Daily Lobo 10/17/2022

Muralists craft throughcommunity and culture

By Zara Roy @DailyLobo

For local muralists, art can serve as a powerful medium for bring ing strength back to the people in times of great division and disenfranchisement. With this knowledge, mural artists here in New Mexico have created a means of revitalizing community strength through collaborative art.

“What we’re really trying to do is show that art really isn’t the en emy. It’s a tool that some people can use to gentrify a community, but we choose to use it as a tool to collaborate with the community and to be a reflection of the beau ty that is already there. So, it’s not place-making, it’s place-keeping,” Vanessa Alvarado, lead artist at Apprenticeships for Leaders in Mosaic Arts, said.

ALMA is a women-led Albuquer que mosaic arts group that takes on apprentices in the community to create mosaic art; everything down to the individual tiles is handmade by ALMA apprentice artists. For Al varado, one big purpose of ALMA is to represent women of color and those who have historically received inequitable treatment in the community.

Nani Chacon is a muralist who has worked in communities across the country. She works with com munity members in the area she is working in to create murals. For Chacon, murals are a form of free speech unto themselves: “A message made by the people, for the people.”

“I do think that it is impactful

for people to recognize and to see themselves in their own environ ment. I just think that we are so bombarded by so many external propaganda and entities and a lot of it by corporations, a lot of it by way of billboards and advertising that, to see something the commu nity made, I think, it’ll always have an integral impact,” Chacon said.

For several years, ALMA has been working on a mural at the Val le de Oro National Wildlife Refuge; Alvarado said this process has had a very special focus on commu nity impact since the refuge is on ancestral Tiwa lands. Chacon sees her murals as something that is passed on to its community — not for her, but for the people around it, to understand.

“I get to learn from the people of that community … We get to share in this process of coming up with concepts and thinking about the way this work can exist in their landscape and then ex ecuting it and being able to share it … Every time it’s different; ev ery community is different, every group of people is different and every piece comes out differently,” Chacon said.

One of her projects in Albuquer que was made in collaboration with Working Classroom, a local organization focused on teaching art to youth with a special focus on social justice. Much of their work is located in Albuquerque’s downtown area, according to Ma dalena Salazar, executive director of Working Classroom.

The mural with Chacon, located on the side of Washington Mid dle School, is called “Resilience,”

which is about sharing rather than hoarding power, according to Chacon. The group collaborat ed with the students of the school and the neighborhood itself, even incorporating local flora into the design of the piece, according to Salazar. In the process, students learned about the cultural history and medicinal properties of the plants they chose to paint.

“It was really about the char acter of the neighborhood, of the downtown neighborhood, Barelas neighborhood — the future of the young people who live there. And what I love about Nani’s work is that she puts a lot of thought and brings students into the thought process of who is in this communi ty, what do they have to say, how do they see themselves,” Salazar said.

The goal of Working Class room is not only to teach young people how to conceptualize and

work on murals but also to teach young people to listen to com munity perspectives and better understand the people living near the art project. For Alvarado, the process of creating the mural is often more satisfying than the mural itself.

“Art, for a long time, hasn’t re flected women, women of color, diversity — and in Albuquerque it’s especially important that we cre ate artwork and space for people to do that, especially young artists. And I think that it brings ownership and value when they’ve made it or a family member’s made it, when they see the hard work behind it … More importantly than the product or the final murals is the process and the community and the rela tionships that are built during that,” Alvarado said.

All three, however, agreed on one thing: murals are a tool to pro

vide communities with a sense of ownership — not only to the mu ral itself but to their own stories and identities.

“Obviously it beautifies a neighborhood to have murals around, but it also really kind of combines the vision of the community, the identity of the community, the history of the community with the design skills and talents as well as the design skills and talents as well as the ability to translate those commu nity visions by the artists and for us also to use artists, right? And so it’s really like this multilay ered, community-driven project,” Salazar said.

Zara Roy is the copy chief at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at copychief@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo

Mackenzie Schwartz / Daily Lobo / @mackenzid5

A mural at Washington Middle School created by Nani Chacon and students from Working Classroom.

