Vision Magazine January 18, 2018 by Roswell Daily Record

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MAGAZINE

JANUARY 18, 2018

SPOTLIGHT: RAIR CONOR FAGAN ALSO INSIDE: BEN DANAHER, BETTY JO ALLEN, PART I, FROM THE VAULT, HEATHER DONAHUE, LEGENDARY ESHAM, ‘LIVE AND LET DIE — A SYMPHONIC TRIBUTE TO PAUL MCCARTNEY’, THEATER 2018, PART 1, ‘WRONG TURN TO ROSWELL,’ EPISODE 3, HISTORY AND LOOKING UP

Content

Roswell Daily Record’s

Spotlight: RAiR Conor Fagan

Art Heather Donahue

Betty Jo Allen, part I

From the Vault: ‘Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska’ 14 Calendar 7,10-11 Music ‘Live and Let Die — A Symphonic Tribute To Paul McCartney’

Legendary Esham

Ben Danaher concert

Story ‘Wrong Turn To Roswell,’ Episode 3

Thursday, January 18, 2018 Volume 23, Issue 1 Publisher: Barbara Beck Editor: Jeff Tucker Vision Editor: Christina Stock Copy Editor: Misty Choy Ad Design: Sandra Martinez Columnists: Donald Burleson, John LeMay, S.E. Smith, Sara Woodbury Get in touch with us online Facebook: PecosVisionMagazine Twitter: twitter.com/PecosVision Pinterest: pinterest.com/VisionMagazine Email: vision@rdrnews.com www: rdrnews.com/vision-magazine For advertising information, call 622-7710 Correspondence: Vision Magazine welcomes correspondence, constructive criticism and suggestions for future topics. Mail correspondence to Vision Magazine, P.O. Drawer 1897, Roswell, N.M. 88202-1897 or vision@rdrnews.com Submissions: Call 622-7710, ext. 309, for writers’ guidelines. Vision Magazine is not responsible for loss or damage to unsolicited materials. Vision Magazine is published once a month at 2301 N. Main St., Roswell, N.M. The contents of the publication are Copyright 2018 by the Roswell Daily Record and may not be reprinted in whole or part without written permission of the publisher. All rights reserved. One copy of each edition is provided to 13,000 weekday subscribers to the Roswell Daily Record in the third Thursday newspaper of each month. An additional 3,000 to 5,000 copies are made available free of charge to county residents and visitors and select site newsstands, and direct mailed to non-subscribers in the retail trade zone. Subscriptions are available by mail for $2 a month or free through subscription to the Roswell Daily Record. The Roswell Daily Record and Vision Magazine are represented nationally by Paper Companies Inc.

On The Cover

Theater What’s new for 2018? Part 1

UFOlogy Looking Up

‘Menhir’ by Roswell Artist-inResidence Conor Fagan

art

Young artist to watch: Heather Donahue By Christina Stock Vision Editor

oday I want to introduce you to the young artist who won the cover contest for our December edition. Her name is Heather Donahue and she is 14 years old. Her painting that her mother sent in was so unusual, I reached out to her and her family to see some other samples of her art and to get her story. “I am technically homeschooled, I go to an online private charter school called K12,” Heather said when I met her. Asked if it was so she wouldn’t get bullied, she said, “Yes, that was the reason. I have autism and I was not very good with social interaction.” The vibrant young woman, who is also very humble, showed me her art collection she had created. It is hard to believe that somebody so young, who started — according to her — getting serious about painting only three years ago, is already so

proficient. “Actually, I was getting into fandom, you know, fan groups,” Heather said. “I saw a lot of really good artists, so I said, wow, I want to be an artist and I started drawing.” Her favorite media are alcohol markers and photoshop. “Alcohol markers are really good. Because of the alcohol they evaporate and you can layer on colors.” Then, Heather showed me her art on the computer. She easily handles more than 175 layers per project. In comparison, for those who do not know Photoshop, for the covers of the Vision Magazine, I use around six to seven layers. Average advertisements use anywhere between four to 20 layers. Heather’s characters are either based on fandoms, but the really outstanding ones are her own creations, some are based on friends and family. “I am mostly selftaught,” Heather said.

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“You know the art place on Main Street (The Gallery), Peggy Krantz taught me how to shade a lot. She’s a really good teacher.” Heather participated in last year’s Alien Art Contest during the UFO Festival, which is organized by The Gallery. “I got first place for my age group and $25,” she said, the pride still showing in her voice. Heather’s autism is not as recognizable. There are different levels. “I have a tendency to start projects and get distracted and start other projects,” she said. “I like to paint hands in gloves, ‘cause it’s a lot less noticeable when you make anatomy mistakes,” Heather said. Her hands are very good. Some of the most difficult things to sketch or paint for professional or beginning artists are hands and feet. If you look at Picasso’s Blue Period, he hides hands and feet in most of the paintings. Botticelli painted feet without hiding, but he painted them horribly. In his most famous painting, “The Birth Of Venus,” every single foot painted would make the person topple over in real life.

I was so impressed by this young artist, I sent out a sample of her work to our new author, who is writing for the Vision Magazine the children’s story “Wrong Turn To Roswell.” S.E. Smith is a New York Times, USA TODAY, international and award-winning bestselling author of science fiction. I asked Smith if she would permit me to hire Heather to paint the characters of her story. Smith answered me right away. She said that she considered it an honor and that Heather was very talented. Watch for the art of Heather in future editions of the Vision Magazine.

Christina Stock Photo Artist Heather Donahue is seen here at her desk at her home in Roswell working on her next character painting.

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Vision Magazine |

Thursday, January 18, 2018

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First

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DOES IT MATTER IF YOU GO TO CHURCH OR NOT? Yes! And here is why. If you consider yourself a Christian, and a follower of Jesus, not only do you need the support of a church family, but a church family needs you!

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All are welcome!

Christina Stock Photo Betty Jo Allen is standing next to her painting of her father, James B. Cox.

Art

Betty Jo Allen — A part of Artesia’s history and a family connected in art — part I By Christina Stock Vision Editor

met Betty Jo Allen at the Holly-Day Magic show in December. When I came to her booth, one painting caught my attention. It was an old shack in a snow scene, deer grazing, a dead pine tree was at the shack’s side, obviously planted when the shack had been built to provide shade. Two other large pine trees were snow-covered and still holding out against nature and time. Allen explained to me that the shack was one of her favorite motives on the Mescalero Reservation and that she lived in Artesia. We didn’t have a lot of

time to talk, there were customers wanting to get her attention. We exchanged information and I walked on. Sometimes a reporter gets a feeling, instinct if you will, and I had that feeling there was more to that painting and to the artist. I contacted her and she invited me to her home. Indeed, she had a story to tell. The only other towns, next to Artesia, Allen lived in was Las Cruces when she went to grad school, she told me. “I was studying at New Mexico State after my sophomore year,” Allen said. “I had to stop to help my dad take care of my mother,

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so I never finished my degree.” Later in life, she lived in Ruidoso and Odessa before returning to Artesia for good in 1982. Allen had fond memories about going to school in Artesia where she fell in love with the arts. Her teacher was Curtis Tabor. “Mr. Tabor was so cool,” Allen said. “He would go from one school to the other. Our day was Friday, he would let us draw, give us some projects and we had to create. To this day, I love sculpting, too, because of him. He was such a neat man. I think he passed away about 20 years ago.

