March - April AMoCA News
Calling in the Comedy
The Santa Fe Opera was back in full splendor at AMoCA Saturday as Amy Owens and Theo Hoffman sang Menotti's The Telephone with humor and precision. The delightful staging and perfected expressions were only upstaged by Owens' and Hoffman's superb voices. The duo was accompanied perfectly by Nathan Salazar on AMoCA's Bösendorfer concert grand piano.
AMoCA Staff Participate in Arts and Culture Day
A participant’s creation from Arts and Culture Day at the Roswell Museum.
On April 8th more than 170 visitors to the Roswell Museum were immersed in artful play during the second annual ART NM! Arts and Culture Day in Roswell.
AMoCA's participation in conjunction with the event theme “Art is Springing up all Over New Mexico” was a collaboration with Bone Springs Art Space and the Miniatures & Curious Collections Museum. Attendees of all ages painted watercolor flowers outlined in black marker as well as a foam core backdrop with Miranda Howe (RAiR 2012-13). The inspiration for the project was Natasha Bowdoin's (RAiR 2012-13) Of The Garden, 2013, gouache, ink, graphite on cut paper, 29"x29"x5.5", in the AMoCA collection. While the watercolor portions dried, miniature vases were made from beads and artificial flowers with the help of Elaine Howe. Lastly, the cutting and assembly of the flowers was facilitated by AMoCA Direcctor Nancy Fleming, who weilded a hot glue gun like she's done that before! The successful results were as varied as the children (and adults) who created them!
ART NM! Arts and Culture Day was presented by New Mexico’s arts advocacy organization, Creative New Mexico, and hosted by the Roswell Museum during its monthly Second Saturday event.
AMoCA Visits by RAiR Alumni and Their Children
Eric Johnson, left, son of Lee Johnson (RAiR 1974-75), visited Roswell with his wife Liz (not pictured), to check up on the RAiR-AMoCA scene and where he had attended fourth grade (which incidentally was Military Heights Elementary). As Eric was touring AMoCA, RAiR Foundation Board Member Cymantha Liakos (pictured, right) popped in and was pleased to meet Eric. She had purchased his father Lee's artwork from RAiR's 50th Anniversary Exhibition in 2017. Here Eric and Cymantha are pictured under Lee Johnson's "Rain--Clines Corners, 1975, acrylic on linen, 72” x 48.”
On the Berrendo Road compound, 1975. From left: Ben Johnson (Eric's younger brother), Alex Ebie, Eric Johnson (standing), and Amy Jimenez (as Eric remembered her name). The Brittany Spaniel was the Johnson's dog, Lightning.
The children of John Dooley (RAiR 2002-03) spent time at RAiR over the April 6th weekend. Paloma Dooley, a photographer from L.A. and Julien Dooley, a filmmaker from N.Y., spent three days revisiting places they enjoyed like Bottomless Lakes and White Sands, as well as helped celebrate former RAiR Director Stephen Fleming's birthday. Paloma's large format camera captured these photos of the nature surrounding the RAiR facility.
Rounding out the trio of RAiR-connected visitor groups was Mark Epstein (RAiR 1972-73) who ventured out of Mount Vernon, Washington, with a friend on a road trip! It's wonderful to keep in touch with the creators of AMoCA's amazing collection!