Mackenzie Schwartz / Daily Lobo / @mackenzid5

A mosaic mural at the Albuquerque Convention Center created by Apprenticeships for Leaders in Mosaic Arts.

Fall 2022 Daily Lobo photo contest winners

On Sept. 27, the Daily Lobo asked students at the University of New Mexico to submit their best photos for a chance to be featured on the cover of our Art and Photo issue, published this past Monday, Oct. 17. Here, the three winners provide a brief statement on their photographs and the stories behind them.

First Place: Jill Hankins

(FRONT PAGE) I was at the UNM Duck Pond on the afternoon of Sept. 7, 2022, to shoot images for ARTS 2420: Visualizing Ideas. The assign ment was to capture body language.

Being a beautiful sunny afternoon, I knew I’d be able to find students re laxing at the Duck Pond.

While walking around the area, I noticed most of the ducks decided to rest after swimming around the pond, but first, each one would preen themselves before finding a shady spot under a tree to relax. Al though the ducks don’t mind people walking up to them, I didn’t want to disturb their ritual of swim-preen-rest, so I used my telephoto lens at 210 mm to capture this shot.

What makes this image so unique is the how the shallow depth of field causes the green pond water to re semble a painting, while the neutral tones of the mottled brown feath ers and gravel juxtapose with the complementary colors of violet-blue wing flash and orange-red bill and feet. As an East Mountain resident, New Mexico’s flora and fauna are my favorite subjects to photograph, and UNM’s Duck Pond offered me with some new subjects to capture on camera.

Second Place: Veronica Mares

This photo displays a picturesque sunset at Sandia Peak in Albuquerque, N.M. Since moving to Albuquerque, I have fallen in love with the Sandia Mountains. As a native New Mexican, I wanted to capture one of these sun

sets at the end of the summer season when the colors are most vibrant. This photo was taken at the beginning of September before the transition into fall. This time of year is stunning in Albuquerque when the skies display their orange and blue hues.

Third Place: Mark Sanchez

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, there wasn’t much to do in our small town, but the streets were completely empty at night, and my friends and I were free to skate around wherever we wanted. Dur ing a very stressful time in the world, getting this freedom at night was in credibly helpful for us to maintain a peace of mind.

Last summer, a lot of us came home from college and decided to skate again, and it was still just as freeing. I decided to try to capture

the freedom of it all in a picture, and I think that it worked out pretty well.

The subject of the photo is my friend Dimitri riding his longboard in the center of the street. He is right at the focal point of the picture, and all the lines of the road, the curbs and the buildings point directly to him. Except for the one car parked on the side, there are no other cars on the road, with the only light coming from a few streetlights. I took this picture while skating right behind him, cap turing the freedom of the empty street with us at the center of it all.

OPINION: Films need to put more effort into cinematography

By Spenser Willden

@spenserwillden

The principal concern of the filmmaker is image. Story, charac ter, even sound are all secondary to the creation of compelling im ages. Think of the shower scene in “Psycho,” or Gene Kelly and the lamppost in “Singing in the Rain.” With their composition, these iconic images, both within and outside their original contexts, provide sensations beyond sight to the audience — touch, smell, taste, even intrigue; a sixth sense of danger and imbalance or joy and virility.

Now, think of an iconic shot from the past few years in film, par ticularly blockbusters: those we’re leaving behind to later genera tions. Our cultural footprint. Think of a shot as divorced from the con text of plot as well, just what’s in the frame. Finding anything interesting? Likely not.

In recent years, the quality of vi sual storytelling in mainstream film has plummeted. Made-by-committee movies like “The Avengers” have taken the box office by storm, and we’ve been left to foot the bill, with a new filmic language emerging: all at once simpler and harder to understand in its lack of meaning.

Genre and poorly made blockbust ers have existed for years, but in the 21st century, audiences and stu dios have started to demand respect for them and as a result, we’re los ing the diversity of shot that creates visual interest.

