Indian Market: Bringing the best to Santa Fe

Santa Fe bursts at the seams the third weekend in August* each year for the annual Indian Market. SWAIA (Southwest Association For Indian Arts) , a non-profit organization puts on this event. The 88th market takes place in the historic Santa Fe Plaza on August 22nd and 23rd. from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM. This juried market features Native American artists and artisans, working in traditional and contemporary styles and media. There is always a waiting list for the booths.
The Santa Fe Indian Market began in 1922 as the Southwest Indian Fair run by the Museum of New Mexico and was part of the Fiesta celebration. It has evolved over almost eighty-eight years into what is today the largest and most prestigious show of its kind in the world. This year 1,144 Native artists and artisans will exhibit their wares in 674 booths. Another fifty plus booths will house food, book sales, non-profit organizations and more.
Participating artists can enter what they consider to be their best pieces for awards in eighteen categories. On Friday the submissions are judged and prizes are awarded at the Best in Show Award Ceremony at 4:30. Traditionally, the winning pieces are the first items bought on Saturday morning. Following the Best in Show event, a preview is held for SWAIA members featuring all the entries. The Best of Show tickets are $200.00 and available to Turquoise Level members and above. Both events are held at the Santa Fe Convention Center at 201 West Marcy Street. Time for Preview admission depends on your membership level. If you are not a member, don’t fret; you can join at the door.
Serious collectors, museums, gallery and shop owners and the just plain curious attend the preview. It gives people an opportunity to scope out the artists and their wares and formulate a strategy for the next day. Because the competition is fierce and supply is limited, people line up at the booths hours before they open, sometimes camping out all night. Nothing may be sold before the 7:00 AM opening time. Legend has it that some well-heeled folks pay people to stand vigil for them and they show up in time to buy.
Some really collectible artists can sell out very quickly and head for home. By noon some of the artists on the waiting list will be setting out their wares. Prices can be high; after all, these are some of the best Indian artists and artisans in the world. There are also affordable pieces or you can do what I do, and pretend you are at a museum that houses the best Indian arts and handcrafts on the planet. This year, because of the economy, rumor has it that some participants will be offering some more affordable items.
The market, which according to SWAIA, attracts somewhere around 100.000 visitors to The City Different brings about $81,000,000 to Santa Fe, about $18,000,00 of that is in sales. Some artists their entire income for the year at this event.
For hotels and restaurants, this is the busiest weekend of the year with hotels often booking up a year in advance (not so much in this new economy) and popular restaurants a few months prior to the weekend. If you did not make your lunch and dinner reservations in advance, there are still a lot of great restaurants in this town and there will be somewhere for you to eat. If you are staying at a hotel, inn or B& B, the concierge or front desk folks can help. If you are in a rental or need additional assistance, The Santa Fe Traveler, a personal concierge and trip planning service is just a phone call away at 505-474-4155.
SWAIA has some great events planned for the week. In addition there is a Native Cinema Showcase and many of the galleries in town hold special shows and openings over Indian Market week. Check with the Santa Fe Gallery Association website for a schedule.
It is a wonderful and vibrant time to be in Santa Fe. If you are not here this year, put the Santa Fe Indian Market on your schedule for next summer.

*The event is the third weekend after the first Monday in August and the actual date is set by the City of Santa Fe.

SANTA FE: PLAYING TOURIST AT HOME

Sometimes it’s fun to play tourist in your own town. I actually do a lot of that due to the nature of my business. It is important that I know what the visitor experience to Santa Fe is. A few weeks ago we celebrated a minor National Holiday- my birthday. The celebration began on Sunday and officially ended on Thursday, Here are some of the things we did. They were great fun and you may want to do them too whether you are a visitor to the “City Different” or you live here.



JUAN SIDDI FLAMENCO THEATER COMPANY
His feet move so fast they become a blur and his intensity is palpable. Juan Siddi is a master of Flamenco. Born in Germany of a Spanish mother and Italian father, he was exposed to dance at an early age and made his professional debut at 18. In 2002, the young dancer became a soloist with Maria Benitez’s Teatro Flamenco. The company had been performing in Santa Fe during July and August for over twenty-five years. In 2007, the legendary Benitez retired and turned the stage at The Lodge at Santa Fe over to the young dancer and his newly formed Juan Siddi Flamenco Theater Company. The company consisting of Siddi, featured guest artist, Carola Zertuche (artistic director of the Theatre Flamenco San Francisco), five woman dancers and four musicians performs six nights a week. The program says the essence of Flamenco is the cante or song, here performed by a principal singer, a drummer (who occasionally joins in the singing), a supporting guitarist and the well-known Spanish Flamenco guitarist, Chuscales, born Jose Valle Fajardo. His compelling style is the perfect match for the passion that Siddi brings to the stage. Together, they are riveting.
The women are fascinating to watch. Their embroidered shawls and long slender, ruffled skirts are an integral part of the dance. Hands move gracefully, often with speed, feet tap heavily and quickly on the wooden stage as they dance in precision. But, there is no doubt that Siddi is the star. His solos bring gasps, cheers and wild applause from the audience. The experience is emotional for the spectators and it appears they are still under the dancers’ spell as they file from the theater. An evening spent with the Juan Siddi Flamenco Theater Company is a night you will long remember

