A Sunday in Santa Fe 2023

 As we sit down to breakfast church Sunday morning bells rang out across the plaza calling the faithful to worship. Despite their religious connotations, I have very mixed feelings about organized as well as disorganized, religion. it is a sound I have always loved. It brought to mind a moment the previous summer of bells pealing as I walked barefoot across the sand of my neighborhood beach in Chicago. Somehow the sound replenishes a portion of my soul depleted by the rigors of everyday life. 

After breakfast we wandered around a bit. I finally found a turquoise ring I liked that was within my budget. I had lost hope. Even the pieces spread on blankets on the sidewalks under the arcades being sold by Native Americans were pricy, what was in the stores was untouchable for one of our means.

We had a reservation for the Georgia O'Keefe museum later in the afternoon. We phoned to see if they could accommodate us earlier. They said yes so we walked over. Reservations are advised due to the museums relatively small size. 

Although the artist is not a personal favorite of mine I have always liked her pallet. It was interesting to see how her surroundings, some the places we had visited over the past few days, inspired her work. Her blues were reflections of the brilliant, sunny skies of the southwest. There is a certain freshness to the air in Santa Fe, perhaps because of it's high altitude. Her browns seemed inspired by the earth and the ubiquitous adobe pueblo style buildings. Her style ranged from representational to abstract to symbolic. In one gallery there is  a cloudscape that seems almost a study of a massive work that hangs in Chicago's Art Institute. My favorite piece was a striking nighttime cityscape from her period when she lived in New York City. I'm a city boy at heart, asphalt runs in my veins. 

There is an interesting concept to the museum. There are two galleries at the back where some of her personal possessions are on display. Clothing, kitchen wares, some of her art supplies. In one vitrine is a pin with her initials designed by Alexander Calder and a wide brimmed black hat she can often be seen wearing in photographs. These galleries serve to humanize the artist. It gives insight into the entirety of her life of which art was only a part.

 My frustration with the institution stemmed from the museum apparently hold a large amount of work yet it's small size only allows a sampling of the holdings to be shown at any one time. Despite this it does serve as a monument to a uniquely American artist.