It would be disingenuous to com pare the filmmaking techniques of a superhero flick to something like “The Graduate,” so I won’t. Those are different films with different audi

ences and genres, and as a result, they go for different choices. There’s value in both. But even transcending genre, we, as audiences, seem to be losing our attention span year to year, with the average shot length and charac ters in frame decreasing since at least the 1950s.

A lot of these issues seem to boil down to the difference between shooting film versus digital, both in terms of cost and the capabilities of the technology. For one, shoot ing digital is cheaper and requires less concerted lighting effort, mak ing indecision and laziness easier and more cost-effective for studios. Digital is also better able to capture shadows, and as a result, we’re see ing darker and darker shots, such as in the much maligned “Battle of Winterfell” episode of “Game of Thrones,” in which audiences could barely discern one character

from another.

A great example of this made the rounds on Twitter a few weeks ago comparing a shot from “Halloween Ends” to a shot from the original “Hal loween,” in which Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode hides from Michael Myers. In the “Ends” shot, Strode and Myers are cast in shadow. A light from the room Myers is coming from provides most of the light, though there’s a general blue wash over the scene. Looking at the shot, the rela tionship between the characters isn’t clear and Myers isn’t scary — just a looming presence.

Now, the same shot from “Hal loween,” while by no means one of cinema’s greatest films, still feels effortful and intentional in a way most movies today are not. Strode is illuminated by a nearby window, drawing focus to her fear. Myers occupies a parallel position, but sim

ply watches, emerging from pure shadow, his body completely hid den. Add in static from watching it as originally intended on VHS, and the darkness seems to shift around him.

It’s terrifying both in and out of con text in a way that the recent shot could never hope to be.

The shot from “Ends” shows an indecision on the part of the filmmak ers indicative of a generational issue.

They want Myers to be scary, but they know he’s why people come back to the franchise, so they want us to see him clearly. Ironically, this serves the opposite purpose, only making Myers less frightening.

When taken in tandem with the variety of screens for which movies are now expected to fit — from movie theater to iPhones — we’re losing ar tistic and intentional detail in favor of direct realism, which betrays the potential of any image or idea. It’s a

cyclical process: shots are dumbed down, we become worse at pars ing them, shots are dumbed down to meet us, and it happens again and again.

This isn’t even to mention the bland color palettes and underuse of practical effects in the past 20 years — why even have color if it’s used so wastefully? One purpose of art could be to give us new lenses through which to view our world. Who wants to see the world through the Russo brothers’ eyes?

These are all trends, and they’ll go away. Though the past 40 years have moved us in this direction, with enough pushback we’ll hopefully re turn to visually engaging filmmaking. But, personally speaking, this doesn’t give me much hope; I don’t want our generation of films to be remembered for their banality.

When’s the last time you’ve seen a frame from a recent successful film and felt your heart leap into your chest? Film is a distinctly visual medium. By giving into indecision and paint-by-numbers shot com position, we’re betraying ourselves to future generations who will see our distinct lack of identity as our cultural footprint.

To those who make films, I beg you to consider more deeply your images, your detail, your lights and darks. To those who watch films, I beg you to be more discerning. A film with wonderful plot and performance has only fought half the battle if it’s not visually artful.

Spenser Willden is the culture editor at the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twit ter @spenserwillden

5 and Why: 5 places to take photographsin and around Albuquerque

By Elizabeth Secor @esecor2003

The city of Albuquerque and its surrounding area provides ample opportunity for both professional and amateur pho tographers to photograph places that are both beautiful and unique. Isaac Martinez, a film student at The University of New Mexico and prac ticing photographer for the last four years, spoke to the Daily Lobo about his favorite spots to take pho tographs with some common and

uncommon spots.

Corrales, New Mexico

Martinez enjoys Corrales as a photo spot for the diverse back drops it provides with its variation of colors and buildings. Corrales can provide a unique picture spot for anyone who goes there.

“I’ve been taking pictures there for a while now. I just love that kind of the old farm architecture over there; full of trees, and you know, keeping it green,” Martinez said. “It has like that farm type of feel.