LA CASA SENA
We decided to lunch here on Monday as their patio is one of the best out-door dining spots in Santa Fe. Steve had a special, a salad with seared Ahi tuna and I had the menu special which included a choice of black bean soup or salad and an entrée. I went with the soup- it's silky and delicious and I sometimes order a bowl for lunch. To celebrate the occasion, we were going to indulge in one my favorite desserts in town, the Dobos Torte, but it was recently removed from the menu, a great loss. Lunch by the fountain was really tranquil and special.

COYOTE CAFÉ CANTINA
Tuesday evening we decided on a casual dinner at the Rooftop Cantina at the renowned Coyote Café. The Cantina with its interesting food and drink menus is always a fun place and the prices are reasonable. Luckily we moved from our original table due to the arrival of a large party- we were concerned they'd be loud. Thunder and lightened preceded torrential rains. The first table was completely open to the elements, we would have been drenched. Our corner table was mostly sheltered. I stayed dry- Steve’s back got soaked and by the end of the meal. our feet were on wet cement We made it through dinner and decided to have dessert at the restaurant bar downstairs- it was time to dry off. It was a wonderful pre-birthday evening.

For Wednesday, the actual birthday, we planned a full day, come share it with us. It was a really special day- and you can recreate it when you visit Santa Fe.

GEORGIA O’KEEFFE HOME AND STUDIO TOUR
I’ve wanted tour Georgia O’Keeffe’s home in Abiquiu for years. The tours always filled up way in advance and my life was hard to schedule months or even weeks out, so I never got there. At a recent breakfast at the O’Keeffe Museum, I saw a newly released video, "Georgia O’Keeffe, Houses of Her Own" about O’Keeffe’s Abiquiu and Ghost Ranch homes. The film really piqued my interest, I was determined to tour the home and studio. What a great thing to do on my birthday. (Due to its deteriorated condition, the Ghost Ranch house is not open to the public. My dream is to someday get special dispensation to tour it.)
We were able to book space on the 11 AM home tour the week before. In the past, due to the tours popularity (there are a lot of O'Keeffe fans out there) we would have been placed on a waiting list. This year, probably a combination of the economy and the newly expanded tour schedule, we were able to get in at the last minute.
We arrived at the O’Keeffe Home tour office at the Abiquiu Inn with time to spare. Steve and I had talked to Joyce, the woman who runs the office, for years, making tour reservations, bu we had never met her. Our early arrival gave us time to get to know the busy Joyce a little. She knew the woman Abiquiu residents affectionately referred to as Miss O'Keeffe, personally. Her family were neighbors and the artist would visit their home. She has some great stories. When the rest of our group arrived we were directed to a small bus (maximum tour size 12,) and driven to the property.
The house is on a mesa overlooking the Chama River Valley, the mountains and O’Keeffe’s beloved and often painted White Place. The expansive views are inspiring, they made me want to pick up a paintbrush. When Georgia O’Keeffe first saw the traditional adobe (circa 1790), it was a ruin owned by the Catholic Church. They did not want to sell it. She really wanted this house, she claims she fell in love with the black door, and she was persistent. She negotiated with the Church for years and they finally relented and sold it to her with the stipulation that she keep the original structure intact. If they had not sold it, the house, then in terrible repair, would eventually have collapsed.
O’Keeffe wanted a second home in the area as she could not successfully grow vegetables at Ghost Ranch about 15 miles up the road. She loved her gardens and canned and froze what she could not immediately consume. The freezing and canning were done in her kitchen and pantry. Her 50's appliances (which she retained until she left the home in 1984) were top of the line when she moved in.
The home’s sparse furnishings are a study in 50’s modernity. and represent the big names in Mid-century furniture. Pieces by Herman Miller, Charles Eames, and Eero Saarinen are scattered throughout the house and a Noguchi shade reigns over the simple dining-room table and is the only lampshade in the house, O’Keeffe favored bare bulbs.
O’Keeffe, was a rock collector and there are rocks all over the house, they are an integral part of the décor. I, too collect rocks and scatter them around the house, so I appreciate these touches. Also on view are some of the skulls she is famous for painting.
The guided-tour is an hour and we wish it had been longer. We would have enjoyed more time to wander the beautiful grounds where salt cedars from the Mid-east, poisonous Jimson Weed (Datura), a flower she sometimes painted and sculpted junipers make for an unusual landscape. At the end of the hour we got back on the bus and were driven back to our starting point hungry and ready for lunch.

