musings from the studio and beyond ~
dawn chandler’s reflections on art and life. . . .
8.19.13 ~ thank you, taos!
What a whirlwind it’s been!
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| Hooray! The sign in front of the Taos Center for the Arts |
My primary focus for the past twelve months — and the past four months most especially — has been creating art for an intense two days in Taos. Not only did I deliver, but Taos delivered as well!
Last summer Joan Fullerton suggested to me that we do another art show together in Taos. We’d had two previous shows together — in 2006 and 2008. Both times we rented the beautiful Stables Gallery of the Taos Center for the Arts (TCA) for the exhibition. Both times we started planning the shows a year in advance. Both times we put a ton of planning into the shows. Both times we used the upcoming shows as an opportunity to experiment with new work. And both times we cranked out a helluva lot of artwork.
And that was the whole point with Joan’s proposal.
Since moving away from Taos (I to Santa Fe in December of 2009; Joan to Denver in September of 2010), we’d both been feeling a little off-kilter in our studios. Lots of Life had been fogging the focus in our studios.
What we needed was a goal.
A deadline.
And we both knew that nothing motivates us quite so well as having a show date on the calendar.
So we set the date — Friday, August 9th — and got busy!
More details about the process (and why we decided to make the show for just two days) can be found in this cool article in the Taos News [THANK YOU TAOS NEWS for the amazing 3-page spread in the Tempo! We are blown away by the coverage!]
The show was a splendid success, with tons of friends streaming in throughout the weekend. Indeed, it was heartening to see so many lovely people, many whom we had not seen since moving away. Equally heartening were the folks whom we’d never met before, who had read the Taos News article and decided to come see the exhibition, or those who simply happened upon the show by accident. The enthusiasm and positive feedback for our work has us glowing with validation and motivation. So thrilling, too, was it to see our work on the clean white walls of this beautiful art space.
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| joan fullerton’s latest paintings on display at the stables gallery in taos, new mexico |
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| new paintings by dawn chandler |
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| a selection of dawn chandler’s new “have you gazed?” series of mixed media paintings incorporating traditional landscape with passages of text and abstract elements. |
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| a selection of dawn chandler’s ‘traditional’ landscape paintings in oil on panel as well as her suite of “spirit series” abstracted landscapes made with the leftover oil paint form her traditional paintings. |
I’ll write more soon about this new work I’m doing as a result of this “deadline.” Meanwhile…
Thank you Taos!
Thank you friends — old and new….
Thank you Taos News and the TCA….
Thank you Cafe Renato (as well as the other many great eateries where we dined & drank over the course of the week. YUM)…
Thank you dear friends out on the mesa who let us stay in your beautiful home while you were traveling…..
Thank you JB and family for love and traveling so far to come and show your support….
Thank you CW of Southwest Framers for responding to my 11th hour request (plea) for a frame….
Thank you JS — STUD! — for helping us take down the show, and the delightful post-show luncheon; you charmer….
Thank you, Joan Fullerton, for the idea, inspiration, encouragement, professionalism, friendship and — most especially — your good humor and downright sassiness!
And most of all, thank you my dear late parents….for everything. I miss you.
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| the ‘spirit series’ by dawn chandler ~ oil and mixed media on panel, each panel 8 x 8 inches ~ copyright dawn chandler 2013 |
7.31.13 ~ painting to the tune of blackpowder
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| morning, looking down miranda meadow ~ by dawn chandler ~ oil and mixed media on panel (en plein air) 6″ x 12″ ~ copyright dawn chandler |
My second painting that glorious morning at Miranda. The vantage here is half way or so down the meadow. I’m on the north side, in the shadow of a small grove of trees, looking southeast. I can honestly say that this was the first time I have ever — EVER! — in my life painted with the sound of black-powder rifles in the background.
Why was there rifle shot in the background? Because Miranda is one of several “living history” backcountry camps at Philmont. The staff living at Miranda each summer live as though they are 19th century mountain men, demonstrating to the Scouts backpacking through the wily ways of trappers and fur-traders, including how to load and shoot a black-powder rifle.
I can hardly mention Miranda and black-powder rifles without mentioning that the last time I shot a black-powder rifle at Miranda (c.2003?), was my first time in decades shooting a rifle at all.
The gentleman offered me the rifle, I gave it a single shot…and — BAAAM! — I hit the target!
“Wanna shoot again?”
“Nope. I like my record just as it is!”
They don’t call me “Annie Oaklie” for nuthin’.
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| a sojourning artist’s paint kit, backpack …… and philmont trail meal |
7.27.13 ~ morning painting at miranda
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| miranda morning ~ by dawn chandler ~ oil on panel (en plein air) ~ 6 x 12 inches ~ copyright dawn chandler 2013 |
“Do you want to go paint in the backcountry?” Philmont’s Museum Director asked me the first day of my art residency.
“Are you kidding me? YES!“
“Where do you want to go?”
And so it was that I ended up last Thursday morning — a day forecast with rain, but which ended up being the most clear and glorious day of the summer — with my plein air paint kit up at Miranda.
Miranda.
Miranda!
In all my years of working at Philmont, in all my years painting, never did I imagine the two passions would meet so…so….so physically! And yet there I was on the edge of my favorite, most beautiful meadow in all of New Mexico at 7:15a.m. watching the long shadows of night time recede from the damp meadow back into the surrounding aspens, my fingers numb with cold mixing colors, the smell of wildflowers and pine trees and coffee awakening my senses.
7.22.13 ~ late morning, urraca mesa
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| late morning ` urraca mesa ~ by dawn chandler ~ oil and mixed media on panel (en plein air) ~ 6 x 12 inches ~ copyright dawn chandler 2013 |
I was so pumped from my early morning painting excursion trying to capture the Tooth and Trail Peak, that when I got back into BaseCamp that morning, I decided to keep at it! Here’s just behind the Philmont Museum, looking south to Urraca Mesa. The clouds can’t seem to decide whether they’re coming or going.
I painted this on one of my “word panels”; a panel on which I’ve glued words and phrases. In this case (as with all the paintings in this series) the words come from Rpbert Service’s poem, The Call of the Wild. If you look carefully, you can just make out some of the words bleeding through
7.21.13 ~ sunrise lights the tooth of time (philmont)
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| sunrise lights the tooth of time (philmont) ~ by dawn chandler ~ oil on panel (en plein air) ~ 6 x 12 inches ~ copyright dawn chandler 2013 |
I admit: It was pretty glorious to be standing before the the Tooth in the first light of morning, breathing in the sparkling clean after-rain air, working my palette knife frantically trying to capture the color and light before it all changed in a moment….
Here, Wednesday morning 17 July 2013.