webmaster
10-22-2006, 08:28 PM
Sierra County Rolls Out Red Carpet for Art Lovers
By: Steppin Out Staff
© 2006 SONewMex.com Reprint permission granted
<table><tr><td valign=top>On the weekend of September 22 - 24, 2006, Steppin' Out was pleased to send two of our dedicated reporters to cover the Destination Sierra County weekend (hereafter referred to as DSC) -- at least the part of the event that occurred in Truth or Consequences. Their Mission Impossible: "Visit and take photos in as many art destinations as possible. If you get caught or shot, Steppin' Out will deny any knowledge of your actions." Frankly, before they arrived in town at 9:00 on Saturday, they had pipe-dreams of being able to visit many places; but they soon learned many spots they hoped to visit would not be open until 11am (or later) and several businesses where the event was happening planned to close by 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. That meant to visit all places on their list our reporters needed to cover at least 60 locations in a county spanning 4,236 square miles in less than 7 hours.
Impossible! Already it was time for "Plan B".
After considering how to proceed, our intrepid reporters decided they'd spend until 3:00 pm in Truth or Consequences and visit as many spots as they could in 4.5 hours. Then they'd grab a map and leave town and try to visit Hillsboro and Chloride before sundown. In hindsight that too turned out to be a flawed plan. Unbeknownst to our reporters there would later be an unexpected shortage of maps to all DSC destinations outside the borders of T or C.
Undaunted, our reporters started a diligent search of the town for almost any art venue that was already open by 10:00 a.m. Their first successful stop was Celestial Creations on North Date Street where they found one dedicated employee just starting her cash register in a shop still devoid of customers. That's when they hit their second snag. Seeing their camera, the employee insisted they take no pictures. It seemed she'd been instructed earlier about that rule. Disappointed our reporters wandered around taking notes on what they saw and trying to memorize the departments and art they encountered so they could at least describe them in words later.
Fortunately, the owner arrived within minutes and when she realized reporters were present she instantly clarified the "no photos" rule explaining there was just one piece of art in the entire gallery which the artist had asked not be photographed. With that obstacle removed, our reporters scampered about in the shop for about 20 minutes eagerly snapping photos. They left that shop at about 10:40 promising to return later in the afternoon when the grand opening reception for the new arts emporium was scheduled to begin.
That was 40 minutes in that first stop and only 45 places to visit in the next 4 hours. Already "Plan B" wasn't working so well.
The next stops were Main Street Gallery (not open), then Geronimo Strings Museum (not open), then Katzenellenbogen Gallery (not open), Grapes Gallery (not open), Xochi books on Broadway which was open. Hurrah!! By now, it was 11:00. Our reporters quickly introduced themselves to the Xochi staff and asked permission to take photos. "Of course, no problem!" So they took a 10 minute whirlwind tour of the shop, soon realizing most of it was shelves of books with an interesting locked and barred "rare books" room in the middle. In the end, our photographer shot half a dozen photos and they were quickly off to find the next destination on their list. Time spent 40 minutes between leaving the first gallery and leaving the second. It was beginning to look like 40 minutes was the minimum time they would need per gallery.
Next they entered Parisi Jewelry and Gallery. At that point owners Jerry and Cara Trumbull were the only ones in the shop and they explained that their book signing/reception wasn't scheduled to begin until 2:00 pm. Jerry and Cara politely invited our reporters back later and they agreed to return. Meanwhile, the owners invited them to take a few photos. Oops... Robert Shufelt's pencil drawings were all behind reflective glass! Our photographer knew that would be like taking pictures of mirrors. He chose not to do that. So, the reporters thanked the owners and left. Time spent 25 minutes... a new record. Just 43 more places to visit and 2 to return to. Dear God. What had we gotten ourselves into?
Next, we visited When Gallery and talked with gallery manager Susan Todd. Yes, they were open and featuring "Reworked" a 4 artist show; but not all their art had arrived yet. Pictures were fine. "Feel free," Susan said. We shot four photos of decorated hubcaps on the walls and works from one local artist as well. The tardy artists would have to wait. Susan graciously invited us back later in the day. We made no promises but said we'd try. We never got a chance to return. No more promises. Reporters in pursuit of a story wait for neither man nor artist.
That's the way the day went. In the end, we were able to visit just 14 T or C art venues and returned to just a few of them later to capture more pictures. Despite earlier plans, we never left town because SCAC's supply of maps showing how to find spots in the outlying areas had been exhausted by early afternoon and no one in town had any of the maps left by the time we began asking for them. It was only with the help of Picture Perfect Art and Frame Shoppe owner, Moe Koenick, that we were able to obtain a map to the outlying areas at all. (Thanks, Moe!) By that time it was nearly 5:00 pm and far too late to be heading off into the hinterlands of Sierra County. Wolves might eat us. We'd probably get lost. And by the time we found the places we were looking for, they'd probably be closed anyway.
