(SANTA FE, February 16, 2015) – Six of Santa Fe's leading cultural institutions located on the beautiful Museum Hill kick off summer 2015 with joint exhibitions and programming in what Mayor Javier Gonzales proclaimed today as the Summer of Color.
All six, located on Museum Hill, are the two state museums, the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture and the Museum of International Folk Art; joined by the Museum of Spanish Colonial Arts, the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, the Santa Fe Botanical Garden, and the annual International Folk Art Market | Santa Fe. Each will feature a specific color in their exhibitions and programming (click here for information about each of their exhibits):
- Museum of Indian Arts and Culture - turquoise
- Museum of International Folk Art – red
- Museum of Spanish Colonial Arts – indigo
- Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian – silver
- Santa Fe Botanical Garden – orange
- International Folk Art Market | Santa Fe – green
Joining Museum Hill are three downtown institutions: the two state museums, the New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors and the New Mexico Museum of Art, along with the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.
- New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors – "Adobe Summer." Santa Fe's iconic adobe buildings reveal the earth's colors—pearly white, sandy tan, cinnamon red, chocolate brown and shades in-between. A summer-long series of programs explores the ins and outs of adobe construction, maintenance and history, with a focus on the Palace of the Governors, a National Treasure.
- New Mexico Museum of Art -Colors of the Southwest. The artwork in this exhibition showcases the special qualities of color and light found in the Southwestern United States that have attracted artists for generations. The exhibition will encompass an array of art created from the early 20th century to the present and will include paintings, photographs, prints, watercolors, and ceramics. The Museum of Art's exhibition celebrates color's entire spectrum.
- Georgia O'Keeffe Museum -Georgia O'Keeffe: Line, Color, Composition. The power of Georgia O'Keeffe's artwork derives from her mastery of essential elements of art making: line, color, and composition. To understand the richness of Georgia O'Keeffe's artistic practice, this exhibition reveals her disciplined drawing practice, dramatic color palette, and innovative sense for composition through paintings and drawings that span her career. The presentation offers fresh insight into the importance of line in her work—from preliminary sketches and drawings, to the fluid, seemingly effortless outlines that define regions of her canvas and divide her compositions into dynamic zones of color, be it the curve of a flower petal, the horizon of a landscape, or the contour of an abstract form.
Located just outside Santa Fe in La Cienega is the outdoor living museum, El Rancho de las Golondrinas, rounding out the color wheel with
El Color Morado/The Color Purple. Historically, purple dye was extremely rare; it came from crushed sea-snails, brazilwood or from combining the new world insect cochineal with rare indigo plants.
Artist Robbi Firestone, of Santa Fe Art Classes, offers Summer of Color inspired art classes where you will be guided, step-by-step, touching your inner artist to transform an class into an unforgettable, creative and colorful adventure.
Nearly 50 galleries (to date) from Canyon Road to the Railyard and beyond, members of the Santa Fe Gallery Association, will present an array of exhibitions, explorations and artist talks that celebrate an extensive spectrum of colors. Click here for information about their exhibits or open the attachments, which include the free-to-use Summer of Color logo and mayoral proclamation.
Also joining the Color of Summer is the Canyon Road Merchants Association. Canyon Road boasts 85+ galleries and will be participating in full force during the Summer of Color. The historic street is filled with old world charm, galleries, jewelry boutiques and gourmet restaurants. Art galleries host Friday night art openings throughout the vibrant summer months and will be featuring their best artists on view.