Courtesy Photo / Daily Lobo / @Daily Lobo

Tony Moran plays Michael Myers in “Halloween (1978).” Photo courtesy of IMDb.

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It (also) has some old run-down buildings that I like to go around and take pictures around to add some of that New Mexico building type of atmosphere.”

“Spike”

“Spike’’ is the name Martinez uses for this unique spot off Bosque Meadow Road and Coors Boule vard where the architecture helps with elements of photography. The building that can be found there is why Martinez dubbed it “spike” and is also surrounded by picturesque nature.

“I love it because the way it’s like a cool abstract art design, and it has lots of leading lines. It has great mountain views. And there’s a field right next to it, too,” Martinez said.

“So, it’s kind of like a two-in-one type of thing where I can get both filled pictures of just the field in the mountains and also the architec ture of the spike design.”

UNM Duck Pond

The Duck Pond at UNM is a wellknown spot for taking pictures, especially for special events such as graduation and quinceñeras. Marti

“A lot of people who are getting married just want (the) Duck Pond … It’s really great because it’s green, plenty of trees (and) plenty of grass,” Martinez said. “It has the bridge there. And, of course, the pond adds a really nice nature feel to it. And you also kind of get the UNM ar chitecture in the back: kind of like a New Mexico stucco look.”

Downtown ABQ

Another well-known photo spot is downtown Albuquerque, but Martinez has a few specific reasons he enjoys photographing there.

Martinez believes downtown is great for people looking for an “industrial feel” but also for the mountain view shots thanks to the tall buildings. He also enjoys shots from the alleys despite the not-so-great smells.

“One spot I particularly like downtown is the parking garage. And that gets a really great view because you’re kind of right in the middle of all the big buildings, so it kind of makes everything look big ger,” Martinez said.

“Red Bridge”

“Red Bridge,” another spot Mar tinez named for himself due to the red bridge found there, became one of his favorites as it leaves room to play around with various colors. This spot is located off Jefferson and Masthead streets.

“I like it because it’s really green in there. There’s some lights at night, which look really great. The red bridge makes it pop, which I like because the green and red looks really nice,” Martinez said. “And, of course, it’s very nice location. That’s personally the best place I like to go because it’s super safe in that area, too, compared to all the other Albuquerque areas.”

With the leaves changing colors and Halloween just around the cor ner, we hope you take advantage of this particularly visually appealing season with these great photo spots in mind.

Elizabeth Secor is a beat reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be con tacted at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @esecor2003

A view into Old Town art galleries

Fall in love with

By Annya Loya @annyaloya

Established in 1706, Old Town is the city of Albuquerque’s first neighborhood. Throughout its history, Old Town has provided the city with iconic art, architec ture and cuisine. One of the things that makes it unique in Albuquer que history is the vast number of art galleries. From the weird to the wonderful, Old Town is packed with art of diverse perspectives and drives.

Albuquerque Photographers’ Gallery

Located on San Felipe Street, this photography gallery co operative features nine local photographers’ art. Award-

winning photographer Marilyn Hunter founded the gallery in 2003, with its 20th anniversary coming up next April. Though Hunter has since passed away, the remaining founders and artists have kept the gallery afloat.

Urey Lemen, one of the original gallery members whose photo graphs are featured in the gallery, has dedicated almost 50 years of his life to the art thanks to his fa ther — also a photographer.

“A lot of people come here, tourists mostly, and they want to see what kind of landscapes are available from our point of view.

Hopefully they’ll take home one of our art pieces; a memory of their trip to the Southwest,” Le men said.

The gallery photographs are mostly taken in southwestern New

Mexico, but they also feature pho tographs taken all over the world.

Painted Sky Gallery

Nationally acclaimed artist Da vid Behren utilizes a unique ap proach of blending iconic Native American images with moving and provocative themes in his oil paintings. His gallery has been open since 2010 and has sold paintings across the world.

Behren tries to connect history to art with a person’s mind and heart which also connects with their emotions.

