"Buffalo Dancer"

The 12 foot tall "Buffalo Dancer" sculpture designed by George Rivera greets guests outside the main Hilton entrance at Buffalo Thunder Resort.  The entire complex of Casino, Hilton Hotel, Homewood Suites, Golf Course, and restaurants is HUGE and quite impressive. The art work which I described on a previous post is very remarkable. I, nonetheless, have mixed feelings about all the Casinos that have sprung up on Native American land, especially in this part of the country. In my humble opinion, even when done in good taste they mar the landscape. From what I've learned, although some tribes have enjoyed significant financial income, not all the Casinos have benefited the Indians or the state coffers as originally planned. Some are not economically solvent and have enormous debts. I often wonder how much gambling addiction and crime result from these establishments? The Native Americans certainly deserve an improved lifestyle from the revenues to redress some of the terrible wrongs of the past.  A true conundrum!

Brett and "Deer Dancer"

I met Brett Chomer at the Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino located just outside Santa Fe, where we went to see the art work positioned throughout the building. We chatted with Brett who was doing the annual cleaning and buffing of "Deer Dancer," a creation of artist George Rivera, who is also the Governor of Pueblo Pojoaque.  Brett is an artist himself and often helps complete the sculptures after Rivera has completed the designs and small figure-versions for the larger sculpted pieces. The contemporary and traditional pieces of art scattered throughout the complex is definitely worth a trip.