A few weeks ago, I got back from an amazing experience at the Taos Paseo art festival. I have started and stopped this post many times attempting to distill the essence of that time and experience into something here on the page, but it’s proven hard. In some ways I guess it was such a marvelous experience I’ve wanted to keep it inside and not let it out.
I arrived in Taos a week early and jumped into the building process. Everyday I spent most of the daylight hours on site, going through the stocks of branches to find the right pieces for each section to frame views, follow lines and create moments within the spaces. What evolved reflected the spontaneity of my reaction to the site and the surrounding landscape. I sought to integrate the features of the site, vegetation, proximity to the school and landscape context so that the viewer could have a new way to experience this forgotten space. For those days the piece was up, magic took root – according to a friend who lives in Taos, she can still sense it’s presence there.
With the overlay of the film created by my collaborator, Nikki Gardner, the piece took on another life at night, as a vessel for people to come and glimpse a different eco-system, with its textures, colors and most overwhelmingly, water. It was wonderful to see the immersion of people into this world, and to witness their calm and smiles as they walked out. I really appreciated the reactions people shared with me about the piece and the depth of their observations.
Thanks to all, including Nikki, the Paseo team, Enos Garcia Elementary school, and the people of Taos for being such welcoming hosts and art lovers.