“We also had a music teacher. To me art and math go together, music and math, too. Math is big in music, they (the education department) never did connect the two. They are now realizing their mistake,” Allen said. Allen’s earliest memories was when she was a little girl in Artesia at her old home. “My son has my mom’s and dad’s house now over there on Washington Street,” she said. “I remember one early Christmas, my sister got a .22 and I got a bb-gun. Two little girls, but that’s what we wanted. We were tom-boys, we would go fishing. We always would get each the same doll. Hers would always be clean and mine would be played to death with,” Allen said and laughed. “Her hair would be all raggedy, it was so funny. “I think I saw my grandparents 10 times in my lifetime. They lived out in California. We couldn’t jump and just go to California. My dad worked as a carpenter for several years when I was young. When my kids were young, he worked out on a ranch and in the summer time they just lived out there on the ranch with him,” Allen said. “There is so much creativity on both sides of my family. The Cox side, they are very creative, musically talented and artistic,” she said. Allen is especially proud of her cousin. “Tim Cox is the premiere No. 1 cowboy artist in the United States right now,” Allen said. “Our dads were cousins so we are second cousins. I’ve got to see this kid sometime this year,

he’s moved to Bloomfield.” Cox won the 2003 Prix de West Award and two “Express Ranches Great American Cowboy Awards” from the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum; numerous awards followed and in 2001 and 2008, he was voted into U.S. Art Magazine’s “Print Hall of Fame.” Cox’s work hangs in the permanent collections of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, The Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia and in the Old West Museum in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Allen memorialized her father with a painting that includes symbols of all the different jobs he had. The painting is based on a photo when her father was younger. On the original photo you can see him together with his cousin, Tim Cox’s father and others. “James B. Cox was my father,” Allen said. “Tim’s dad was also a Jim. They were named after my grandfather who was the oldest of all those Cox children. I was so proud of him. “He is only 19 in this picture, they had moved here (Artesia) from Texas. This was his very first shop. You know where La Fonda (the restaurant) is downtown? The parking lot in the back was the blacksmith’s shop where he worked, Johnny’s Blacksmith’s shop,” Allen said. Part II of Allen’s story will be published in the next edition of the VisionMagazine.

Theater

What’s new for 2018? Part 1

grated right from the start. Roswell Community Little Theater The original theater of Roswell laid the foundation for theater and performances. Always changing with the times, this theater brings complicated, thoughtful plays to stage, as well as comedies and musicals for families and children. There are probably 50 actors that are regulars in its membership, according to longtime member and RCLT’s president Gina Montague.

A look ahead into the plans and dreams of the Neverland Theatre Company, Roswell Community Little Theatre and Way Way Off- Changes and plans within the theater: Broadway Theatre Company “We had our elections in September, Montague

By Christina Stock Vision Editor oswell has not only one theater as in most communities of 50,000 and under, it has three theaters. Each of the theaters is unique and, to the advantage of experienced actors or beginners, each theater has classes, training and always something new to enhance their art. There are some highlights and surprises for the audience planned. The representative of each theater sat down with the Vision editor and revealed their plans for 2018.

Neverland Theatre Company Neverland Theatre Company was founded two years ago. It specializes in bringing more challenging performances to the audience and is under guidance of its president, Maryl McNally. “We have a very busy schedule, but we’re excited,” McNally said. Changes and plans within the theater: “We’ve had a turnover in our board of directors, we’ve added several new board members,” McNally said. “Colin Butts is now a member of the board, Jennifer Wolfe (Studio+), Jennifer Flowers, Kate Graham and Kristin Higgenbothom are all new board members of Neverland. I am still serving as president, Dominic Batista is still vice president, Butts is now serving as our secretary and Carolyn Madison is our treasurer.” Neverland Theatre Company is planning on some changes toward the community as well. “In April, we’ll have a little change to our scheduling,” McNally said. “We are working toward how we become more inclusive. How do we get more people involved in the theater to enjoy it, to know what it is we’re doing?” Theater plays: In August, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” is going to be performed at the Pearson Auditorium. A date has not yet been finalized. According to McNally, auditions should be on Neverland Theatre Company’s webpage and Facebook page sometime in March. Neverland Theatre Company has been working together with The Studio+ for its winter and spring performances. This collaboration is growing with McNally teaching musical theater and theater history. Something that Neverland Theatre Company has already been doing with its actors, especially the children. According to McNally, the upcoming spring performance of The Studio+ with Neverland Theatre Company is going to be much more inte-

said. “At that time, we changed how we do our calendar. Our next elections will be in May. This is a very short season. Main officers are Hugh Taylor as vice president, Connie Hester as treasurer and Louise Montague as secretary.” A big milestone is ahead for RCLT. “We have big plans, because this next season starting this coming September is our 60th season,” Montague said. “We have a lot of exciting things planned and coming up. We’ll be doing a special celebration right before our season begins in July/ August. We are making those plans right now. This will be our Diamond Jubilee anniversary. We want to make it a big deal because it’s significant.” Last year RCLT added some new technology. “We have so many options now with the new lighting,” Montague said. There is more color and it’s a lot more energy efficient because it is LED. Later, as we progress, we plan to have moving LED lighting. We also have a new spotlight and a new console in the light booth, that’s all new things we are going to continue to improve on,” Montague said. This is just the beginning of upgrades and renovations. A big change that will benefit the theater just happened. “We are renting our building to City Reach Church on Sundays,” Montague said. “That’s something we are looking at, more facility rentals. If anybody is interested in renting the facility it is available. They can contact me directly at 910-9225,” Montague said. Theater plays: “We are going to kick off our new season with a bang, with ‘Willie Wonka — The Musical.’ We are very excited,” Montague said. “We are in the process of putting together the rest of the season.” Other information about the season’s plays is still not firm. “We haven’t got the rights yet. We are looking forward to a really exciting season,” Montague said. However, Montague said that there will be a mix of plays and musicals. “And some new and different things that we have never done before,” she said and laughed. Way Way Off-Broadway Theatre Famous for its huge professional Broadway-style productions, WWOB was the first privately run theater company that brought Broadway to Roswell in 2014. According to the very first press-release for the Vision Magazine in August of 2014, actors and dancers Tony Souza and Summer Souza stated that

one of the reasons of founding WWOB was that they were missing being able to see Broadway musicals. Summer Souza is WWOB’s president and the artistic director. Her husband Tony Souza is functioning as secretary, treasurer and is in charge of the stage design. Changes and plans within the theater: There have been no changes for WWOB’s board of directors. Looking back on the past season, Tony Souza said, “I think our approach of looking at a year as an entire single thing is better, instead of basing success or failure on one production at a time. If we look collectively, looking back at 2017, we had performances that appealed to families, some that did appeal specifically to children, and then we had performances that were more for adults. When you look at that as a complete package, it appeals yearlong. That’s what we try to do every year and we think that the titles that we have coming up in 2018 will be really well-accepted, both by performers and the audiences. “One thing that we did launch in December that will affect 2018 is a new, technically new donation level for WWOB,” Tony Souza said. “It is our subscriber series. It’s $24 a year, $2 a month. You are going to be subscribed to our newsletter, we call Spotlight. In the Spotlight you’ll receive, every two months, stories from behind the scenes, profiles of people who work with WWOB, announcements of upcoming auditions and performances and then special offers in every newsletter. “Another thing we are working on is in the beginning stages for a spring fundraiser,” Tony Souza said. “We want to make it kind of how we do it at Christmastime (which is a rsvp invite). This would be a ticketed event with a very nice dinner and music. Either we bring in some past performers or introducing some new stuff.” Theater plays, education and events: “We are starting rehearsals next week for Peter Pan, which opens in March,” Tony Souza said. “We have some really cool flying effects with that. We are using the same company, the ZFX company, which we have been using for two years now. “In June, we are doing ‘Grease’ and you know, we’ll have a car,” Summer Souza said and laughed. In charge of finding a car that can be used as Greased Lightning and getting it on stage is Tony Souza. “For me to figure out,” he said and laughed. “We want to continue developing education opportunities with our company. We are tentatively planning on having this before auditions for ‘Grease,’ it would be our audition workshop.” Last year, WWOB had added live bands to their performances. This is also planned for the future. “In August is our bonus show. We are going to do ‘Chicago,’ Summer Souza said. “We are working on a live jazz band for that.” “Then in the fall — probably the show you (Tony Souza) are looking forward to most — is ‘Singing In The Rain,’” Summer Souza said. In the next edition plans for education, events and challenges of the three theaters will be covered.

