Collectors Corner! Ed Sandoval's Newsletter (Taos, NM)

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Collectors Corner!

Ed Sandoval Gallery's Newsletter

119 Quesnel Street, Taos, NM 87571

www.edsandovalgallery.com

edsandovalart@gmail.com

(575) 770-6360

Even More Tidbits and Snippets

Last month was fun for me – sharing random memories, recent happenings and tidbits and snippets I hope were somewhat entertaining. Since then, it has been a whirlwind of non-stop events, activities and trips. So why not do a string of stories again?

Chokecherry Conundrum

Next year will be the 30th anniversary of my Taos gallery (1993 – 2023). Can you believe that? But I mention it because in all this time, I’ve NEVER seen chokecherries. When I first opened, a crabapple tree was next to the front door, but it died and was dug out years and years ago. I never planted a chokecherry tree, but one day it just sprung up right where the crabapple tree had grown. I didn't even KNOW it was a chokecherry tree because I never saw any cherries. But this year, holy overflowing fruit basket!

I started noticing berries, and the poor tree limbs just kept going down from the weight of all those clumps. The birds won’t eat them because they are too sour, like gooseberries. It got downright disturbing – that tree looked absolutely miserable with some limbs bent horizontal and downward to the ground. Fearing they would break, I decided to help out.

Now… those of you who have picked chokecherries will know better, but I didn’t realize you can strip them off the tiny twigs easily. I got a pair of scissors and cut off many clumps (about 12-15 pounds), but that hardly made a dent in the crop. I took two big bags home, even though I had NO idea what in the in the world to do with them.

Ironically, the next day while gassing up at Smiths, a woman from Taos Pueblo pulled up. She knew me and came over to say hi. I couldn’t believe it when she said, “Ed, if you ever get to the Farmer’s Market come see me. I make Chokecherry Jam.” Excited, I said, “Really??? Oh do I have a tree for you!” and invited her to pick to her heart's content. Gwen was at the gallery when she eagerly arrived carrying a small plastic container. Gwen showed her the tree and said, “You’re going to need a bigger bucket.” That made me laugh when she told me because it reminded me of the movie Jaws: “We’re going to need a bigger boat.”

She collected the remaining fruit. As for us, our goal was making a syrup for ice cream. Now I really wanted jam, but Gwen, who has made Sand Plum Jelly from plums she picked as a kid on the Salt Fork River, shook her head. She said, “I know enough to know you have to sterilize canning jars, which we don’t have, and vacuum seal them absolutely perfectly, which I’ve forgotten how to do. Otherwise, it's a bacteria and botulism buffet.”

Umm…okay no that doesn’t sound good… Plus, to say Gwen is not thrilled by canning is an understatement. Her mother once took her to the Ball Jar and Canning Museum in Muncie, Indiana (and took handwritten notes). “It was... excruciating…” she winced.

Then she talked a mile a minute: "Normally, I'd use a food mill but we don't have one. A blender will work... but the boiled pulp will be too heavy and weigh down the cheesecloth. A splatter guard on top of the bowl with the cheesecloth on top of that would work, and later I'll need a thickener like pectin or cornstarch, but I'm not sure which one so I'll have to Google."

Um... WHAT???? I had NO idea what she said – didn't understand a word. How women just know things like this fascinates me, but her mom was a farmer/rancher's wife, Home Economics teacher and 4-H leader. Gwen always says that she was taught to cook and bake "within an inch of my life." Here's what I learned about chokecherry recipes: 1) Don't wear a white shirt, 2) Find someone who knows what they're doing, and 3) Stand back and let them do their thing while offering moral support. Ha ha!

Had a Blast at My Santa Fe Show Called "Distant Vistas"

After months and months of painting, I was all excited and ready for my show at Canyon Road Contemporary Art in Santa Fe. The opening on the evening of July 22 was so busy that we didn't really have time to take a lot of photos, but we did take a few the next day for my painting demonstration. Oh Lordie it was HOT on the 23rd – luckily they had a cute latilla cabana of sorts that gave me and some onlookers a bit of blessedly lovely shade.