By sunset, nearly 200 photos of terrific art had been shot and there were plenty of photos to let us build and display a large gallery of DSC images plus write nice reports about 14 art happenings around T or C. Of course, we'd missed nearly 4 dozen other events; but please don't mention that around us. We've been known to bite for less and being reporters, we're probably rabid too. No, our results weren't exactly what we hoped for when the day began; but many things were beyond our control from the beginning. Fortunately we were wiser at the end of the day and on the trip back north, we were already discussing how to better cover this huge event next year.
Steppin Out's large gallery of images and destination reports from Destination Sierra County can be found here (http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php/cat/586). The Destination Sierra County art events, studios, retailers and galleries covered include:
<center><a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Casita+de+Guadalupe&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Casita de Guadalupe</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Celestial+Creations&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Celestial Creations</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Grapes&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Grapes Gallery</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Judd+Bradley+Photography&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Judd Bradley Photography</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Loretta&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Loretta's Gift Emporium (The Outlawed Gallery)</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Main+Street&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Main Street Gallery</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Parisi&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Parisi Jewelry and Art</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Picture+Perfect&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Picture Perfect Art and Frame Shoppe</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Renfro+Park&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Renfro Park - Music in the Park</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Rio+Bravo+Fine+Art&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Rio Bravo Fine Art</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Second+Hand+Rose&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Second Hand Rose</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Spectrum+Pottery&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Spectrum Pottery - Ken Merrick</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=When+Gallery&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>When Gallery</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Xochi&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Xochi Books and Art</a></font>
</center>
We hope you enjoy our photos and reports. Next year, we'll try to do even better!
- 30 -</td><td width=175 valign=top hspace=3><font size=2 face="arial narrow"><center><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3448_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3448_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Xochi Books and Gallery<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3455_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3455_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Parisi Gallery - Embree Hale - Petroglyphs<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3508_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3508_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Rio Bravo Gallery - Artist Unknown<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3522_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3522_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>R William Winkler<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3598_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3598_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Rio Bravo Gallery - Horrace Kerr<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/Shoofly0005_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/Shoofly0005_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Parisi Gallery - Shoofly - Tired<br></center></font></td></tr></table>
By: Steppin Out Staff
© 2006 SONewMex.com Reprint permission granted
<table><tr><td valign=top>On the weekend of September 22 - 24, 2006, Steppin' Out was pleased to send two of our dedicated reporters to cover the Destination Sierra County weekend (hereafter referred to as DSC) -- at least the part of the event that occurred in Truth or Consequences. Their Mission Impossible: "Visit and take photos in as many art destinations as possible. If you get caught or shot, Steppin' Out will deny any knowledge of your actions." Frankly, before they arrived in town at 9:00 on Saturday, they had pipe-dreams of being able to visit many places; but they soon learned many spots they hoped to visit would not be open until 11am (or later) and several businesses where the event was happening planned to close by 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. That meant to visit all places on their list our reporters needed to cover at least 60 locations in a county spanning 4,236 square miles in less than 7 hours.
Impossible! Already it was time for "Plan B".
After considering how to proceed, our intrepid reporters decided they'd spend until 3:00 pm in Truth or Consequences and visit as many spots as they could in 4.5 hours. Then they'd grab a map and leave town and try to visit Hillsboro and Chloride before sundown. In hindsight that too turned out to be a flawed plan. Unbeknownst to our reporters there would later be an unexpected shortage of maps to all DSC destinations outside the borders of T or C.
Undaunted, our reporters started a diligent search of the town for almost any art venue that was already open by 10:00 a.m. Their first successful stop was Celestial Creations on North Date Street where they found one dedicated employee just starting her cash register in a shop still devoid of customers. That's when they hit their second snag. Seeing their camera, the employee insisted they take no pictures. It seemed she'd been instructed earlier about that rule. Disappointed our reporters wandered around taking notes on what they saw and trying to memorize the departments and art they encountered so they could at least describe them in words later.
Fortunately, the owner arrived within minutes and when she realized reporters were present she instantly clarified the "no photos" rule explaining there was just one piece of art in the entire gallery which the artist had asked not be photographed. With that obstacle removed, our reporters scampered about in the shop for about 20 minutes eagerly snapping photos. They left that shop at about 10:40 promising to return later in the afternoon when the grand opening reception for the new arts emporium was scheduled to begin.
That was 40 minutes in that first stop and only 45 places to visit in the next 4 hours. Already "Plan B" wasn't working so well.