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Thursday, January 18, 2018

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Music

Tony Kishman is Paul McCartney Roswell Symphony Orchestra presents “Live and Let Die — A Symphonic Tribute To Paul McCartney” By Christina Stock Vision Editor special treat awaits fans of Paul McCartney and the Roswell Symphony Orchestra. Tony Kishman as a legendary Beatle is returning to Roswell. This time for his “Live and Let Die — A Symphonic Tribute To Paul McCartney” show. In a phone interview, Kishman talked about the event and about the beginning of his career. “I have been performing with the Beatle Mania Show when it opened on Broadway,” Kishman said. “I was cast in the role of Paul McCartney. When the show closed in the mid-’80s, I kept doing Paul McCartney; I kept performing as him in several Beatles shows and it was more like about 2006 when I decided to just simply do the music of Paul McCartney as a solo artist, because of the magnitude of his work. It has been a major challenge to get up there and do his music as well as his Beatles collection. So it has been something

I have been doing for most of my life.” Asked how his career started, Kishman said, “I am more self-taught. I did go to college and I did take voice class and choir; I did music theory and all the usual things you would do to want to learn about music. “My real training was being in a club, being in a band performing as a top 40 singer for most of my life. I did four to five years of clubs around the Arizona/Southern California area. I went to the night club school of music,” Kishman said and laughed. “It wasn’t until I was five years into that, when I heard about the auditions that were coming for the Beatle Mania Show. It kind of prepared me for it. A classic way for many,” Kishman said. “That’s how I began and when I got in this major show, I was thinking, ‘Goodness, this is really a treat. I am performing as the greatest singer/ songwriter of all times.’ I

had to study it, I studied in front of a mirror; we would perform the songs in front of mirrors and I would watch myself saying, ‘How am I performing? Am I sounding like him?’ I had a lot of good help; people who were coaching me at the time. “I ended up going to London doing the show there. I was in London performing in front of Sir George Martin, who was the Beatles’ producer.” Asked if Kishman ever had the chance to meet McCartney in person, he said, “He came to see my show in London years ago and he was quoted in the newspapers saying, ‘The guy that plays me is a good musician and I wish him well.’ He went on to say, ‘It’s kind of weird being portrayed while I am still alive. I’ve been surrounded by weirdness all my life anyway, so it doesn’t surprise me.” I was, ‘That is really nice to hear that Paul McCartney thought I was good,’ but I never stood in front

6 | V i s i o n M a g a z i n e | Thursday, January 18, 2018

of him and met him.” Last time Kishman was in Roswell was to perform in his show “Twist and Shout – A Tribute To The Beatles,” several years ago. “It was a fantastic turnout,” Kishman said. It went really well. I really enjoyed the audience, they were really fun and were really enthusiastic.” At that time, Kishman mentioned to have a McCartney tribute for a full symphony and the Roswell Symphony Orchestra reached out to him this year. “The show is a lot of fun” Kishman said. “If Paul McCartney would do a performance with a full symphony orchestra, what would he perform? Well, we would want to hear him do Beatles songs, we want to do Wings hits, and solo material. That is exactly what we do. We get up there with amazing musicians of the Roswell Symphony along with my four-piece band behind me. “We’ll play the songs that everybody loves to hear. Hits like ‘Uncle Albert,’ ‘Silly Love Songs,’ ‘Live and Let Die;’ songs like ‘Hello, Goodbye,’ ‘Yesterday,’ ‘Hey Jude’ — every song you wanted to hear with a full symphony behind it. We do it live and it is just a wonderful show. It’s a lot of energy, a lot of (fun) and I have been doing Paul McCartney now for about 40 years. It has been a long ride. It’s

Submitted Photo Tony Kishman as Paul McCartney. been a long and winding road,” Kishman said and laughed. “We really love the New Mexico Military theater (Pearson Auditorium) and I am looking forward to another full house with wonderful people,” Kishman said. “Fawn (Pierce) has been a sweetheart and her family is like a home away from home for me. They are so wonderful those people. Also, I love the alien theme. “I really love the fact about the alien theme that goes on in Roswell. I guess living there, you’re probably tired of it,” Kishman said and laughed. “Live and Let Die — A Symphonic Tribute to Paul McCartney” with Tom Kishman as McCartney, accompanied with his band and the Roswell Symphony Orchestra will perform at the Pearson Auditorium,

425 N. Main St., Feb. 3 at 7:30 p.m. For more information, visit roswellsymphony.org.

Calendar Roswell Ongoing until Jan. 28 Broadway Bound kids Registration is open for Way Way Off-Broadway’s Broadway Bound kids youth performing group for the spring 2018 semester. The BBK final concert is scheduled for April 21. For more information, visit waywayoffbroadway. com.

tribute at the Flickinger Center for Performing Arts, 1110 New York Ave. at 7 p.m. The band’s show includes all the hits from Chicago’s golden age, 1969-76 with a worldclass horn section, a rocking rhythm section and vocals stacked sky high. Brass Transit transports its audience back to the free wheeling days of the

70s. The band includes veterans of hall-of-fame rock and soul acts like The Drifters, Sam & Dave, Aretha Franklin, Bene King, The Marvelettes, Frankie Valli, Mary Wilson, Martha Reeves, Little Anthony & the Imperials, Del Shannon and the Mamas & Papas. For more information, visit flickingercenter.com or call 575-437-2202.

Calendar

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Feb. 27-May 3, Tuesdays and Thursday, 5-6pm $130 Alice Through The Looking Glass student theatre classes/rehearsals OPAC 746-4212 Literature: Author

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Registration: Jan. 22-26 student music lessons: Guitar, drums, piano, violin, choir, voice starting at $160/10 wks OPAC 746-4212 Classes: Theater

Alamogordo Jan. 18 Brass Transit Canada’s most in-demand musicians and singer perform their crowd-pleasing studio-tight Chicago

the zoo Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park are holding their pre-school story time on both days starting at 9:30 a.m. The story on Jan. 19 is “Maggie’s Birthday and on Jan. 26 it’s “Footprints in the Snow.” A short walk in the zoo, weather permitting, and an activity will follow the story. There is no fee

for the Visitor Center program; however, regular entrance fees apply to enter the zoo. For more information, call 575-887-5516.

10 >>

Art ~ Classifieds

Albuquerque Ongoing until Feb. 8 New Mexico Music Awards The 2018 New Mexico Music Awards will be accepting entries Jan.1 to Feb. 8. Entry forms will be available Jan. 1. Each year, the NMMA recognizes excellence in recorded music in more than 40 categories including the Norman Petty Producers Award, Best Recording Engineer, Best Song and Best of the Year. For entry rules and information, visit newmexicomusicawards.com.

Carlsbad Jan. 19 Secret Circus concert Secret Circus and a special surprise guest perform at 7 p.m. at Milton’s brewing, 108 E. Mermod St. For more information, visit Secret Circus’ Facebook or event page. Carlsbad Jan. 19 and Jan. 26 Pre-school story time at

Feb. 27-May 3, Tuesdays and Thursday, 4-5pm $130 Alice in Wonderland student theatre classes/rehearsals OPAC 746-4212

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Vision Magazine |

Thursday, January 18, 2018

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Music

Esham visits Roswell

Hip hop legend and creator of acid rap, Esham, includes the Unity Center as part of his “Dead of Winter” tour By Christina Stock Vision Editor etroit artist Esham Attica Smith, best known by his stage name Esham, is considered one of the first artists for creating the new genre of hip hop and originating acid rap. At the young age of 13, Esham embraced the revolutionary and controversial music style that gave a voice to the hopeless in the ghetto streets of Detroit. He released his first studio album, Boomin’ Words from Hell (1989), at the age of 16. In a frantic pace,15 solo studio albums followed, including eight studio albums with the group NATAS and eight EPs, in addition to five mix tapes, three compilation albums and many appearances on other artists’ tracks.

