Fly Away Home.

Since I am now back home in Saint Paul. Minnesota, it's about time that I discontinue posting on this blog 'til I return again to this wonderful city.  Like the birds above, after a delicious repast of Santa Fe, I had to fly away home.

Books

You really cannot visit Santa Fe without attending the world-famous Opera.  Whether you are a novice or an opera buff, Collected Works bookstore will give you background information on the performance of your choice. 

Take your pick!

Collected Works

A great place to hang out!

Crazy Heart

Remember the scene in Crazy Heart where Jeff Bridges played his music in a bar? None other than Evangelo's on San Francisco Street close to the Plaza.

10,000 Waves

This is part of the interior of 10,000 Waves, a spa extraordinare a few miles outside Santa Fe. After three hours there, after sitting in the sauna, relaxing in the communal hot tub, and having a massage, I felt like I could melt right back into the earth.

Signs of the Times

Come back tomorrow and we'll follow one of these signs!

A little something!

Here is another item of apparel that I really MUST have! It's neither a shawl nor a vest, but it's a lovely article of clothing that can be worn over a blouse or sweater.  Very innovative! And, a little something that both feels and looks elegant.

Primitive Images on handmade paper by Ginny Hogan

Artist Ginny Hogan lives in Santa Fe and learned the ancient art of papermaking when she attended Colorado State University.  Handmade paper is formed from the cellulose fibers of plants.

Hogan explains in a brochure how she works the process: The pulp I make is 100% cotton, beaten in a Hollander.  This I press onto a screen to form sheets.  When dry, I treat the sheets with layers of acrylic paint and add images with acrylic and gouache. The images I use come from rock art painting and pecking, called pictographs and petroglyphs made by native people all over the world.  While no one can decipher the exact meaning of these images, it is commonly believed they were used for shamanic rituals involving healing, hunting, fertility, and protection.

A Fine White Steed

"The sight of him did something to me I've never quite been able to explain. He was more than tremendous strength and speed and beauty of motion. He set me dreaming.”  Walt Morey

Kudos!

I met these fine looking young men in the courtyard in the Eldorado shopping plaza.  They scheduled several days there collecting used clothing for those in need.  The project was conceived and organized by the young man on the left for his Eagle Scout project. A picture of the future? Perhaps these boys and others like them will help improve our society. Kudos for all of them!!

A Father's Pride

Go Fly a Kite!

If someone tells you to go fly a kite, hustle over to the Farmers Market to get one!

My Friend's Baskets

My Santa Fe friend is an expert on baskets and has been collecting them for years from the Indian basket weavers' themselves.  Here is a photo of just a small part of his collection.

Window Scenes

When I look up from my reading, I often smile because these are typical scenes I see though the casa's windows.  The top photo was taken at nightfall.  The bottom was through a different window during  a brief downpour. Look closely and you can see the water droplets.

Fiesta

My mother was a weaver, and I lament the fact that I never learned! I'm sure that my love of textiles stems from her artistry.  These chenille shawls are awesome, and I'm determined to buy one. The fiesta pink is particularly winsome!! But, then  again, I love the beige and brown tones. The weaver of these shawls displays them in several cities.  I found those pictured above in Chimayo and saw a few others in Bernilillo.  Can't seem to be able to decide on the colour...another one in primarlily in a delicious shade of cilantro was particularly handsome.


The scarves in the bottom photo are equally as beautiful as the shawls.

Weaving, Chimayo rugs

The village of Chimayo, which is not too far from Santa Fe, has several shops founded by local families that have outstanding rugs, purses, place mats, clothing and much more for sale.  It's fun and instructive to visit both the Ortegas Weavers and Centinella Traditional Arts shops.  These rugs are hanging on the wall at Centinela with another wall containing many ribbons won at the annual Spanish Market.  Below is a photo of Lisa Trujillo, one of the owners and weavers who make magic on the looms.

The rug on the top is the Rio Grande Saltillos design; it approximates the style of a bordered rectangle with a serrate diamond in the center. The smaller photo is a rug woven int ehe Rio Grande style.

A Concha Artist

Julia Gomez' work definitely is prizeworthy. With infinite patience, she is an accomplished concha artist.  This is more than just ordinary embroidery.  Her designs are intricate and lovely.  Too labor intensive for me, but what an artist!

The colcha technique is believed to have been brought to what is now New Mexico by Spanish settlers. Colcha embroidery, which is defined by a specific type of stitching, was used early on mostly for bed coverings, altar cloths and later, clothing. But now the technique also is used to create decorative arts for the home.

She Who Hesitates...

Textiles and tinwork are probably my favorite pieces of artwork, and I was particularly captivated by this white shawl.  But, did I need another one? After contemplating it for about 30 minutes I decided to buy it.  I returned to the booth to make my purchase, but... a wiser shopper had already purchased it; I guess I really do not need another one!!~

A Typical Southwest Church

Unfortunately I did not get any information about the artist and this painting.  The weather on the first day of Spanish Market was a little wet so I moved quickly from one booth to the next in the rain.  It appeals to me because it is representative of so many small village churches I've seen in New Mexico.

Diffferent as Night and Day

The differences of the people in this photo clearly shows the variety of spectators at the Spanish Market.  After attending for several different years, I noticed that some of the same people with their own decorated "works of art" show up each year to celebrate!

Come One, Come All!

During the two days of Spanish Market, young students gave free performances in the Courtyard of the Convention Center (when it wasn't raining). This novel way of advertising was the method used by the students to attract attention and to pass out brochures.

"Colourful"-Theme for August, 2010

This vivid painting of a colourful but illegal activity caught my eye at Spanish Market.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants