Alas, alack… I’ve just been informed that work on the mural installation is going much more slowly than anticipated.
Which means we’ll need to cancel the big unveiling scheduled for this afternoon, and the reception that was the follow.
We may reschedule when the mural’s done. Or not. Depends on how long that takes.
Sorry, sorry, sorry.
The best laid plans of mice and men…
[… and work is on progress on the mural that will adorn the hitherto blank wall of 418 Montezuma and the Jean Cocteau Cinema.
Here’s a few sneak peeks at the work in progress.
Do come join us for our big unveiling on Tuesday at 5:30. Reception to follow at the Wheeler Gallery.
Blank walls beware!
Is there anything as boring as a blank wall?
The windowless back wall of 418-420 Montezuma, the old building that houses the Jean Cocteau Cinema, the Wheelhouse Gallery, Wild Hair Salon, and a dozen assorted offices has been largely featureless… well, for decades, since they knocked down the building that once attached to it, way back when.
Here’s the way it looked when I acquired the building in 2013:
Pretty ugly, I think you’ll agree. The back of the building fronts on the tracks of the Railrunner and the Santa Fe Southern Railyard, so there are often trains back there… but nothing else, aside from weeds, stumps, and some garbage. Not the most attractive scene to greet visitors arriving in our City Different for the first time on the Railrunner.
Of course, we cleaned out the garbage, cut down the weeds, and re-stuccoed when we took over the building, two years ago. After that the back wall looked like this:
Better, I think you’ll agree. Cleaner. But still boring, still blank.
I couldn’t let that stand. To me, “blank” means “blank slate,” and that means art. So I commissioned John Pugh, the world famous muralist and trompe l’oiel master whose previous work I blogged about downstream, to paint a mural for the back wall at Montezuma.
John has been at work on it for a year and a half, and tomorrow he will arrive in Santa Fe to begin the process of installation. The official unveiling of the latest John Pugh “narrative illusion” will be next week, Tuesday, at 5:30 pm. Come and join us. There’s no charge, and a reception will follow in the Wheelhouse Gallery next door.
Coming into Santa Fe by train will never be boring again.
Any other fans of trompe l’oeil out there?
I love the work of John Pugh, master of the art style called “narrative illusionism.”
Take a look:
I have seen the one in Winslow, Arizona in person.
Lots more examples of his work can be found on his website at:
http://artofjohnpugh.com/
Enjoy.
I won’t be at this year’s San Diego Comicon, alas. Had to miss the fun, but there’s too much work to do, and I know that HBO and Random House and Tor have matters well in hand, with lots of great events and promotions.
Which is not to say I won’t be represented: the 2016 edition of the Official SONG OF ICE AND FIRE Calendar will be making its debut at San Diego. I was lucky enough to snag an advance copy.
This year the artwork is by the amazing and talented French artist, MAGALI VILLENUEVE, whose past work includes some terrific contributions to Fantasy Flight’s games and the WORLD OF ICE AND FIRE concordance. Check out more of her work at http://magali-villeneuve.blogspot.com/ and http://www.magali-villeneuve.com/
The calendars will be available at the Random House/ Bantam/ Del Rey booth at San Diego, so be sure and look them before the supply is gone. Magali has done some gorgeous work here; I expect you will love it as much as I do.
Eight days left in Meow Wolf’s Kickstarter campaign, to help finance the House of Eternal Return, the interdimensional interactive Victorian mansion at the center of space and time that they are going to be putting up inside the old Silva Lanes.
For more information, or to contribute, go to:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/185944623/meow-wolf-art-complex-ft-the-house-of-eternal-retu
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We had a great press conference this morning at the old Silva Lanes, to announce plans for the long-shuttered bowling alley that I bought a few months ago. Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzalez was on hand to help us launch the project, along with an army of artists, dreamers, and organizers from Meow Wolf, who initiated this sweet madness and will be speaheading the redevelopment.
Lots of reporters and photographers turned up, along with a couple of TV crews. As their reports come in, I will post links here, for those who are interested.
Here's the ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL:
http://www.abqjournal.com/533497/entertainment/silva-lanes-to-be-transformed-to-an-explorable-art-space-for-kids-and-adults.html
Here's the Santa Fe NEW MEXICAN:
http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/martin-meow-wolf-aim-to-revive-old-bowling-alley-space/article_5adc071e-f12e-58a6-ad44-da00177b38ce.html
Marshall Thompson and Constructive Assets will be handling the renovation and repair of the huge structure on Rufina Circle, which was gutted years ago and has sat abandoned and empty for years. Just fixing the infrastructure will require months of work. But once the building is safe and habitable, Meow Wolf's army of amazing young artists will be moving in, to create what we think will be a truly incredible and original piece of immersive art, something that will entertain and enlighten adults and kids both: the House of Eternal Return.