The next stops were Main Street Gallery (not open), then Geronimo Strings Museum (not open), then Katzenellenbogen Gallery (not open), Grapes Gallery (not open), Xochi books on Broadway which was open. Hurrah!! By now, it was 11:00. Our reporters quickly introduced themselves to the Xochi staff and asked permission to take photos. "Of course, no problem!" So they took a 10 minute whirlwind tour of the shop, soon realizing most of it was shelves of books with an interesting locked and barred "rare books" room in the middle. In the end, our photographer shot half a dozen photos and they were quickly off to find the next destination on their list. Time spent 40 minutes between leaving the first gallery and leaving the second. It was beginning to look like 40 minutes was the minimum time they would need per gallery.
Next they entered Parisi Jewelry and Gallery. At that point owners Jerry and Cara Trumbull were the only ones in the shop and they explained that their book signing/reception wasn't scheduled to begin until 2:00 pm. Jerry and Cara politely invited our reporters back later and they agreed to return. Meanwhile, the owners invited them to take a few photos. Oops... Robert Shufelt's pencil drawings were all behind reflective glass! Our photographer knew that would be like taking pictures of mirrors. He chose not to do that. So, the reporters thanked the owners and left. Time spent 25 minutes... a new record. Just 43 more places to visit and 2 to return to. Dear God. What had we gotten ourselves into?
Next, we visited When Gallery and talked with gallery manager Susan Todd. Yes, they were open and featuring "Reworked" a 4 artist show; but not all their art had arrived yet. Pictures were fine. "Feel free," Susan said. We shot four photos of decorated hubcaps on the walls and works from one local artist as well. The tardy artists would have to wait. Susan graciously invited us back later in the day. We made no promises but said we'd try. We never got a chance to return. No more promises. Reporters in pursuit of a story wait for neither man nor artist.
That's the way the day went. In the end, we were able to visit just 14 T or C art venues and returned to just a few of them later to capture more pictures. Despite earlier plans, we never left town because SCAC's supply of maps showing how to find spots in the outlying areas had been exhausted by early afternoon and no one in town had any of the maps left by the time we began asking for them. It was only with the help of Picture Perfect Art and Frame Shoppe owner, Moe Koenick, that we were able to obtain a map to the outlying areas at all. (Thanks, Moe!) By that time it was nearly 5:00 pm and far too late to be heading off into the hinterlands of Sierra County. Wolves might eat us. We'd probably get lost. And by the time we found the places we were looking for, they'd probably be closed anyway.
By sunset, nearly 200 photos of terrific art had been shot and there were plenty of photos to let us build and display a large gallery of DSC images plus write nice reports about 14 art happenings around T or C. Of course, we'd missed nearly 4 dozen other events; but please don't mention that around us. We've been known to bite for less and being reporters, we're probably rabid too. No, our results weren't exactly what we hoped for when the day began; but many things were beyond our control from the beginning. Fortunately we were wiser at the end of the day and on the trip back north, we were already discussing how to better cover this huge event next year.
Steppin Out's large gallery of images and destination reports from Destination Sierra County can be found here (http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php/cat/586). The Destination Sierra County art events, studios, retailers and galleries covered include:
<center><a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Casita+de+Guadalupe&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Casita de Guadalupe</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Celestial+Creations&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Celestial Creations</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Grapes&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Grapes Gallery</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Judd+Bradley+Photography&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Judd Bradley Photography</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Loretta&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Loretta's Gift Emporium (The Outlawed Gallery)</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Main+Street&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Main Street Gallery</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Parisi&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Parisi Jewelry and Art</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Picture+Perfect&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Picture Perfect Art and Frame Shoppe</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Renfro+Park&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Renfro Park - Music in the Park</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Rio+Bravo+Fine+Art&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Rio Bravo Fine Art</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Second+Hand+Rose&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Second Hand Rose</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Spectrum+Pottery&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Spectrum Pottery - Ken Merrick</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=When+Gallery&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>When Gallery</a><br>
<a href=http://sonewmex.com/pp-514/showgallery.php?mcats=all&si=Xochi&what=title&name=&when=0&whenterm=&condition=and>Xochi Books and Art</a></font>
</center>
We hope you enjoy our photos and reports. Next year, we'll try to do even better!
- 30 -</td><td width=175 valign=top hspace=3><font size=2 face="arial narrow"><center><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3448_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3448_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Xochi Books and Gallery<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3455_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3455_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Parisi Gallery - Embree Hale - Petroglyphs<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3508_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3508_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Rio Bravo Gallery - Artist Unknown<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3522_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3522_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>R William Winkler<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3598_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/IMG_3598_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Rio Bravo Gallery - Horrace Kerr<br><br><br><br><a href=http://sonewmex.com/images/Shoofly0005_web.jpg><img src=http://sonewmex.com/images/Shoofly0005_web_tn.jpg border=2 alt="Click for larger image"></a><br>Parisi Gallery - Shoofly - Tired<br></center></font></td></tr></table>