He and his brother James Smith founded the biggest-selling independent hip hop label in Detroit, Reel Life Productions, the label ran until 2001. Esham’s influence eventually fueled the careers of Detroit hip hop artists such as Kid Rock, Eminem and Insane Clown Posse. Gifted with creativity, Esham never stood still in his art, recreating himself from hip hop to acid rap (which was described as unbelievably grim and cruel); fusions between hip hop and death metal followed and modern day blues meets heavy metal (as he described his style). Asked in a phone interview about the challenges of creating a new music style and bringing it to the audience, Esham

said in a rough voice, “Back in those days, it was actually pretty difficult to even put a record together, because you didn’t even have the same tools. It is almost like being a caveman trying to build a house. It was almost next to impossible to make a record back in those days. “We just somehow stuck to it and never gave up and it turned into this genre called the wicked sh--,” Esham said. “People just seemed to fall in love with it. I mean, it’s dark imagery in a dark art. I always looked at it and asked God, ‘Why would I be incrusted into all of this darkness?’ And then a voice came back and said, ‘Because you are the light.’ “As I grew up and matured, I just saw that’s what it was. I came from a dark place, which is Detroit City, it’s a grimy town and maybe that’s why people relate to my music and some other things that I say, but as

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Hip hop legend Esham to perform at The Unity Center. I matured through time, I tried to lead more of a righteous life and put more of a positive message and still keep the hardcore and still keep it underground, which is more or less being a positive way with the peace of the Earth,” Esham said. Esham’s single, “Hypothermia,” which is pulled from his record, “Dead of Winter,” is already getting praises from critics and fans. “The album is called ‘Dead of the Winter’ and features nine tracks. Of course, I am from the Midwest where it snows a lot and there’s 10 feet of snow out here now. Today is marked as the coldest day (Jan. 5) in the United States so, this wasn’t by coincidence, by mistake, this is the dead of winter,” Esham said and laughed. “In the wintertime, there is really nothing else to do but Netflix or telling your computer to turn on some good

music. I chose to make a soundtrack for this time of year. “When I go into the studio and create a project, I almost look at each piece as something new every time,” Esham said. “It is like a brand new dish or a new recipe. I always try to make something new for the listener. It keeps it fresh. It’s almost like being in a relationship, keeping it spontaneous.” Asked why he decided to come to Roswell to perform at the youth center, The Unity, for his first tour in almost a decade, Esham said, “Even before, when I was doing national tours, I would always come into New Mexico and do shows. I would get overwhelming love from the people of New Mexico. Indian reservations, populations of Native people, they just embrace me. It was so much genuine love, it was almost like going home every time I was

Submitted Photo

in New Mexico. I make sure to come there and frequent the towns and just spread some positivity with the dark arts that we do.” Talking with Esham, I couldn’t ignore the elephant in the room, the falling out with Eminem in 2001. “We both come from Detroit. Eminem represents hip hop just like me. He just put a new record out and yeah, the people like Eminem and we have no problem. Things are all good between me and Eminem,” Esham said. Detroit is infamous for its youth problems since the ‘50s, desperation turned violent in the ‘70s and never stopped. It may be unfair to compare Detroit with Roswell, but there are some similarities. There are no trade schools, the unemployment among the low-income youngsee esham on page

Esham

Submitted Photo of Ben Danaher

Music

Ben Danaher concert

Red River Songwriter stops in Roswell before heading to Red River.

By Christina Stock Vision Editor

inger-songwriter Ben Danaher is performing at Pecos Flavors Winery + Bistro, 412 W. Second St., Jan. 24 at 7 p.m., before heading to the Red River Songwriter Festival. The native Texan singer-songwriter Ben Danaher captivates his listeners with raw lyrics and delicate instrumentation. Taking notes from the greats like Merle Haggard, Ray Charles, Darrell Scott and Buddy Miller, Danaher created his own sound-mixing elements from country, blues and Americana to help illustrate his stories. Brought up in a musical family in Texas, Danaher started writing songs in high school and playing gigs with his father, who was also a songwriter. Quickly realizing his love for sharing his stories with people, Danaher made the move to Austin to pursue music. While living in Austin, Danaher toured more than 150 shows a year opening for artists like Ray Wylie Hubbard, Hal Ketchum, Jack Ingram, Shawn Mullins, Rhett Miller, Angaleena Presley and Pat Green. After finishing those tours, Danaher’s passion for songwriting lead him to make the decision to leave Austin and move to Nashville. Along with releasing his debut EP and continuing touring, Danaher has co-written many songs for artists like Ryan Beaver, Bonnie Bishop, Rob Baird

and Justin Halpin with songs being featured in shows like “The Ranch” on Netflix and “Nashville” on CMT. Ready to share what this new chapter in his life has brought, Danaher has been working tirelessly getting songs ready for a full-length album. Holding nothing back, this album, which is set to release in the fall of 2017, will truly showcase a voice that Danaher has been ready to let the world see a long time. “My new record is just out and I am going to perform many of the songs in Roswell,” Danaher said in a phone interview. “Pretty much everybody in my family is into music. My father is the greatest influence in my career. I like the classics,” Danaher said. He studied at Texas State University in San Marcos and had his first gig at the famous Cheatham Street Warehouse, which puts him in great company, after all, one of country music’s legendary artists George Strait and The Ace in the Hole Band had their first gig there. “This is the first time in Roswell and I am looking forward to playing there. Afterward, I am heading to Red River to the Red River Songwriters Festival,” Danaher said.

Continued from Page 8 er people is high and drugs a severe problem. Esham hopes to give these kids hope. “That is really what the music addresses on a day-to-day basis on just being what it is,” Esham said. “A lot of these kids get into hip hop and get into the wicked sh-- — excuse my language — as a rap. They choose to express themselves creatively instead of violently. The music is an outlet for them and that’s why some of the people gravitate towards it and they want to become artists themselves. “We would rather have them become artists than criminals,” he said. “Even if their music is a little dark, let them express their creative side and not violently.” Esham is looking forward to being back on tour. “There are some bad times, but America is a beautiful country. I think people should get out and see it. That’s what I am looking forward to. Getting to see the faces of people, interacting with people in different cities and different cultures. And go and eat the food, because that’s one of the things I love and that’s probably why I became a chef. So I can eat different food and travel around,” Esham said and laughed. There has been no news release about this surprising addition of Esham’s career. “I went to a Cordon Bleu school and got an associate’s degree in culinary arts,” he said. “I dabble in all the scenes.” After asked in jest if he’d consider leaving cold Detroit to open up a restaurant in Roswell, Esham laughed and said, “I

was thinking about that, southwest style. I love New Mexico, the people, and like I said, we are going through some rough times right now, but it’s part of life. “If you were super happy every day, you wouldn’t know what sad was. Life is about emotions. You have to be in control of your emotions. It takes growing as a person to know that. You have to be in control of your emotions. That is why I am trying to lead by example,” Esham said. Esham is going to perform in Roswell as part of his headlining tour. There will be a great chance for local artists, not only to see him perform, but to be on stage with him. “When I go into these small towns, I actually interact with the music community there,” Esham said. “I let the local guys get on the show with me. This is a way for them expressing themselves creatively and not violently. We are all going to have a good time. We can create

some memories together, create some camaraderie and brotherhood amongst ourselves. They can feel good about themselves and this life that we have to live and our day-to-day challenges.” Esham has a message to New Mexico and Roswell, “I love you guys and I might just come up there and open up a restaurant. Have a great day and Happy New Year, everybody.” After his Roswell show, Esham is heading to Albuquerque and to friends on the local Native American reservations before moving out of the state. “We’ve got a pretty tight schedule. We are just rolling. Rolling hard on this tour,” Esham said. Esham is going to perform at The Unity Center, 108 E. Bland St., Jan. 24, at 6 p.m. For more information, visit bandsintown. com or visit The Unity Center’s Facebook page.