It won't be cheap. To that end, Meow Wolf has started a Kickstarter. For a first glimpse of their plans, go to:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/185944623/meow-wolf-art-complex-ft-the-house-of-eternal-retu
Needless to say, contributions are welcome, if you would like to be a part of this.
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The local newspapers have all broken the story, so I might as well acknowledge it here as well.
Yeah, I bought a bowling alley.
Except… well… not really. I bought the former Silva Lanes property on Rufina Circle, a block off Cerrillos Road in south Santa Fe. But there hasn't been any bowling there since 2009, when Silva Lanes went bankrupt. And, indeed, all the lanes and interior furnishings were ripped out several years ago by a previous "buyer" who then failed to follow through with the purchase. So essentially I bought a huge empty derelict building (some 33,000 square feet) and a big parking lot.
I also have acquired a very tall bowling-pin-shaped sign, for what it's worth (not much).
Sad to say (for bowling fans), I am not planning to bring bowling back to Santa Fe. (Some other folks are doing that, supposedly, with brand new lanes in the Railyard District a few blocks from the Cocteau). Nor will I be using the space for a karaoke bar. The previous owner tried that too.
The building, instead, will be used for art… not a traditional gallery, now, but a very exciting and innovative interactive art space. The exhibits will be designed and installed by Meow Wolf, a collective of forty-odd (some very odd) artists here in Santa Fe who have been doing some amazing things over the past decade, but have never had a permanent home before.
Meow Wolf will be announcing their plans in the next month. Till then, here are some stories:
http://www.sfreporter.com/santafe/article-9749-meow-wolf-to-take-over-old-silva-lanes.html
http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/business/martin-meow-wolf-join-to-make-silva-lanes-an-art/article_a2c265d9-73c9-5059-be92-260fadeb064e.html
And check out the Meow Wolf home page, for a better idea of the kind of stuff they do.
http://meowwolf.com/
I think this should be very exciting, and real boost to local tourism, the arts scene, something kids of all ages will enjoy. But that's really up to Meow Wolf. My phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from people wanting comments about this, but I'm not the guy to talk to. Bottom line, I am just the landlord. The dream, the vision, and the hard work all belong to Meow Wolf.
But it should be cool.
And yes, we're going to keep the big bowling pin. I insisted.
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The Jean Cocteau Cinema is a movie theatre, first and foremost, but it is also a venue for live music, magic, and comedy, a meeting hall for community events, a bookstore offering a cool selection of autographed books… and an art gallery.
We have a new show every month, featuring painting and photography by an amazing and eclectic variety of local painters, photographers, cartoonists, and sculptors. Sometimes we feature visiting artists from out of state as well.
And next week, we'll be thrilled and honored to present the work of the DONATO GIANCOLA.
Fans of science fiction and artist art need no introduction to Donato, who has been one of the field's leading cover artists for the past couple of decades. A perennial Hugo nominee, he won the award for Best Professional Artist in 2006, 2007, and 2009. He was also won the Chesley Award, the Spectrum award, and numerous other honors and citations.
AND Donato is the illustrator for the official Ice & Fire calendar from Random House, which made its debut last summer at the San Diego Comicon. He did some really amazing work for that one.
We're having an official opening for Donato's show at the Cocteau next Thursday, December 18th, from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. We'll have wine, mead, cocktails, and munchies, and the artist himself… yes, Donato is flying in to join us.
Copies of the 2015 calendar will be on hand and available for purchase and autographing.
And, best of all, you will be able to feast your eyes on some of Donato's original paintings. Amazing work from an astounding talent.
See you at the gallery/
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My children's book THE ICE DRAGON — actually an illustrated and edited version of a short story that I wrote back in the 70s — has been out of print in the US for some time, as a number of my readers have informed me over the past year.
That's because Tor was preparing an entirely new edition, which I'm now thrilled to be able to announce.
Same story, but ALL NEW ARTWORK. This edition of THE ICE DRAGON will be lavishly illustrated by award-winning fantasy artist LUIS ROYO.
Have a look at the cover:
The new ICE DRAGON will be flying to a bookstore near you on OCTOBER 21 of this year!
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