Cool Native American art on the walls at La Posada de Santa Fe
Cool Native American art on the walls at La Posada de Santa Fe

This is the fourth part in Dennis Kamoen’s five-part series about Santa Fe, New Mexico, which he discovered on a visit to the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival. Check out the first part here, the second part here, the third part here, and tune in tomorrow for the next chapter.

Says Dennis:
“My trip to Santa Fe is about discovering a special place to visit; a cool film festival, great food and accommodations, beautiful environs and great people. I will return to Santa Fe time and time again.”

I recently traveled to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where many of the downtown streets in this Western town are small and there’s a real sense of community. It’s not really necessary to have a car in Santa Fe, so consider taking a shuttle for the approximately one-hour ride from Albuquerque International Airport. Sandia Shuttle Express to Santa Fe is only $48 per person, roundtrip, and is simple to reserve online.

Downtown art gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico
Downtown art gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico

Santa Fe is an “Art lover’s destination” with hundreds of art galleries displaying original paintings and sculptures, as well as many museums. In fact, the hotel where I was staying, La Posada de Santa Fe, is known as Santa Fe’s art hotel, with exhibits featured in this elegant and cozy hotel’s lobby and restaurants.

Tip: Visit the Santa Fe Gallery Association website for more gallery information.

Santa Fe's art hotel, La Posada de Santa Fe
Santa Fe’s art hotel, La Posada de Santa Fe

After a comfortable first night’s sleep, I met with the hotel’s art curator, Sara Eyestone, a strikingly beautiful woman with straight gray hair and large round sunglasses. Wearing a gray cashmere shawl over her shoulders that accompanied her deep silky voice, she was waiting at Fuego restaurant to tell me about La Posada’s interesting history of well-known artists and writers who have visited. Sara Eyestone is an accomplished artist herself and has been curator at La Posada de Santa Fe since 2008, bringing in over 600 pieces of art by more than 50 artists—all of which are available for sale.

Native American painting
Native American painting at La Posada de Santa Fe

Sara welcomes local residents and guests to her weekly art talks and memoir-writing classes at La Posada de Santa Fe. She took me for a short walk and pointed out some of the eclectic folk art and beautiful en plein air paintings while sharing some of her vast knowledge of the art culture in Santa Fe. I learned about the historic art sanctuary at La Posada, the many galleries in town and of course Santa Fe’s beloved Georgia O’Keeffe. The most well-known “must visit” museums in Santa Fe are the International Museum of Folk Art and the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. Of course, Santa Fe has many more museums to enjoy. The city is truly an art lover’s destination and a special place where the locals seem to appreciate where they live and are eager to share it.

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