TOP John Schaeffer’s Santa Fe Graffiti, Encaustic 24 x 30 BOTTOM John Barker’s Mrs. Dawson, Acrylic 20 x 30
S
anta Fe has a reputation for being an art haven. With over 250 galleries in a city of just under 70,000 residents, Santa Fe has one of the largest art markets in the country and, according to a study by the National Endowment for the Arts, New Mexico has the highest number of artists per capita in the United States. To say the City of Holy Faith is an artist’s town is practically an understatement. However, this wasn’t always the case. Although Santa Fe itself is over 400 years old and sits atop a thousandyear-old pueblo, it wasn’t until the last century that artists started making their way to the little mountain city, intrigued by the indigenous culture and stunning landscape. Many artists travelling from the east even saw Santa Fe as an isolated bohemian escape.
An Art Gallery Mecca TABLE OF CONTENTS NAME OF GALLERY
PAGE
1. Canyon Road Galleries..........................................68 2. Downtown Plaza Galleries...................................83 3. Galleries on Paseo de Peralta............................86
Some of the first artists to arrive in the early 20th century included Carlos Vierra, Warren Rollins, Sheldon Parsons, Paul Burlin and Gerald Cassidy. With city and state funded museums creating incentives and programs to support the fledgling colony of artists, Santa Fe was well on its way to being the art mecca it is known as today. There is a saying among Santa Feans along the lines of: you can’t swing a stick without hitting an artist. While Fine Lifestyles doesn’t advocate testing the veracity of this saying, we do appreciate the wealth and breadth of art available as a result of all the artists who call Santa Fe home, and with these thoughts in mind, we welcome you to our gallery guide.