On the Road with "Dada" Kuralt (cont'd)

This is a picture of the old five-window Chevy pick-up that graced the outside of Taos artist Ed Sandoval's gallery last time I was here. Appearing in many of his delightful paintings, I sadly learned he let the truck go. Happily, however, I discovered while speaking with him, he's in the process of procuring another 5 window pick-up.

The young couple I sent to view the Rio Grande River from the shaky bridge across the 750 foot deep gorge just west of here didn't jump. That's because I saw them after they returned. But they were sad nonetheless, not because of that opportunity foregone, but because they were readying to depart Taos, to return to Indiana. Originally from Dallas, they had made a tragic mistake - they had moved to the Hoosier state. A move that didn't work for either of them, hence, the reason for their presence in this area. He had just finished a job interview in Albuquerque. As he described it, "It was a bomb."

A bit discouraged, an Albuquerque friend suggested they spend the remainder of their time they'd alloted to shop neighborhoods and homes in prep for their move to Albuquerque with a trip up to Taos instead. To help them "forget". It worked! Perhaps that's why I had felt compelled to ask before directing them to the gorge bridge if they had thoughts of jumping. They had looked a little sad.

But as happens with so many who come to Taos, they were both smitten and confessed during our farewells they had even tried to extend their time here. But through the inflexibility of Travelocity, they had failed. And so, I wished them luck and they vowed to return. "Perhaps we'll meet again here, one October, amid the autumn splendor. "

Our initial attraction to Taos was place. Capturing us, we kept returning for its beauty.

But over time, Taos became for us an attraction of people as well. It's an incredible mix of cultures. Native American, Spanish, Mexican, and Anglo coexist in an unspoken pact written in the blood of their forebearers who, at one time or another, had slaughtered each other as members of opposing clans.

It's that history of turmoil just behind the facade of this vibrant community that a delicious, unspoken tension manifests in incredible outbursts of artistic creativity. Because of this, I think people from outside want "inside" the Taos experience, if for only a day or two, to experience what life can be when diverse groups coexist when tensions of community are employed creatively instead of destructively.

And so, yesterday was devoted to "people" and the renewal of friendships gone too long unexperienced. In our 14 month absence I discovered that friends can "get lost" and if to be rediscovered, work is required. I learned you can't cultivate a field, plant seeds, and leave it untended without weeding and nuturing. Fourteen months is way too long to let things go.

So while some effort will be required to recover missing persons, we are so very, very fortunate to have intact our friendship of the originals who opened up this whole Taos experience for us. We wrapped up our second day with a second night among these friends.

Finally, I wanted to mention my favorite Taos art gallery. It's that of Ed Sandoval and his wife, Ann Huston. Working in different media and styles, theirs is a marriage that most captures, for me, the mystical qualities Northern New Mexico holds. Their gallery is truly as its name says, a "Studio de Colores". If you happen to click on this link, be sure check out the art of both of these most talented artists, to contrast their styles and subjects. And the colors. Wow, do they know how to use the colors!

I had the fortune to encounter Ed in his studio yesterday and during our visit he showed me his latest paintings and current projects that include a sculpture of that wonderful "Amarante" like character discussed here previously from the movie, "Milagro Beanfield War". Yet not cast, Ed has already sold six of them!

But there was another little project that has manifested in glass. As a wine bottle, it struck me as the most incredible, beautiful bottle ever. Of all the glass containers in life, I've never--EVER!--seen such a beautiful piece of work. Commissioned by a California vineyard, the large bottle displays a gorgeous Sandoval painting that--amazingly--is embossed into the glass! I don't know what the wine inside is like, but if this container is any indication, it's some of the world's best! It is my hope to return for a picture of this because, as the day wore on, that embossed wine bottle etched itself deeper and deeper, to where I can't get it out of my head.