the metal with whatever tools we had at hand. They were lovely, each one unique.
Once that session ended I started my laundry and headed in here to write to you. It's been a long day and I think I'll go get some rest so I can do it all over again!
'night ya'll!
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