“A place without a story be comes like a tumbleweed blowing away. So the story of New Mexico is essential,” Behren said.

Painted Sky is also located on San Felipe Street and is open

NEW FLAVORS

Tea

nez has utilized it as a background for wedding pictures in the past.

Aldo Jurado / Daily Lobo / @jurado11aldo

Elizabeth Huffman’s jewelry work, located at the Yucca Art Gallery, reflects the way the sky changes — the mood of the sky.

HAPS

The Entertainment Guide

Monday

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Monday: 8am-noon 801 Encino Pl NE

Sunshine Theater

Oct 31 7pm Doors

W.A.S.P.* Armored Saint 40 Years Live World Tour

All Ages! 120 Central Ave SW

Duke City Herbs & Bake Shop

Check out our store!

4012 Central Ave SE Mon: 12pm-5pm

Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort Ski all season! Lock in your season pass today Sipapu.ski

SWOP

Check out daily species and huge selection of cannabis products! 10am - 8pm (575)622-7967

2720 Central Ave SE Suite F-G

505 Central Food Hall 505 Central Ave NE Hours: Sunday-Wednesday 11AM9PM Thursday-Saturday 11AM-10PM Check out all our Vendors! 505Central.com

Field & Frame

Your one-stop shop for video production and equipment! 107 Tulane Dr SE in Nob Hill 505.265.5678 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm

Computer Transformers

Your university computer repair shop!

Mon - Fri: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm 1606 Central Suite 105 505.503.6953

Tuesday

Test With Truman

Be Empowered. Know Your Status. Walk in HIV Testing Tuesday: 1pm-5pm 801 Encino Pl NE

Sunshine Theater

Nov 8 Doors 6:30pm

TRIVIUM: Deadmen And Dragons Tour

All Ages! 120 Central Ave SW (505) 764-0249

Duke City Herbs & Bake Shop

Take advantage of our delivery service!

Delivery hours: 9am-5pm

4012 Central Ave SE Tues store hours: 11am-5pm

Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort Ski all season! Lock in your season pass today, Sipapu.ski

SWOP

Check out daily species and huge selection of cannabis products!

10am - 8pm (575)622-7967

2720 Central Ave SE Suite F-G

Computer Transformers

Your university computer repair shop!

Mon - Fri: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm 1606 Central Suite 105 505.503.6953

505 Central Food Hall 505 Central Ave NE

Hours: Sunday-Wednesday 11AM9PM Thursday-Saturday 11AM-10PM

Pub Trivia Night Starts at 6:30PM! 505Central.com

Field & Frame Your one-stop shop for video production and equipment!

107 Tulane Dr SE in Nob Hill 505.265.5678 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm

Wednesday

Test With Truman

Be Empowered. Know Your Status. 801 Encino Pl NE 505-272-1312

Sunshine Theater Oct 26 Doors 7pm

Movements* Downward* Slow Joy All Ages! 120 Central Ave SW (505) 764-0249

Duke City Herbs & Bake Shop

Take advantage of delivery service!

Delivery hours: 9am-5pm 4012 Central Ave SE Wed store hours: 11am-5pm

Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort

Ski all season! Lock in your season pass today, Sipapu.ski

SWOP

Check out daily species and huge selection of cannabis products! 10am - 8pm (575)622-7967

2720 Central Ave SE Suite F-G

505 Central Food Hall 505 Central Ave NE

Hours: Sunday-Wednesday 11AM9PM Thursday-Saturday 11AM-10PM College Night 6-8PM! 505Central.com

Field & Frame

Your one-stop shop for video production and equipment!

107 Tulane Dr SE in Nob Hill 505.265.5678 Mon-Fri

Thursday

Ski & Summer Resort

Friday

Test With Truman

Be Empowered. Know Your Status. 801 Encino Pl NE 505-272-1312

Sunshine Theater Check out sunshinetheaterlive.com for more information!

120 Central Ave SW, 87102 (505) 764-0249

Transformers

Duke City Herbs & Bake Shop

Take advantage of delivery service!

