On the Road Teaching: Fabric Collage Week #1 Santa Fe, NM—May 2022

Santa Fe, New Mexico—it only took three years to get there. Teaching in Santa Fe with MISA (Madeline Island School of the Arts) was first set up in 2019 for classes in 2020, which of course were postponed twice due to Covid. But in the middle of last month the long-anticipated classes were finally held in the heart of Santa Fe.

Photo above: my flowered suitcase looked quite happy paired with the Welcome Chihuahua (from Albuquerque’s Sister-City Chihuahua, Mexico) at baggage claim.

Photos below: travels from Portland, Maine at sunrise to Albuquerque, New Mexico at mid-day; with the limited vision out my airplane window, it took me a few moments to figure out that the mysteriously straight line on the ground (across ridges and gullies) was a shadow of an airplane contrail on the ground—cool; at the Albuquerque airport, where I was waiting to catch a shuttle to Santa Fe, the woman in charge of the gift shop I was hanging out in, loved my flowered suitcase and rushed out to show me how well it went with her flowered outfit and shoes; and finally on the shuttle to Santa Fe.

Throughout the post, click on photos for enlarged views and then you can scroll through their gallery.

My location for the two weeks I was teaching was at the Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza in Downtown Santa Fe, host to MISA West workshops.

Santa Fe was lovely. Lovely students that had held on for three years with me, and a lovely location filled with warm and earthy desert adobe—splashed with turquoise accents. The visit to Santa Fe was quite inspiring. I even had the company of another art quilt teacher and dear friend, Katie Pasquini Masopust. That’s Katie below, posing for me on the Canyon Road, Santa Fe steps that inspired her “Steps” quilt to the right.

Katie and I are long-time walking buddies whenever and wherever we meet. But Santa Fe was Katie’s home for many years prior to her move to California, so this time around she was also a tour guide.

We didn’t have to go far to find art and color in Santa Fe, with our hotel and classrooms smack-dab in the downtown. We just had step out the door and pick a direction for our morning walks. And for a break during the day it was just a walk across the street for Native American, Mexican, and Southwest influence in art and galleries, restaurants and take-outs, museums and cathedrals, or a cuppa from a colorful cafe.

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My Lovely Class of Week #1—MISA Santa Fe, NM

MISA Santa Fe 2022 Week #1: left to right, back row—Loretta Greer, Ann Hothem, Wendy Krivit, Jackie Hayden, Norma Pettigrew, Deb Koerwitz, Elaine Hengen, Carolyn Butterfield, and Shelley Ross; on the two sides—Liz Clark and Sue Trinrud; front row—Jane Berrier, Barb Virtue, me, Madelyn Bell, and Sherry Brady.

When teaching at MISA’s original Madeline Island, WI location, I first experienced using an overhead mirror for my morning demonstrations. It’s very helpful in allowing students to get a better view of my examples, and it was very nice to have the use of this set-up in Santa Fe as well (thanks for that Annie!).

I wish I had more overall classroom photos to show you, but our days together are quite intense—I move from student to student giving direction and feedback, rarely looking up to even think about taking shots other than those of the work-in-progress we’re discussing. So please peruse and enjoy all the step-by-step photos I did take in the slideshow below. They represent five days of concentration and inspiration and lots of work—I’m so proud of you, ladies—great job.

Student Work Slideshow

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Antieau Gallery

There’s a tradition that most Santa Fe MISA classes participate in—a field trip to a museum or gallery during their week together. However, it would be late afternoon or evening for my classes, and most museums close at four or five o’clock and that doesn’t work well for our schedule. However, Chris Antieau’s Gallery stays open until 6pm and Chris is a fiber artist with a fabulous collection of work to view. Be sure to look closely at her “Predator and Prey” dress in photos below. Click on them for enlarged versions.

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Morning Walks

As I mentioned earlier, Katie PM was also teaching this week, and we were joined by my friend and student Barb Virtue, on our morning walks. Katie was a great tour guide with her knowledge of the best directions to start walking in, and didn’t get fussed at all when things didn’t look familiar anymore. That’s what GPS is for.

One thing I noticed right away was the quality of the early morning sunshine and the shadows it cast on the adobe walls and buildings, and other objects. I hope you’ll notice the shadows in many of the following photos.

Canyon Road

I was told that Canyon Road was a must-see in Santa Fe—filled to the brim with art and galleries. Yes it is. And even more so is the warm and inviting quality of the houses that line the road. And when you’re walking too early in the morning for anything to be open, there’s still amazing outdoor art to enjoy.

A Mixed Bag of Photos From Around Town

Walls, Fences, Gates, and Doors

My friends were very tolerant of my desire to photograph the exteriors of the adobe walls and abodes. Lucky that Katie liked doing the same. I soon resolved that when I got home, I’d finally paint my own studio door—turquoise (haven’t done it yet, but I do have the paint!). Though it doesn’t really show up in my selection of edited photos below, turquoise accents for windows and doors are quite prevalent in Santa Fe—Katie told me that turquoise is a color believed to keep out evil spirits.

Museum of Contemporary Native Arts

Gaining Elevation

Our walking guide Katie, waited a few days to take Barb and I to the Cross of the Martyrs on our morning walk—but we were fine and acclimated to the altitude by then. Note plume of wildfire smoke in far distance of Santa Fe panoramic photo above. These walks took us past the downtown area and up some hills, to experience some pretty nice views.

One morning we got to the literal end-of-the-road (photo above). And soon after that, it was the end of the week and time to say goodbyes—until next time.

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The Weekend Between

It was nice that between my two weeks of teaching in Santa Fe, I had a regular two-day weekend. Saturday began with a small coffee crisis and search that resulted in two lovely looking and tasting lattes. The day ended with another beverage search—a favorite cocktail of Barb’s that’s not at all hard to find in Canada where she’s from, but not the case in Santa Fe (Barb, now I can’t remember the name of it!). Perseverance did finally pay off in a very refreshing way.

Otherwise, Barb and I (Barb was staying over as well to take week #2 with me), spent the day wandering through the town, including checking out the local farmer’s market and the artist tents set up next to the railroad tracks. At both of which, I found goodies to walk away with—gotta support local farmers and artists after all.

The Solacii

I’ll finish this post (the first of two posts about teaching in Santa Fe) with The Solacii—a sculpture right across from the railroad tracks that caught our attention. The Solacii, “symbolizes collective memories, stories, and experiences of humanity.” It’s also very big and cool and covered in a collage of satin and lace with luscious textures. What’s not to enjoy?

Remember you can click on any of these photos to see them larger for details.

See you next week with more from Santa Fe!