Holy Saturday

Georgia OKeeffe

I’ll bet you immediately pictured huge flowers – 

white calla lilies, red poppies, white jimson, purple petunias and orchids; 

all curves and soft blurry edges; 

all vaguely vaginal.

Maybe you thought of steer skulls 

and luscious, multilayered mountain ranges;

 Maybe a thin woman in a black dress, 

grey hair pulled back from her makeup free face -

totally at home in her own skin 
and her place in the world.

As I recently learned, 

both at the museum dedicated to GOK in Santa Fe

and at Ghost Ranch, about an hour outside the city -

the place where her roots sunk deep in New Mexico soil, 
allowing her creativity and imagination to soar and flourish -

she was all that
and so much more.

It's hard to describe how powerful it is to see her paintings in person.

I had no idea of the range of her subjects 
or the extent of her talent.

Sorry, Georgia;
I knew so little.

Actually, the Museum in town made me so curious about her life
that I signed up immediately for a visit to Ghost Ranch;
a visit which also included a tour on private roads 
to the exact locations that were the inspirations of some of her most famous paintings.

The lighting and how it impacts topography is incredible
and so mercurial,
a passing cloud is capable of changing the color of the hills entirely.

The following pictures are from the ranch -
and all were taken within 2 hours of each other.

Just a note:
I happened to be there when New Mexico got 1/10th of its annual rainfall
something that took about 5 minutes. 

If you're lucky,
you'll get there when a front passes through too.

No matter how long I stayed there,
no matter how long I gazed at the mountains,
I would never see them or conceptualize them as she did.

That's what made her Georgia.

It was enough for me to see them in their own light and beauty.

 Ghost Ranch is definitely another 'must see' on your Santa Fe bucket list.

A few more scenes from the ranch to pique your interest.

Museum of International Folk Art

For those who know me, 

it will come as no surprise to know 

that I LOVE folk art.

Even in my small cottage,

I have a jumbled wall of art pieces I've made, 

collected or been gifted.

I think this carving expresses an intrinsic truth;

a divinely given drive to create exists in all of us;

a desire to be known,

to express our internal truths, 

our unique way of viewing the world,

in an external way.
A sacramental offering of the human spirit.

Given that, 

it will also come as no surprise that my favorite museum in Santa Fe was

the Museum of International Folk Art.

There is no way to cover all of the wonderful objects in this collection;

it covers over 130,000 objects from more than 100 countries.

Suffice it to say, there is something for everyone.

Wonderful examples of tramp art,

incredible weavings

and overwhelmingly complex dioramas;

so intricate that, for me, 

the only way to look at them was to identify small pieces that spoke to me.

 

Can you imagine making each individual piece?

The Last Supper 

with a peeing dog!

If you get to Santa Fe, 

by all means, 

GO!