Jemez Mountains
The Jemez are a group of volcanic mountains west of Santa Fe, NM. At the center of the mountians is the beautiful Valles Caldera, a long extinct super volcano.
Entering the mountains from the south treats you to stunning views of red rock mountains and cliffs.
John Nieto
Santa Fe artist John Nieto (https://www.nietofineart.com/ was known for painting people and animals in bright and vivid colors, strong lines, and straightforward composition.
Mr. Nieto passed away in July of 2018 at the age of 81.
My wife and I saw Mr Nieto’s work at Ventana Gallery in Santa Fe in 2015. I’m thankful that I was able to see his work.
I won’t post photos of his work out of respect to the artist and his estate. Please follow the link above to see his work.
Let’s Paint New Mexico (LPNM) Group
A few years ago, Albuquerque artist Dee Sanchez (http://deesanchez.com/) started the “Let’s paint New Mexico” blog, to which she would post a photo of a New Mexico scene. It could be a landscape, a still life, a floral, whatever.
The idea was that several artists would paint the scene, and each painting would be posted on the LPNM blog. Viewers can see how how different artists depict the same scene.
It’s not a contest. It’s a fellowship of sorts. We’ve learned from each other and encouraged each other to grow.
Last year, Dee Sanchez decided to back off from the blog, focus on the LPNM Facebook Page, and her own beautiful work.
I volunteered to take over the blog and rebuild it. The most recent version of the blog is at https://letspaintnewmexico.wordpress.com/
My Painting
This is Challenge 11, Jemez Cow
( https://letspaintnewmexico.wordpress.com/tag/challenge-11/)
I love painting the Jemez Mountains, and I was looking forward to this painting. I was thinking of making the cow bigger.
Then it hit me. I decided to pay a little tribute to the late, great John Nieto by placing a Nieto-style cow into a more representational Jemez scene.
The juxtaposition of the bright, semi-abstract cow and the traditionally styled bakground create a spiritual feeling painting
