By Lenore Macdonald
Taos is back. Covid might have slowed its vibrant summer benefit scene down, but the past summer was, and coming autumn season is, an art lovers feast.
The Summer Recap
The beloved Taos summer social season is back in full swing! We enjoyed two successful summer benefit galas: La Luz de Taos–supporting the Couse-Sharp Historic Site/Lunder Research Center/Dean Porter Exhibition Center as well as research and educational programming, and Boots and Bolos–supporting the Taos Art Museum at the historic Nikolai Fechin House and Studio,
The Taos Center for the Arts will host its gala on September 28, 2024. There are again plenty of opportunities to support Taos and its unique art culture. Many Taos galas afford one the opportunity to purchase outstanding art while supporting a great cause and enjoying an evening out.
La Luz de Taos Supporting the Couse-Sharp Historic Site
The biennial La Luz de Taos, called by some “the hottest little shindig in the West”, brought art lovers and historic preservationists from across the country for two days of exhibitions, tours, educational lectures, and for the 14th Biennial Gala and Art Sale.
Celebrated Taos artist Bill Acheff donated Fancy Potter to La Luz de Taos 2024. Fancy Potter features a Taos Society of Artists Co-Founder E.I. Couse painting as part of its iconography. Classic Chicago Magazine featured Acheff in the article William Acheff: Painting Silence published in August 2020, link: https://classicchicagomagazine.com/william-acheff-painting-silence/ Bill Acheff, Fancy Potter, 2023, oil on linen, 10 x 20 in. Image courtesy of Bill Acheff.
Maria Samora’s creations sell out quickly. La Luz de Taos 2024 provided bidders to secure these gorgeous baubles. Samora, of Taos Pueblo lineage, uses traditional Pueblo iconography in her contemporary creations. Classic Chicago Magazine featured Samora in the article Maria Samora: A Living Treasure published on October 11, 2020, link: https://classicchicagomagazine.com/maria-samora-a-living-treasure/ Maria Samora, Sweet Pea collection, necklace, bracelet, earrings. Oxidized sterling silver, 18k gold, diamonds, turquoise. Image courtesy of Maria Samora.
The big weekend kicked off on Friday, June 14th, with an open house and exhibition reception at Couse-Sharp Historic Site. On Saturday, June 15th attendees were treated to a lecture by Taos Society of Artists (TSA) scholar Marie Watkins, PhD, on TSA member Julius Rolshoven. Her presentation was based on her recent scholarship about the painter, much of which was conducted at The Lunder Research Center on the Couse-Sharp Historic Site campus.
Mark Maggiori has had two incredibly successful careers—the first as a successful rock and roll star in France and now as an extremely successful painter. After inquiring about studio space in Taos, Maggiori was invited to paint at the historic Joseph Henry Sharp Studio at the Couse-Sharp Historic Site. Artists Harold Joe Waldrum, Victor Goler, and Randy LaGro are a few others fortunate enough to create art in the Sharp studio. Mark Maggiori, Brother by Blood, 2024, oil on panel, 26 x 26 in. Image courtesy of Mark Maggiori.
Hailing from the Taos area and raised in Los Alamos and Chimayo, New Mexico, Arturo Chavez’s eye, perspective and grand paintings capture the beauty and immenseness of homeland. His work is in many museum collections–and a fortunate La Luz de Taos bidder now owns this one. Arturo Chavez, Summer Heat, oil on linen on panel, 11 3/16 x 21 1/4 in. Image courtesy of Arturo Chavez.
The main event was the Saturday, June 15th evening gala and art sale at the swank El Monte Sagrado Resort. Attendees enjoyed fine dining, libations, music and dancing. A “trunk sale” featured a curated collection of wearable art like vintage leatherwork and silver. The event not only offered high collectable art, but also showcased haute couture by Project Runway alum and Taos Pueblo native Patricia Michaels and the spectacular sculptural jewelry by Taos Pueblo’s Maria Samora, named a “Living Treasure” by the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in 2018. (see Classic Chicago Magazine, October 19, 2020, Maria Samora: A Living Legend), among others. The highlight of the event was the live auction of art by greats like Mark Maggiori and Logan Maxwell Hagege, and a draw (instead of a silent auction) with many well-known and collected artists like Bill Acheff, Jerry Jordan and Howard Post. What a great way to support a great cause!
The next La Luz de Taos will be held during the summer of 2026.
Logan Maxwell Hagege, a contemporary artist based in Los Angeles, has a captures the West with a bold, modern brush and generously donated Rio Grande and Hollyhocks to support La Luz de Taos 2024. Logan Maxwell Hagege, Rio Grande and Hollyhocks, 2024, oil on linen, 20 x 16 in. Image courtesy of Logan Maxwell Hagege.
