Impressions of Santa Fe

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Saturday September 27, 2008

Thursday it was time to move on to warmer climes. Santa Fe was on our list, as was art by Georgia O’Keeffe. In our new Pitt Meadows home, there are two fireplace walls just waiting for special decoration and one of our ‘must do’s’ on this trip was to find some southwestern art. Santa Fe is famous as an artist haven, and it more than lived up to the reputation.

We approached Santa Fe from the north on highway 84. Little did we know that when Kayla called several halts on the highway just north of Santa Fe to take photos of the glorious layered cliffs and spires, we were also photographing Georgia O’Keeffe’s home at Ghost Ranch. Right away we recognized the photos of Ghost Ranch taken by others, some of which were on display at the Georgia O’Keefe Museum dedicated to her life and work.

We lucked out on entrance to the museum because it had been closed until Friday when a new exhibit opened, featuring her life through the eye of the camera, including a stunning portrait of her by Yousef Karsh. Although the exhibit was much smaller than the one in Vancouver that Richard and his sister Joyce attended last year, and we were somewhat disappointed by that, the works on display were well worth a look.

We didn’t luck out on the RV park, which was located on Cerrillos Road, a horrendous strip of endless fast food joints, hotels, motels and various other things that make such a strip so ugly. It is also the famous Route 66, but we didn’t care too much about that. Trailer Ranch was a very nice RV park for seniors only, but the noisy traffic made it hard to sleep for travelers like us who are more used to rushing rivers and other more pleasant night noises (or none at all). We are getting quite picky about where we stay as time and lack of sleep wears on.

Nevertheless we persevered, determined to see the best of Santa Fe, wherever that was. We took the bus downtown - no point in even trying to park an RV. And headed on foot to the Plaza, where Kayla immediately found four lovely pairs of earrings made by artisans who are lined up cheek by jowl in front of the Palace of the Governors. They are strictly regulated, so we were assured of the quality, authenticity and price competitiveness of what we bought. The handmade jewelry was quite beautiful and Kayla watched one woman try on a $900 turquoise necklace - a bit rich for our tastes.

So then we headed for Canyon Road, lined with art galleries to suit anyone’s taste - if money is not an object, that is. We browsed, ogled, admired, and quickly exited the galleries, even though we found a friendly welcome everywhere with no pressure sales. Concluding that the Keltie art acquisition budget was more suited to poster reproductions of said art, we stumbled on Eclectic Image Gallery. Here we discovered incredible photos on display (check their website), and found just the one for the fireplace wall in the great room. It’s called ‘The Storm’ and is a sunset of the Grand Canyon. The photographic art technique is one perfected by Ansell Adams, in which certain parts of the photograph seem to highlight more than others, as lighting changes.

So to make a long story shorter, back at the RV park we checked the fireplace wall dimensions from the photo we had brought along, then checked the picture on the internet to make sure we both loved it, and went back this morning to seal the deal, and arrange shipping. Yeah!

Leaving Santa Fe feeling very satisfied with the purchase, we headed for yet more back roads aiming west through Los Alamos, home of the national laboratory where the first atomic bomb was designed and built, which is still a going concern for research. After first clearing through an imposing security gate, we drove into the Jemez Mountains heading towards Cuba, New Mexico. Unimproved roads have a new meaning for us after hauling up and over these mountains on what was nothing more than a dirt track at some points. Who would have known we could find such a remote and beautiful mountain environment so close to the desert. At one high point, the temperature was only 10 C (50 F).

Then it was down to the high desert plateau heading northwest on Highway 550. When it came time to think about where we would camp for the night, knowing there was no way we would reach Monument Valley, which is our next destination, we thought of a slight detour north again to Durango for yet one more glorious night on the Animas River. We couldn’t believe all the skis and snowboards on display outside Durango sports shops. Is this a hint to travelers that snow may fall any day? Guess it’s time to move on south and west.

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Photos

Santa Fe native art sale
On the Portal of the old Governors Palace