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Hobbs Jan. 19 Lea County Photography Show The Lea County Commission for the Arts and the Lea County Photographers invite the public to attend the opening reception for the 2018 Lea County Photography Show at 6 p.m. at the Center for the Arts, 122 W. Broadway St. The reception will be held in conjunction with the Hobbs Chamber of Commerce’s Mix & Mingle and is free of charge. The show is a judged competition that showcases local Lea County photographer’s works in various categories. Prizes and honorable mention will be award-

ed to winners during the reception. Light refreshments and live music will be provided. The show will remain on display at the Center for the Arts until March 31. For more information, visit hobbsevents.org. Roswell Jan. 19 Aaron Einhouse Aaron Einhouse performs at Pecos Flavors Winery + Bistro, 412 W. Second St., at 7 p.m. For more information, visit pecosflavorswinery.com. Hobbs Jan. 19 - May 13 In the Dark In the Dark is the new, interactive exhibit at the Western Heritage Museum, 1 Thunderbird Cir-

cle. Visitors will be surrounded by the sights, sounds, smells and sensation of ecosystems at night. Sometimes scary, but always intriguing, darkness beckons exploration and represents the unknown. It’s also a natural evolutionary selective pressure that has caused plants and animals to adapt to ecosystems like caves, the deep sea, the forest at night and underneath the ground. For more information, visit nmjc.edu or call 575-4922678. Hobbs Jan. 20 Championship Bull Riding The 2018 Hobbs Tuff Hedeman Championship Bull Riding takes place at the Lea County Event Center, 5101 N. Lovington Hwy. Tickets are on sale now. For more information, visit selectaseatlubbock.com or call 575-3912900. Roswell Jan. 23 Kids in Arts ProgramS spring class Spring registration is now open for the Kids in Arts ProgramS theater class. The class fills up fast and only 30 students are accepted. Students will be working on the production of the “Mystery Club, Cases 1 &2.” Performance

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will be held April 20 and 21. For more information, visit roswellkaps.org. Roswell Jan. 24 Esham at The Unity Center The Detroit artist Eshem specializes in acid rap, horrorcore, alternative hip-hop, electronic and metal. Eshem is going to perform at The Unity Center, 108 E. Bland St., at 6 p.m. For more information, visit bandsintown.com. Roswell Jan. 19 Ben Danaher concert Ben Danaher performs at Pecos Flavors Winery + Bistro, 412 W. Second St., at 7 p.m. For more information, visit pecosflavorswinery.com. Ruidoso Jan. 26 Secret Circus & friends concert Secret Circus & friends will perform at Sacred Grounds Coffee and Tea House, 2704 Sudderth Dr., at 6 p.m. Roswell Jan. 28 New Mexico School for the Arts The public is invited to the Anderson Museum of Contemporary Art, 409 E. College Blvd., at 2 p.m. for a free performance of the students from the New

Mexico School for the Arts. The students present their works in music, theater, dance and visual art. For more information, call 575-623-5600. Alto Feb. 1 STOMP STOMP performs at the Spencer Theater, 108 Spencer Rd., at 7 p.m. Garnering armfuls of awards in all aspects of theatrics, STOMP is explosive, witty and utterly unique. Household items and industrial objects find new life as musical instruments in this exhilarating combination of percussion, movement and visual comedy. It is a journey through sound, the pulse of humanity. For more information, visit spencertheater.com. Deming Feb. 2 Wait for What?! concert Wait for What?! is performing at St. Clair Winery, 1325 De Baca Road SE, at 5 p.m. Wait for What?! is kicking off 2018 Friday music nights at St. Clair. The audience can enjoy classic rock, country, and a crazy variety of music, mixed in with originals songs. For more information, visit waitforwhat.com.

Roswell Feb. 2 Drew Fish Band The Drew Fish Band perform at Pecos Flavors Winery + Bistro, 412 W. Second St., at 7 p.m. For more information, call 575-627-6265. Hobbs Feb. 2-4 New Mexico Men’s & Lady State Championship Chili Cook-off The 2018 New Mexico Men’s & Lady State Championship Chili Cook-off takes place at the Hobbs Loyal Order of the Moose Lodge, 2920 W. Maryland Blvd. There is plenty of space for dry camping; the RV hook-ups are on a first come basis. If the weather is bad, the cooks can move inside the lodge. Friday night kicks off with Soup Cookoff and everyone can join. No entry fee. Friday night is the Chili Cook-off with turn-in at 7 p.m. Saturday night turn in is 2 p.m. and there will be a free Saturday night meal for all registered cooks and their spouses. On Sunday turn in is noon. The Chili Appreciation Society International rules apply. For more information, call Paul Mulkey at 575-3906184 or Jennifer Sherfield at 575-441-0535 or visit the CASI event page on Facebook. Las Cruces Feb. 3 Wait for What?! concert Wait for What?! is performing at Pecan Grill & Brewery, 500 S. Telshor Blvd., at 8 p.m. Wait for What?! calls its music new grass. The audience can enjoy classic rock, country, and a crazy variety of music, mixed in with originals songs. For more information, visit waitforwhat.com.

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Roswell Feb. 3 Live and Let Die The Roswell Symphony Orchestra brings the music of Paul McCartney to stage in A Symphonic Tribute to Paul McCartner, at 7:30 p.m. at the Pearson Auditorium at the New Mexico Military Institute. For more information, visit roswellsymphony.org or call 575-623-5882 or 800300-9822. Cloudcroft Feb. 9 to 10 Mardi Gras in the Clouds The annual Mardi Gras in the Clouds has this year the theme “Love and Magic on The Mountain.” The events include Cajun cooking contest, children’s parade and mask contest, including baby contest and dance on Friday. On Saturday, there will be a scavenger hunt, cake walk, battle of the bands and the official parade. For more information, visit coolcloudcroft. com/mardigras/. Carlsbad Feb. 9 A Night to Shine The Night to Shine is sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation and takes place at 7 p.m. at the Carlsbad Civic Center, 4012 National Parks Hwy. This event is a prom for those in our community with special needs. For more information, visit its Facebook event page. Alamogordo Feb. 10 Bettman & Halpin concert Bettman & Halpin are an original folk/americana band. Their concerts combine high-energy upbeat bluegrass inspired compositions, beautiful ballads with soaring vocals and heartfelt lyrics and groovy feel-good songs that audiences

will be singing in their heads for weeks thereafter. Bettman & Halpin are known for their storytelling and playful banter as well as for their hooky whole-hearted songwriting and instrumental wizardry. They have been touring as a duo since 2008, incorporating a trio and quartet since 2013. The concert takes place at the Flickinger Center for Performing Arts, 1110 New York Ave., at 7 p.m. For more information, visit flickingercenter.com.

Ruidoso/Mescalero Feb. 16 and 17 Wait for What?! concert Wait for What?! is performing at the Inn of the Mountain Gods, with performances at 8 p.m. on Friday in the 1852 Treaty room and on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Wendell’s Lounge. Wait for What?! calls its music new grass. The audience can enjoy classic rock, country, and a crazy variety of music, mixed in with originals songs. For more information, visit waitforwhat.com.

Roswell Feb. 10 Mardi Gras dinner and dance All Saints Catholic School Mardi Gras Dinner and Dance fundraiser event will take place at 6:30 p..m. at the St. Peter Church gym on E. Deming St. Activities include dancing, king cakes, costume contest, crowning of a king and queen, cash bar and a silent auction. Tickets are available at All Saints Catholic School, 2700 N. Kentucky Ave or at the St. Peter Church office, 111 E. Deming St. For more information, visit allsaintsmardigras.com or call the school office at 575-627-5744.