Local-gal-made-good and Project Runway star contestant Patricia Michaels’ designs are sophisticated and honor her Taos Pueblo roots. Her designs have graced the red carpet at Cannes and beyond. Michaels generously donated this work to support La Luz de Taos. Patricia Michaels, Antlers in the Mist, 2024, hand painted silk organza, painted and beaded bustier, Size 8. Photos by Bill Curry; model, Emileah Lujan (Taos Pueblo). Photo taken at Couse-Sharp Historic Site near Joseph Henry Sharp’s 1915 Studio. Image courtesy of Patricia Michaels and The Couse Foundation.
Boots and Bolos Supporting the Taos Art Museum (TAM)
Later in the summer, on August 31st, guests were invited to “polish your best boots, shine your bolos, don show-stopping attire, and saddle up for an unforgettable night of revelry to support of lassoing vital funds for Taos Art Museum” at its annual 2024 gala and auction at the historic Nikolai Fechin House and Studio.
William Randolph Hearst was a big supporter of painter Carl Oscar Borg, who documented Native American life and cowboy subjects in the Southwest through photography and painting. The Owings Gallery in Santa Fe, owned by former Chicagoan Nat Owings, generously donated this Borg work to Boots and Bolos 2024. Carl Oscar Borg (1879-1947), Foothills, graphite and acrylic wash on paper, 15 5/8″ x 19 5/8″. Courtesy of The Owings Gallery.
This year’s gala was highly anticipated because the TAM unveiled its new facilities, including exhibition and climate-controlled storage spaces, thanks to a very successful capital campaign led by Dallas attorney Roy Coffee and his wife, Janis, and supported by many Chicagoans.
Originally from Bremen, Germany, Carl von Hassler moved to the United States in 1909 to pursue his passion for art in Greenwich Village. His love for Native American culture led him to Manuelitos, New Mexico, where he painted portraits of the local community. His interest in their culture was so strong that he explored all of the pueblos in the area and learned to speak Navajo. An anonymous donor generously donated this fabulous piece to the Boots and Bolos live auction. Carl von Hassler (1887-1969), Nashee-Navajo Indian, oil on canvas, 18″ x 24″. Image courtesy of the Taos Art Museum.
Taos painter Jerry Jordan’s works pay tribute to the early Taos painters. His works evoke the soul-stirring beauty of Taos landscapes and vibrant pueblo life. Jordan generously donated Mountain Shadows to the Boots and Bolos auction. Jerry Jordan, Mountain Showers – Taos Art Colony, oil on canvas signed lower right, 14″ x 14″. Image courtesy of Jerry Jordan.
Guests enjoyed a festive open bar, a delicious plated dinner, dancing to live music by the Arellano Brothers with Jimmy Stadler, and a live and silent auction featuring works by great artists like Carl Oscar Borg, Julian Robles, and Louis Ribak.
One of the last of the “Taos Six” painters, known for their rule-breaking use of light and color in representational works generally of the desert Southwest, Walt Gonske brings to life the beauty and light that make Taos so special. Gonske’s works are found in many museums. Still seen out and about in Taos, he generously donated Fields of Chamisa Along Road. Once again, the photo does not do the painting justice. Walt Gonske, Fields of Chamisa Along Road, oil on linen, 24”x 28”. Image courtesy of Walt Gonske.
Taos lost one of its greats, Julian Robles, last year. Robles was one of the “Taos Six” painters, known for their rule-breaking use of light and color in representational works, generally of the desert Southwest. Parson’s Fine Art, LLC, is representing his estate and generously donated this beautiful painting to Boots and Bolos. The photograph does not do it justice! Julian Robles, A Chorus of Roses, oil on canvas, 24″ x 30. Image courtesy of Parson’s Fine Art, LLC.
The Taos Art Museum benefit is an annual event, usually held in late August. Check their website, www.taosartmuseum.org for more information and to bid on 2025 auction items.
There’s still time to enjoy a Taos gala this year……
Taos Center for the Arts: Taos Celebrates the TCA—Taos’s Home for the Performing Arts
The Taos Center for the Arts (TCA) is an integral part of the Taos community, but not a museum per se. Instead, it functions as a community center for the arts—for children, adults, painters, sculptors, photographers, musicians, film artists, dancers, and more.
If you are in Taos on the evening of Saturday, September 28th, support this vital and vibrant Taos cultural center. Enjoy heavy hors d’ oeuvres, signature cocktails, mocktails and other libations, dancing and an auction of experience packages including exclusive dinner parties, travel, year-long movie passes and private screenings. Attendees will also have the opportunity to raise the paddle for TCA initiatives such as our Inter-Arts Internship Program and New Mexico–centered theater, dance and film events.
Visit https://tcataos.org/taos-celebrates-tca/ for more information.
© 2024 Lenore L. Macdonald. All rights reserved.
Photo credits: The Couse Foundation; Bill Acheff; Maria Samora; Mark Maggiori; Arturo Chavez; Logan Maxwell Hagege; Patricia Michaels; Taos Art Museum; Carl Oscar Borg; Jerry Jordan; Julian Robles; Walt Gonske; The Owings Gallery; Parson’s Gallery of the West; Parson Fine Art, Taos Center for the Arts.