Delivery hours: 9am-5pm

4012 Central Ave SE Fri store hours: 11am-7pm

Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort Ski all season! Lock in your season pass today Sipapu.ski

SWOP

Check out daily species and huge selection of cannabis products!

Computer Transformers

Your university computer repair shop!

Mon - Fri: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm

1606 Central Suite 105

505.503.6953

505 Central Food Hall

505 Central Ave NE

Thursday-Saturday 11AM-10PM

Kamikaze Karaoke begins at 6:30 PM!

Bring a Friend and grab some drinks!

505Central.com

Field & Frame

Your one-stop shop for video production and equipment!

107 Tulane Dr SE in Nob Hill 505.265.5678 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm

Saturday

Test With Truman

Be Empowered. Know Your Status. 801 Encino Pl NE 505-272-1312

Mon-Fri 9am-5pm

10am - 8pm (575)622-7967

2720 Central Ave SE Suite F-G

Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort Ski all season! Lock in your season pass today, Sipapu.ski

Sunshine Theater Nov 12 Doors 7pm A Tour Named Gothika Meechy Darko Ages 16+ 120 Central Ave SW (505) 764-0249

Duke City Herbs & Bake Shop

Take advantage of our delivery service!

Delivery hours: 2pm-5pm 4012 Central Ave SE

Thurs store hours: 2pm-7pm

SWOP

out daily species and huge selection of cannabis products!

- 8pm (575)622-7967

Central Ave SE Suite F-G

Central Food Hall

Central Ave NE

11AM-10PM

Football Day!

Sunday

With Truman Be Empowered. Know Your Status.

Encino Pl NE

Sunshine Theater

16 7pm Doors

Swims

Ages!

Central Ave SW, 87102

Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort

Duke City

from 10 a.m.

11 a.m.

The Shop at Old Town

5

This family owned gallery fea tures pottery from five local Na tive American tribes, demon strating the various and unique techniques to each.

The Acoma Pueblo’s techniques include white and black touches of terracotta. The Laguna tribe’s pottery often portrays ceremo nial dances and symbolic animals such as bears. Pottery from the Navajo tribe includes edgework with its own colorful flare. There’s also pieces from the Jemez Pueb lo, which use a stone-polish fin ish to give a natural glow from the clay when firing. Finally, The Shop also features pottery from the Zia Pueblo, who use natural clay from the reservation, with every piece being coiled and painted by hand.

Tessa Montano, manager at the gallery, believes it’s important to share this art because of culture and tradition.

“I think (Old Town) keeps the

culture and the tradition alive. It’s the heart of Albuquerque,” Montano said.

The gallery has been in business for 18 years and is divided in two locations right next to each other. The second location features Na tive American jewelry from the Navajo and Zuni tribes, as well as pieces from Mexico.

Yucca Art Gallery

Also an artists’ gallery coopera tive, Yucca Art was established in 1964 and features artists’ crafts, jewelry and paintings. Yucca Art is managed by 39 local artists and is the oldest cooperative gallery in Albuquerque, according to comanager and artist Rick LaBan. LaBan is a silversmith and has been practicing the medium for 15 years.

“It’s a form of expression and we all have to express ourselves, or should.” LaBan said. “It’s so sat isfying for me even if it not sells, it’s almost not the point,”

The gallery is an original build ing from Old Town and used to be a carriage house in the late 1800s.

Ghost Wolf Gallery

Established in 2015, Ghost Wolf Gallery has won numerous local awards and received a feature in Lifestyle Magazine. The gallery features 16 local artists whose work is unusual in either content or execution. Curator and owner Amy Ditto chooses which artists to feature.

Roe Libretto, a featured wa tercolor artist and assistant at Ghost Wolf, said she sees visions she doesn’t understand until she turns them into paintings. She be lieves her art’s purpose is to help people to understand more about themselves, their view of the world and their place in it.

“(Old Town) preserves the his tory in its architecture and the layout of the town itself. It creates a venue for younger people to ex press themselves. It’s kind of like an incubator,” Libretto said.

