Ghost Ranch Art Studio |
Wearing my
new tee shirt and wrapped in a wool Indian blanket in El Rito, the sky begins
to lighten pre-sunrise. Two ravens are having an urgent conversation in the
purple shadows of the sage bush. I have a bit of time to finish my painting before
heading back to Santa Cruz.
The Rising
Moon Gallery is across from Bodie’s General Store in Abiquiu on Highway 64, an
hour north of Santa Fe, New Mexico. It is run by two painters, Jay Buros and
Bill Page and compares with the world renown galleries on Canyon Road in Santa
Fe, probably a lot more interesting than many. It boasts of 80 artists, mostly
local, except a few like me that slip under the seasonal wire. This is where I
got the tee shirt that says, ABIQUIU, A
Place to Reimagine Your Life. If there are any specific places on the planet
where this is possible, Abiquiu is one of them. Before Bill and Jaye bought the
gallery they generously opened up their adobe studio for a couple of Anavami's Re-mything Painting workshops
which began a new relationship with the land in Abiquiu..
Ghost Ranch |
I just
finished giving my first 5-day Transformational Painting Workshop yesterday at Ghost
Ranch: www.ghostranch.org. Every one of my eight participants have been coming to
Ghost Ranch for years. I have to say off
the record that they do not come for the accommodations or the cuisine, but for
the place. It is no mystery how Georgia O’Keeffe could stay engaged painting
here for decades. Europeans come to Ghost Ranch regularly for the quality of
classes offered, but mostly the incredible “Spirit of Place” which was the
title of the nine piece show that we offered on the last day of painting.
Ghost Ranch |
It was
thrilling and challenging to embrace the participants that ranged from
professional to first time painters. Although, I planned a Mystique of Place Workshop,
the sophistication and openness of the group inspired me to introduce the
Cosmological Powers also into the painting process, which proved to be very rich.
I would like
to do another workshop next year in the early fall and have found out that if I
bring my own group we would have better choice of accommodations. It would cost
the same for the participants but would make it work for me with a small group.
I am starting a list of those who are interested, as it requires an early
deposit.
5 day workshop |
Be sure to sign
up at the bottom of the page to follow the blog and if you are local do come by
for Open Studio Tours, October 13,
14 20 & 21, to see my two new Wall Painting Series, inspired by Italy and
the Animal in the Sky Series. I just realized that the painting that I did at
Ghost Ranch also has animals in the sky.
November 15
& 16 Studio Anavami is sponsoring Creativity
Constellations Workshop with Krista Jarrard and Ellen and I will do a
collaborative workshop December 15 & 16. Please call with any questions,
831 420-1349.