Hobbs Feb. 17 Third annual feBREWary fest The third annual wine and beer festival, benefits the Hobbs Chamber of Commerce and takes place from 1 to 6 p.m. at the Lea County Event Center & Fairgrounds, 5101 N. Lovington Hwy. Tickets went on sale on Jan. 1. For more information, call 575-3973202.

Alamogordo Feb. 15 ABBA MANIA ABBA MANIA is not only for life long, die-hard ABBA fans but the new generation of fans, who never had the opportunity to see the band ABBA live. Hits include “Dancing Queen,” “Waterloo,” “Mamma Mia,” “The Winner Takes it All,” “Super Trouper,” “Fernando” and “Take A Chance On Me.” Songs that continue to fill dance floors worldwide. The show opens at 7 p.m. at the Flickinger Center for Performing Arts, 1110 New York Ave. For more information, visit flickingercenter.com or abbamania.com/abba-mania-the-show.

Hobbs Feb. 17 Black History month celebrations In honor of Black History month, the Lea County Center for the Arts is once again partnering with the United Black Clergy, UNM HERO and New Mexico National Black Chamber of Commerce Hobbs to present the fifth annual Black History Month Celebration at the Center for the Arts. The 2018 Black History month celebra-

tion will feature live performances of music and dance by artists such as the Langston University Marching Pride Band and fraternity step team, Golden Feline dance team, local Gospel singer; Glenda J Mackey, the Community Ensemble, Hip Hop & R&B artists; Shaquille Swain aka Dieseltrain, Jamiah Jay Smooth Smith & Khyri and local dancer, Marquez Kaosu Nunezs. The celebration will begin at 2 p.m. with a marching band procession from the corner of Grimes and Broadway Streets, down Broadway Street to the Shipp Street Plaza and Center for the Arts. Door prizes will be given away throughout breaks during the performances. The celebration will conclude at 4 p.m. For more information, visit Hobbsevents.org.

Alamogordo Feb. 20 National Players present “The Great Gatsby” Celebrating its 68th season, National Players is a unique ensemble bringing innovative theatre to communities large and small across the United States. This year, National Players bring “The Great Gatsby” to the Flickinger Center for Performing Arts, 1110 New York Ave. The show starts at 7 p.m. For more information, visit flickingercenter. com. Lubbock, Texas Feb. 16 Blake Shelton Country Music Freaks Tour Tickets are now available for Blake Shelton’s Country Music Freaks Tour at the United Supermarkets Arena, 1701 Indiana Ave. For more information, visit selectaseatlubbock.com

or call 806-770-2000. If you would like your event listed on the entertainment calendar, please email vision@rdrnews. com or call 622-7710 ext. 309.

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Thursday, January 18, 2018

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Christina Stock Photo Roswell Artist-in-Residence Conor Fagan is reaching up to one of his paintings “Menhir,” which is part of his upcoming exhibit “This is not That.”

Spotlight

‘This is not That’ Fall into the different worlds of Roswell Artistin-Residence Conor Fagan By Christina Stock Vision Editor

alking into the studio of Conor Fagan at the Roswell Artist-in-Residence compound is like walking into a controlled environment of chaos, colors and light. Huge paintings hang on the walls with smaller ones in their shadows, just waiting to move to the Roswell Museum and Art Center for the opening of his exhibit. There are columns and sand in all shades of the desert on the floor. Fagan places light and shadow, bright colors and earthen colors that resemble other worlds on canvas. It draws the eye from one liquid moving stream to a star, to a glowing orb and to a hard, shadowy structure just to find a new path that makes the viewer forget time and space. Conor Fagan obtained his Master of Fine Arts degree at Nova Scotia College of Art and design in the spring of 2014. A recipient of numerous awards

and grants, since graduating, he has been one of 12 international artists selected to participate in the 31st annual International Symposium of Contemporary Art in Baie-St. Paul, Quebec, Canada. Fagan has works in numerous public collections, including the Waterton — in their global corporate collection — and the Museum of Modern Art in Baei-St. Paul. His work is collected privately — nationally and internationally from Toronto, Canada, to Tel Aviv, Israel. Originally raised in Baltimore, Maryland, Fagan has lived all over the world, including Sri Lanka. Asked how he came to be in Sri Lanka, Fagan said, “I was in India and I met this man who asked if I could teach at his cousin’s school. He flew me there. I was to be in India for a month, but stayed for half a year up in the mountains teaching the kids.” For the young family man, teaching and art is in his blood. In fact, according to Fagan, he would like to stay after the RAiR program runs out, if he finds a position that fits him. “My grandfather was an artist and also an educator,” Fagan said. “Both my parents are teachers, my sister is a teacher. The teaching part is more there than the artist part. My grandfather was a part-time artist. He was pretty good in drawing. He had a big appreciation for art. He loved Picasso and Mondrian. They used to print out those little books about modern artists, modern in the 20th Century. I inherited those from him. I love Mondrian, especially his trees.” Fagan’s love for painting started with one of the most joyous moments of his life. “I started painting when my wife was pregnant with my son, Oscar,” he said. “I am not really sure the specifics. There was an impulse. The first painting I ever did is called ‘Gestation.’ It was my imaginary idea of how my son’s experiences were like, visually created. Since then, I continued the work.” Fagan brought his wife, who is studying to become a nurse, and his two small children with him. He still considers his children, Oscar and Winny (Winifred), his inspiration. “Painting is my first and favorite medium. Sculptures stem from what happens on my paintings and there is always a dialogue. The sculptures are a language to think about the paintings differently. I play with it and then come back to the paintings with the things I learned; 70 percent of what I do is painting and 30 percent is sculpture. “With paintings, you shouldn’t really think, but react,” Fagan said. “I played with the term anti-surrealism, but I can see a lot of people latching on to it. I studied surrealism a lot in grad school, I was really interested in it. They are interested in the dialogue between the conscious and the subconscious mind. I don’t have that dialogue. There are some people who think there are meanings behind dreams and interpret them, then there are people who say that dreams are just your mind relaxing. These (the paintings) are more like tabular rasae opposed to having meanings and a dialogue between the conscious and the subconscious. “I have been doing these paintings for a really long time, lately I have honed in on large paintings, but started adding smaller paintings. Some are really quick ones,” Fagan said. “I work on a lot of the paintings at the same time. I am not just doing one

12 | V i s i o n M a g a z i n e | Thursday, January 18, 2018

painting, but coming back to it. Oil is his favorite medium. “I can’t get away from it, it slips across the surface. The effects you can get out of it, the color saturation, different kinds of ways of manipulating, you can do everything.” Fagan said that his art is meant to be fun. “Some artists like irony, that doesn’t interest me.” Asked about the use of colors, he said, “It’s an unending process. Eventually I have to give up, I think. I don’t know how many times I can find new colors,” Fagan said and laughed. Colors and the history of creating paint for the old masters, especially Peter Bruegel the Elder (15251569), fascinated Fagan during his studies, but at some point he said he had to choose to create colors or to paint. “I love painting so much, so I chose painting,” Fagan said. Talking to him, you can understand that it was a difficult decision. Fagan’s sculptures resemble gallery plinths. “It is a new adventure,” Fagan said. “The materials are all found here, the dirt is from all around New Mexico.” During the interview Fagan was still deciding what to put on the white square plinths he made. Some have intriguing holes in them that invite the viewer to take a peak inside. “There is a battle between sculptures, which are the real world versus paintings, which are this made-up space,” Fagan said. “There is a tension there. One way I was thinking of resolving it, is to have plinths with nothing on them except inside of them. My pillars with the holes reflect the paintings which has holes. They are visually relatable. “In the gallery space it wouldn’t distract from the paintings so much, but then there is also that secret. I am thinking of collecting colors of New Mexico and putting them inside of the plinths, which are like the gallery spaces and that white emptiness. And, bringing the outside of New Mexico into the inside of the structures in to the gallery. That is the conceptual zone. “This evolved and is pretty interesting. It is something I’ve been playing with in this realm,” Fagan said. Being an artist with a young family is a challenge. “It is hard to make enough money to support a family,” Fagan said. “One of our options is to stay here, but then I have to find some kind of employment to supplement being an artist. Another option is a gallery in Canada I am talking with, another in New York. For more information about Fagan, visit conorfagan.com or his Instagram page. RAiR Fagan’s exhibit and lecture “This is not That” takes place Jan. 19 at 5:30 p.m. at the Roswell Museum and Art Center, 100 W. 11th St. For more information, call 575-624-6744.

