The room #409 at Nativo Lodge is titled “A Path to Clarity II” It is based on a painting that was completed in January 2019 of the same name. This painting was inspired by a walk I took last fall in Pojoaque, New Mexico with my Son Noel. We were hiking right at the base of the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. I was astounded by the scenery, I took pictures with my phone, but the digital pictures did not do it justice. The scale of what my eyes saw was not recorded in the digital photo. I could see all the areas that I have hiked to in the last 27 years while living around this mountain range in Santa Fe. I had been taking pictures of the New Mexican Mountains for years, but I was finally struck by inspiration to begin painting landscapes. “A Path to Clarity II” is the fifteenth and largest landscape completed this year. It is inspired by artists from New Mexico going back at least a hundred years. Numerals play a large part; each measurement is a birth date from a cherished family member. The background is an abstract landscape inspired by everything from Piet Mondrian, Quilting, to Pixels and retro video games like Tetris. The dark line work on top of the color background is inspired by super cool artists like Ken Price, Tony Abeyta, Joan Hill, and the great Robert Crumb.
The remaining areas have birds that I see while hiking in New Mexico. You have a female and male Red Breasted Robin, and on the adjoining wall, a female Bluebird, a Magpie, and a male Bluebird. I have been producing these stylized birds the last three years for the non-profit Bioneers Corporation. I decided now would be a good time to allow some of them to appear in my artwork. I have been a bird watcher since a child, my grandfather would have me memorize and identify every bird while growing up on a farm in rural Northeastern Oklahoma. The style and design are Inspired by Canadian artist Norval Morrisseau and my love for country and western suits of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.
The bathroom and sink area are the rewarding enjoyable part of producing this Mural over the course of ten days of painting, ranging from ten to fifteen hours a day. Lots of fun is going into this bathroom, it is based on Marvel Comic great Jack Kirby. Many techniques, including the “Kirby Krackle” will be used to complete the bathroom. It also is designed to appear you are on the moon looking into a “Comic” stylized cosmos while in the restroom. I hope that the customers and visitors to the Nativo enjoy this room. A lot of happy thoughts and heart and soul went into its production.