This weekend, I joined a dozen or so other painters from PAPNM, Plein Air Painters of New Mexico at Ghost Ranch Conference Center, in Abiquiu, NM. Ghost Ranch is now owned by the Presbyterian Church, and is used as summer camp, retreat center, and guest lodging. Many artists groups visit, as you can imagine. There were at least two other painting groups there this weekend. This is without question a painter's paradise. It is where Georgia O'Keefe lived, and the subject of many of her paintings. Here's an outline you might recognize if you are familiar with her work.
Pedernal, that flat-topped mesa on the horizon, appears in many of Georgia's paintings.
I arrived mid- morning on Friday, too late for morning light, and the group was scheduled to meet at noon, so I decided to spend what time I had scouting out some areas, and getting in a little run at the same time.
It is almost sensory overload at Ghost Ranch.. everywhere you look, there are paintings!
After eating lunch with the PAPNM crew, I went to check into my room, and check out some more views.
Turns out my room was in a 1930's Hacienda - one of the first such buildings built on the Ranch, and almost next door to Georgia's home, which is of course off limits. Our house was Casa del Sol (house of the sun), a picturesque adobe built in a "U" shape, with a porch along the inside perimeter and a tiled patio with views of Pedernal and distant mountains. A kitchen and gathering room made for a homey feel, and we could fix our own meals and talk art sitting by the fireplace. And, here is the view right out the front door.
I did a couple of sketches in the afternoon, waiting for the good late day light to hit on those chimney rocks.
I'll post those tomorrow.
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