"Distant Vistas"

Hanging Paintings before the Opening

My Good Friend Freddie Bought This One

Oh it was a party! Leaf & Hive, which is a Santa Fe brew lab, provided unique cocktails. Their elixirs use local honey and fresh herbs and botanicals – so different and refreshing. There were many "thumbs up" for the lavender drinks and grapefruit palomas. And Latin-inspired, renowned music artist Nacha Mendez played amazing music. So fun!!!

Demo Painting

Chatting with Guests at Demo

Lunch w/ My Vickery Family: Theresa, Brook, Janell & Me (Gwen Took Photo)

Post-Show Trip to Cuchara: Tranquility, Trout and a Tortoise

After my show, I admit I was pretty tired. I don’t think I’ve worked so long and so hard on so many large paintings for a show… ever. Loved it but needed rest, and what better place than Cuchara! I’ve done several stories about this magical place and posted pics on Facebook, so I’ll try to be brief. 😊

On two days, we fished for trout at Monument Lake, which is a lovely resort. It has small adobe casitas that you can rent (each with a grill and picnic table), pontoons and small boats for rent, a small store and a restaurant that serves a really great chicken fried steak. Cloudy and cool, it was perfect fishing weather, and the trout were biting my friends...

It’s our custom to spend a day in La Veta wandering into the cute shops and eating lunch. To our surprise, a wonderful restaurant opened that has a well-known chef from Santa Fe: Legends on Main Street. I’ve never had better green chile stew in my life! All of us agreed the food was excellent and we'll be going back – highly recommended.

While waiting to be served, I got up and wandered around (I don’t like sitting for too long), and I’m so glad I did. I ran into a guy taking his tortoise for a walk. Yes… a tortoise on a leash. LOL. He got his pet when it was two months old and has had him for eight years, feeding him, taking him for walks and posing for pictures for gawkers like ME. Ha ha.

On our last night, we once again went to Cuchara’s famous “Dog Bar” to play something I’ve never heard of before: Music Bingo. The Bingo card squares have song titles listed in them. The DJ plays about 20-30 seconds of a song, and you have to scan your card to find the match and mark it off.

It's easier said than done! We played four games: 60’s & 70’s Mix, 90’s Mix, Golden Hits and Old School Rock. If you got a bingo, you won a free appetizer, and a guy came over to make you a balloon animal. We had a great time. The bar was rocking with cool tunes and happy families – so nice to see.

Hot Tempers, a Painting and a Knife...Revisited

About two years ago, in the thick of the pandemic, I shared a story about a friend of mine who called me in a panic. He was rambling so fast that all I could make out were the words “girlfriend,” “angry,” “knife” and “painting.” After asking him to slow down, I realized the large painting (of mine) he had recently purchased… well… it was the victim of a impassioned domestic squabble.

At some point during the heated exchange, she grabbed a big knife or box cutter, walked over to my painting and absolutely slashed it from top to bottom. Wow! I asked, "Are you still together?" I was very relieved to hear him say, "No. She's moving out." He wondered if I could fix it, and, to be honest, I didn’t know. “Bring it to me and I’ll take a look."

He finally brought it, and I think I can fix it. Boy, she did a number on it! Where it was sliced, the canvas is now gaping and slightly curling. If you hold it up to the light, the huge gash is clearly visible. First, I put flexible modeling paste on the front and the back that will seal the wound. Since it's a flexible paste, it'll move with the canvas and won't flake or peel. Obviously, I’ll have to redo the whole thing after repainting the white paste with my red color. If I just enhance up and down on the stripe so the line is covered – it will look weird.

I feel so badly for him that I’m doing it for free. In an odd way, this whole situation is sort of flattering. In her crazed state, she made a beeline toward that painting, which means my friend absolutely loved and treasured it. She calculated that destroying it would inflict the most possible hurt. So sad, but I’ll fix it. In fact, it will look better than the original because I’m going to have to layer lots and lots of paint all over it.