‘Wrong Turn To Roswell’ Episode 3: What’s That?! By S.E. Smith

n the Dec. 21 Vision Magazine, the first two chapters of New York Times, USA TODA Y, international and award-winning bestselling author S.E. Smith’s new series, “Wrong Turn to Roswell,” were published. In the first episode the reader was introduced to alien children who get into trouble when they press the wrong button of their spaceship. The second episode takes place in Roswell, where two boys are working on finding something they can use for the upcoming science fair. This is what happens next: “You’re grounded for life,” Copper stated. “Now, Copper,” Diamond chided. “Aw, dad! Not again,” Iron groaned, hanging his head. “I think that makes five lifetimes now,” Carbon quipped with a grin. “You can add one for yourself, Carbon,” her father said grimly as his hands flew across the console. “But … Dad! I didn’t do anything,” Carbon complained, folding her arms across her chest. Copper turned and glared at both of his children. “Exactly!” he stated. “Let me plug into the circuits and see if I can bypass the navigation system,” Diamond suggested. “I already tried that. It is fried — along with the autopilot, the environmental, the backup and the propulsion sys-

tems! How can one prototype be so different from the other?” Copper groaned. “Now, Copper,” Diamond replied with a reproving shake of her head. “I know. I know,” Copper said. “So — you can fix it, right?” Iron asked, leaning forward in his seat behind his father. “Not without some parts and a month of work,” Copper replied in a grim tone. Iron winced. “Sorry, dad,” he mumbled. “Well, there is nothing else we can do. We’ll have to find a suitable planet to land on. Your mother and I need to finish recharging. You know how we get when we are running low on energy,” Copper replied. “I know. Carbon and I are still on full,” Iron replied with a grin that quickly faded when his father shot him another heated glare. “Yes, and you are also a lot newer than we are,” Copper retorted. “Should we head for the small moon?” Diamond asked as she tried to pull up a visual of the dark satellite moon locked in the orbit of its larger, more colorful host. “No, I need gravity to work on some of the systems. You’d better head for the planet and hope that no intelligent life forms are there,” Copper instructed. “Visual locked. We are on approach,” Diamond announced. “I told you that you should have read the

manual,” Carbon muttered under her breath. “It was on my list of things to do — tomorrow. Besides, mom and dad will have everything fixed in a nanosecond, and we’ll be back on course,” Iron quietly retorted. “Diamond, can you find a landing location?” Copper requested. “Yes, but you’d better hurry, dear. The circuits are in worse shape than we originally … we originally … we originally … we originally thought,” Diamond informed him, her head jerking to the side as she stuttered. “Great! Just great!” Copper muttered under his breath. “Hang on, we are going in fast!” Iron and Carbon glanced at each other and grimaced. From the way sparks were flying from the console, their mom was spasming, and their dad had steam coming from his ears, they would be lucky to ever get out of detention. The smooth, oval spaceship glowed as it broke through the atmosphere of the blue and white planet. Alarms sounded as a small fire ignited. Diamond turned toward the fire, reached out, and pressed a couple of buttons. Iron tried to see which ones she pressed in case he needed to store that data in his already overtaxed memory, but he missed it. “I am so going to disown you if we live through this,” Carbon informed him through gritted teeth.

“Well, at least one good thing will have come from this, then,” Iron retorted before closing his eyes as the g r o u n d ap p e a r e d to rush up to meet them. *.*.* “How much farther to your house? Why do you live over here? I live on the other side of Main Street. Do you ride this far every day?” Matt asked. “Are you ever quiet?” Alan asked in exasperation as he pumped his bike pedals even faster. “Hey! I didn’t know there was a park here. Can we stop? Do you have a basketball? I don’t. Mom said I was too dangerous playing basketball after I put a dent in her new car and almost broke my nose,” Matt continued. “Yes, and I play sometimes,” Alan replied, unsurprised by Matt’s confession. “That’s cool. Maybe we can play sometime,” Matt suggested. “Maybe,” Alan responded in a noncommittal voice as he slowed to a stop to check for traffic. “Boy, you live a long way from town,” Matt said, looking around. “Matt, we’ve only gone a couple of blocks. Technically, we are still in town,” Alan responded. Alan wanted to groan. He normally would have enjoyed riding his bike along the trail, stopping at the park, saying hi to the people he knew that lived along the way, that kind of thing. Today, the trail felt like it was three times longer than usual.

He slowed to a stop as he came to South Virginia Avenue. He put his foot down to steady himself and looked both ways before pedadling across. Three more blocks and he would be home. They made it another two blocks before he suddenly veered to the left and skidded to a stop. The ground under his feet vibrated, and an unexpected blast of hot air hit the ground, creating a huge dust cloud. He raised his arm to protect his face from the stinging blast. Hearing a muttered oath behind him, he peeked under his arm to see what was happening. Matt had scrambled to place the helmet he brought from the store on his head. Alan saw Matt flip the dark visor down. “Holy crud! Alan, you’ve got to see this!” Matt exclaimed, tilting his head back. “See what?” Alan asked, wincing as more sand and grit blasted him. “It looks like a giant egg! It’s landing behind the fence up ahead. You’ve really got to check this out!” Matt excitedly replied, waving his arms outward b e f o r e p u l l i n g th e m back. “Wow! That sand hurts.” Alan turned his head and squinted his eyelids as the sudden breeze began to die. He blinked several times and frowned. Tiny dust devils still swirled along the ground in front of them. He lifted his hand to try to rub some of the

Vision Magazine |

grit from his face and eyes. Blinking again, he shrugged. He didn’t see anything unusual. “Come on. We’re almost to my house. I need to wash my face now,” Alan said, pushing his foot off the ground and pedaling the last block to his home. Matt followed him, still wearing the helmet. Alan bit back a caustic remark. Swinging his leg over the back of his see

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Thursday, January 18, 2018

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Art From the Vault: ‘Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska’ by Louis Siegriest By Sara Woodbury Curator of Collections and Exhibitions Roswell Museum and Art Center

ince my arrival at the Roswell Museum and Art Center in 2013, artwork created for the Federal Art Project and related endeavors has become a strong interest of mine. Founded as a Federal Art Center itself, RMAC has an outstanding collection of WPA-related materials, and it’s through these great holdings that I’ve developed my

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current interests. Today, we’ll take a closer look at WPA poster design “Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska” by Louis Siegriest (1899-1989). Siegriest studied art at the California School of Fine Art in San Francisco and the California College of Arts and Crafts. During the 1920s, he became involved with a group of painters called the Society of Six, artists who embraced the bright, neon-like colors of French Fauvists such as Henri Matisse. Many of Siegriest’s paintings consist of landscapes executed in bright colors such as yellow or red. During the 1930s, he became involved in silkscreen poster design for the WPA. In 1936, the Federal Art Project had started producing posters to advertise its various programs, an initiative begun in New York through the Civilian Work Administration. Posters were designed and painted by hand until artist and printmaker Anthony Velonis introduced screen printing to the FAP’s printing workshops, greatly improving the efficiency of the poster-making process. “Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska” is one of several posters Siegriest designed to advertise the Indian Court at the Golden Gate International Exposition, held in San Francisco in 1939. The Exposition was a World’s Fair, an inter-