ICE’S FARM AND TEAROOM
The perfect lunch spot after our trip back to the 50’s is the retro Ice’s Tea Room in Alcalde, about ½ hour southeast of the O’Keeffe Home and Studio. I had heard about this place for years, but had never gotten there. We were having a day of firsts. The farm grows organic produce, herbs and edible flowers and what’s in season shows up at lunch. They share the farm’s surplus bounty at the Santa Fe Farmer’s Market. I used the term retro as Ice's reminded us of family and farm tables from when we were growing up. The price-fixed, 5-course tea/lunch is a great value. There are only three tables and reservations are required. We had a great time eating and watching the many hummingbirds dining at the multiple-feeders outside the dining-porch. Ice's is right nextdoor to Los Luceros, former home of heiress Mary Cabot Wheelwright and new home to Sundance, NM.

GERONIMO
Celebrating my birthday dinner on the portal at Geronimo has become a Santa Fe tradition. We had not dined with the new Asian/French/New American fusion menu and we loved it, but then chef/owner Eric DiStefano is a genius. And the front of the house runs incredibly well too thanks to long-time managing partner, Chris Harvey. What a perfect end to a memorable day.

SANTA FE: DINING AL FRESCO

The Patio at The Pink Adobe, Santa Fe, NM





Ambiance can make or break a great restaurant. When the weather warms up, both Santa Feans and visitors take advantage of our beautiful sunny weather (over 300 days a year) and dine al fresco. Even in summer, the breezes make dining outside the perfect option. There are restaurants that offer outdoor dining right on the street, but my favorites are secluded patios and courtyards hidden from public view. Here are a few of my favorites. (Note: We're not talking food here it's the ambiance we're looking at. To find out more about these restaurants and their menus, check out their websites, which are all listed.)

La Casa Sena has what may be the best courtyard dining spot in town. Don Juan Sena bought a small building on Palace Avenue in1796 and by the 1830s had built a family compound which surrounds this beautiful courtyard with its stately trees and bubbling fountain. The Territorial-style building is home to trendy boutiques (first floor) and offices (second floor) and La Casa Sena Restaurant and its offshoots: The Cantina, The Wine Shop and Cellar Lounge. Lunch or dinner is special under the shade of the huge old trees amidst the lush flower gardens.

SantaCafe also offers courtyard dining for lunch and dinner. The former Padre Gallegos House built between 1857 and 1862 boasts a glassed-over well in the bar. It’s a great conversation piece. According to Bobby Morean, one of the restaurant’s owners, Gallegos had so many enemies, he did not trust that the outside well would provide safe, potable water. Their tented courtyard and covered portal offer a shady respite at lunch and protection from the summer monsoons in the evening. It is a popular spot

The Compound on historic Canyon Road, home to many of the city’s over 200 art galleries, has a peaceful, stucco-wall enclosed patio that makes you feel like your are dining somewhere in France or Italy. There are fruit trees, ivy and large pots bursting with white geraniums and white petunias all around the intimate enclosed space. It is THE spot to enjoy chef/owner Mark Kiffen’s James Beard Award-winning food in warm weather.

The patio at Luminaria, the restaurant at the Inn and Spa at Loretto, makes you feel as if you are dining on a Caribbean Island. It is the perfect place for a romantic dinner au deux. Enjoy a tropical drink or a Margarita and relax while you savor the perfect ambiance. There is an outdoor-fireplace where wood fires burn on cooler evenings.

The Pink Adobe is the oldest restaurant in Santa Fe. The infamous local artist Rosalea Murphy started it in 1944 as a place to sell burgers, enchiladas and wonderful dishes from her hometown, New Orleans. It quickly became a gathering place for members of the Santa Fe art scene. The restaurant was family owned until 2007 when it was acquired by the Inn of the Five Graces, a Relais and Chateaux lodging. The menu has changed, but many old favorites like Steak Dunigan are still there. The newly renovated, flag-stone patio boasts a fire-pit in the center for cooler evenings. This tree-shaded gem is a great place to enjoy good company and great food and drink.

The O’Keeffe Café occupies a historic brick Territorial building that housed Union soldiers during the Civil War. Unlike the other places mentioned here, its outdoor dining area is not hidden away. Because the building is set back from the street, the outdoor patio, shaded by mature trees feels very private. The sense of history in this place is palpable. What a great place to enjoy fabulous food and sample the by-the-glass wine offerings from their cruvinet.

With all the wonderful patios and courtyards to choose from in Santa Fe, next time you dine out, dine out.