Annya Loya is the news editor at the Daily Lobo. She can be con tacted at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @annyaloya

Aldo Jurado / Daily Lobo / @jurado11aldo

The art of David Behrens based off Native American history and culture located at the Painted Sky Gallery.

Art-chitecture: the art of the building

Lobo

By John Scott @JScott050901

Picture yourself in a classroom: four rectangular, cream-colored walls, each about 30 feet from each other. At the front of the classroom is a chalkboard: directly to the right, a small window. In front of the chalkboard is the professor’s desk, adorned with computer and projector controls; rows of desks fill the rest of the space. The bare walls direct your eyes toward the win dow and your mind toward what’s outside of it.

Right now, though, the sun shine beaming down and refract ing through the window casts an undiscovered beauty atop the entire scene; suddenly, the cream-colored walls become canvases, their corners and inter sections transforming to reveal a hidden sculpture. You pause and ask yourself: is this mundane, ev eryday classroom art?

For Katya Crawford, professor and chair of the department of landscape architecture at the Uni versity of New Mexico, architecture is more than just the creation of buildings; like art, it can serve as a cultural time stamp.

“I think that architecture defi nitely involves buildings, but not all buildings are architecture. So, I think that’s where the art comes in: architecture represents or pushes

against the paradigms of our time. And I think that there is, with archi tecture, a love of creating beautiful, livable spaces,” Crawford said.

Nora Wendl, an associate profes sor of architecture whose research focuses on interpretations of ar chitecture within varying artistic works, cited architecture’s ability to refer to “a particular moment and culture” as one of the reasons peo ple get excited about it.

In her research, Wendl often looks for a response created by a building within an artist’s work, or more broadly, a response created in any inhabitant of said building.

“I think buildings are often pro voking us to slow down and pay attention to ourselves. Buildings are bodies, right, so when we go into a building, we can feel it sort of immediately: whether it’s a building that’s really inviting us in, whether it’s a building where the user, the inhabitant’s experi ence, was not considered at all,” Wendl said.

Crawford identified a key difference for her between archi tecture and art in our occupation of a building or space.

“(Art) doesn’t have to consider, necessarily, a client, and it doesn’t have to consider the safety of a cli ent or people … There’s much less of a social kind of responsibility in terms of physical safety with art as opposed to architecture and land see Building page 10

scape architecture because we oc cupy these spaces. There’s some art that you can occupy, certainly, but in terms of defining a profession, buildings are meant to be occu pied,” Crawford said.

For Wendl, the difference be tween art and architecture comes down to the considerations made when constructing a building and whether the building or space has the ability to care for the people inhabiting it.

“If a building is not meant to care for or uplift or hold people in a cer tain way, whether it’s institutional or domestic, if it’s not meant to really care for people, then I don’t think it can be art. I think that’s the difference,” Wendl said.

Both Wendl and Crawford cited George Pearl Hall as an example of architecture as art on UNM’s main campus: for Wendl, it’s the invit ing and inspiring feeling the hall provokes for her, for Crawford, the concepts executed and realized through the space.

“It can almost be read as a cliff dwelling, where you’ve got these two massive forms on either side ... From anywhere in the building you can look outside and there’s deliberate sort of relationships to inside and outside — the idea of transparency. You can look com pletely through the studio spaces to the garage in the back. So trans

parency, solid void, the idea of cliff dwellings — they’re all very strong concepts that are realized through creating spaces,” Crawford said.

Looking forward, Crawford be lieves landscape architecture is more important now than ever due to its relationship between the cli mate, environment and the space it creates. Moreover, UNM repre sents not only a great example of landscape architecture, but also showcases an architectural time line that goes back to architecture as representing “the paradigms of our time.”

“The campus itself is a good representation of landscape ar chitecture: everything on campus has been designed — some of it better than others, some build ings in some spaces better than other buildings and spaces — but it really is a timeline of not just the University, but of technology, of knowledge, of styles, of methods, of designing interior exterior spaces,” Crawford said.

John Scott is the editor-in-chief at the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at editorinchief@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @JScott050901

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