Submitted Photo “Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska” by Louis Siegriest. national emporium celebrating technical and cultural innovations of the time. It also commemorated the recent completion of two new bridges, the Oakland Bay Bridge, completed in 1936 and the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937, the latter of which has since become an icon of California itself. The exposition was open two times, the first taking place from February through October 1939, and the second run happening from May through September 1940. The Indian

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Court was one of several displays at the Golden Gate Exposition and served to introduce visitors to America’s different indigenous cultures. Siegriest designed a total of eight posters advertising the pavilion, with each poster taking its imagery from a different tribe. “Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska” highlights the masking traditions of the Alaskan region. Made from different materials such as wood, feathers or hide and painted in a variety of colors, these

complex objects serve a variety of functions. Some are worn by shamans during special ceremonial occasions, or used for dances. Others appear to be embodiments of particular animals, and may represent that creature’s spiritual being. Some masks serve as transformation pieces, underscoring the spiritual connectedness between hunters and their prey. Since these masks originate from highly diverse, sophisticated cultures, it is difficult to group them under a single function or category. Siegriest’s design uses visual simplicity and exoticism to draw the viewer into the work. In contrast to many of his other poster designs, which feature bright, saturated colors, he has used softer, pastel tones that reflect the colors often used in extant Eskimo masks. He has depicted the mask at an angle, providing a sense of visual dynamism. He has reduced the modeling on the mask to a single shadow tone, emphasizing the mask’s abstract construction while delineating its three-dimensional character as an object. The mask’s eyes and mouth, distilled to circles and crescents, stand out boldly against the paler colors, grabbing our attention. The pink comma shape around the eye, embellished with short white lines, add visual interest,

while the feathers at the top of the mask enhance its exotic, unfamiliar character. Siegriest uses the same colors in the mask for the text of the poster, linking image and text together visually. As with many texts of the WPA era, Siegriest has used clean, sans serif fonts that make the words clear and legible. Through shape, color and line, Siegriest has created a poster that is easy to read visually, ideal for catching the viewer’s attention quickly and effectively. “Eskimo Mask — Western Alaska” was recently featured in last year’s exhibition, “Consistent Variety: The Art of Silkscreen” and will remain in storage for the next few years to m ain tain its state o f preservation. We have several other Siegriest posters, however, so perhaps you will see them in a future exhibition. In the meantime, we have plenty of other objects on view, including “RAiR at 50: Beyond the Gift of Time,” so be sure to stop by if you haven’t visited recently.

History

The importance of preserving your family history

By John LeMay and Danielle González

s many of you know, the Historical Society for Southeast New Mexico hosts a Sunday Funday program the first Sunday of every month at 3 p.m. in the archive building, 208 N. Lea Ave. Typically, an author or historian will present on a historical topic, but our most recent program held on Jan. 7 was rather unique in that a whole family presented. The González family of Roswell gave a lecture on the importance of preserving one’s family history. Danielle González, one of the younger members of the family, recently compiled a series of interviews — predominantly compiled by her uncle Isidro González, who is a retired Spanish teacher from Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell — into book form with family photographs. The title of the book is, “Never Forget Where You Came From.” Thanks to the

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professionally bound book, the González family history will be preserved for many future generations. The González family has lived in Roswell, New Mexico, for 63 years and has grown to four generations of family members who have contributed to the Roswell community. Chances are, you have met one of the González family members, whether it was from church, on the softball field, or through the Roswell Independent School District. Danielle González spoke about the process of creating the book, while Isidro González gave pointers and tips on how to best interview elderly family members. Isidro González reinforced the importance of listening and not interrupting the interviewee to tell one’s own story. He also talked about methods of collecting the stories, either taking notes on the conversation, or better yet, using a digital

Continued from Page 13 bike, he jumped off and pushed it toward a large piece of fiberglass that covered a hole in the fence. Pushing the cover aside, he motioned for Matt to go ahead. Alan pushed his bike through the opening before pulling the cover back over the hole. He turned and promptly ran into Matt who was just standing there. Growling in frustration, he pushed him out of the way. “What is your problem?” Alan demanded, glaring at the other boy who was still standing in the way and wearing the stupid helmet he found

tape recorder to capture all of it on audio. Next, González family members — some were as young as grade-schoolers — stood in front of the crowd to read passages from the family’s book. David González, best known as a former newscaster and the head of Cable One in Roswell, capped off the event with a talk on the family’s history. All in all, over 70 people, including several who were from out of town, attended the event. Hopefully the González family’s project and work will encourage other area families to do the same. According to Amy McVay-Davis, executive director of the Historical Society for Southeast New Mexico, copies of the González’ book will be available in a couple of weeks. Interested buyers can call 575-6228333 to be put on the waiting list.

earlier. “What’s that?” Matt asked in a muffled voice. Alan turned to look in the direction of Matt’s pointing finger. He didn’t see anything. Well, he didn’t see anything at first. He swallowed when something large, white, and oval appeared for a brief moment in front of him before disappearing again.

Photo courtesy of the Historical Society for Southeast New Mexico Amaris Gurule, one of the youngest members of the González family, is reading from the book “Never Forget Where You Came From” during the Sunday Funday event, Jan. 7, at the Historical Society for Southeast New Mexico Archives. tion, fantasy, paranormal and contemporary works for adults, young adults and children. She enjoys writing a wide variety of genres that pull her readers into worlds that take them away. Readers can check out her website at sesmithfl.com and chat with her on Facebook at facebook.com/se.smith.5

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The story continues with episode 4: Unexpected Visitors Author Bio S.E. Smith is a New York Times, USA TODAY, international and award-winning bestselling author of science fic-

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Vision Magazine |

Thursday, January 18, 2018

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UFOlogy

UFOs: Many questions remain unanswered

Looking Up

By Donald Burleson

s we settle into a new year, those of us seriously interested in the subject of unidentified flying objects cannot help wondering whether 2018 might be the year that brings us answers to some of the vexing questions that UFOs continue to present. From long experience, we’ve learned not to hold our breath waiting, but we can hope and naturally, we must keep looking for solutions. Let’s see what some of the basic questions are. First, where do UFOs come from? This question need not have a single answer, since

we observe many different kinds of anomalous objects, and there is certainly no reason to suppose that they all come from the same place. The possibilities are endless, even if we restrict our attention to relatively nearby star systems right here in our own corner of the Milky Way Galaxy, since numerous possibly life-supporting exoplanets have now been discovered. Some people have claimed that other star systems are too distant for there to be visitors, but given that these mysterious machines may have unimaginably different propulsion systems,

who can say? Hence another question: What about those propulsion systems? At least some plausible guesses have been entertained, including the concept of magnetic propulsion. The Canadian government is known — from certain declassified documents — to have officially studied this possibility, and our own government probably has too, though they won’t admit it. In any case, when considering this question, we need to have the humility to admit that our own scientific knowledge is limited, especial ly when you consider that 99 percent of what

we know about physics has been discovered during the past several decades. For us, it may well be the first day of kindergarten. Another intriguing question about UFOs is: Why are they here? But then the problem is that we’re trying to second-guess alien psychology by asking how they think and what they want. When judging from the sophistication of the airborne machines we’ve seen them controlling, they may be mentally and emotionally as different from us as we are different from butterflies. It might not be too far amiss to suspect that

their being here, watching us, has something to do with our sometimes rather bizarre behavior as a species. Perhaps it’s not entirely coincidental that the modern era of UFOs seemed to follow pretty closely upon the first atomic explosions at Trinity and Hiroshima. Plausibly the alien attitude could be, “What are these lunatics up to now?” (This was the theme of the classic 1951 sci-fi film “The Day the Earth Stood Still.”) In any event, the questions we are faced with in the field of UFO studies are ponderous ones, and only an unbridled optimist

would dare to think that the new year will see answers to them. Still, the new year is bound to provide us with one important gift: another 12 months in which to look for answers. For all our human limitations, we do, after all, have two vitally important traits: Curiosity and perseverance.

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