The Renovation of Historic St. Antonio de Padua in Cordova

Photos by Victor Goler. Conservation work by Victor Goler, Felix Lopez, and Jerry Sandoval.

Article by Pete Warzel

In November 2021, Victor Goler, master santero and art conservator, along with fellow santeros Felix Lopez and Jerry Sandoval, began a project enabled by Nuevo Mexico Profundo, a non-profit organization focused on the historic, some forgotten and neglected, churches of New Mexico, for repair and stabilization. Tours and events held by Profundo raise money that goes directly to the churches for their care.

This project was quite something different. The altar screens and bultos, originally created by the iconic New Mexico santero José Rafael Aragón in the early 1800s, were in disrepair due to age and climate changes within the church at Cordova, New Mexico. It was not an instance of neglect or mishandling, rather the erosion by time. Profundo hired Victor and his associates, after fundraising for the project, substantially endowed by the Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw Charitable Trust, and individual donors, to conserve and stabilize the important and beautiful artwork.

The project was completed in March 2022, with stirring results.

This is an endeavor that highlights community – the love of the church by the mayordomos, the caretakers, the villagers in Cordova, and the community of santeros who collaborated on the stabilization of the artwork. It is important to cultural history, and it is important to Cordova.

Two weeks ago, our Stewards Members were invited to see the results, with a presentation by Victor Goler on the work. We had visited in December 2021, as the work began, and Victor presented the process and steps he and his colleagues would be following for the next four months. In this piece are photographs of the completed project. You can see that the artwork, the space, the accomplishment, are very special and a testament to the longevity and continuity of Northern New Mexico.

The Albuquerque Journal published an excellent article on the restoration.

Master Plan Update: Enhanced Entry and Acequia Underway

Construction for the El Zaguán Master Plan is underway! It is an exciting time at Historic Santa Fe Foundation, as years of planning and dreaming begin to manifest themselves physically. There is much still to be done, but at this point in the process, it feels good to savor the initial progress.

In January of 2022, a long anticipated improvement to our front entry was begun. For the stretch at our turquoise gates, where the courtyard wall is plastered with the traditional mud over its adobe structure, the earthen sidewalk was replaced with dark colored bricks. This was also extended into the courtyard, replacing the uneven flagstone paving leading to the zaguán and smoothing out a too-steep slope leading in right at the gates (a byproduct of raising the street level when it was paved). Drainage had long been an issue, with that slope washing mud from the sidewalk into the too-small drain inside the courtyard so that water ponded even in slight rainstorms, and this to has been addressed with an enlarged French drain funneling water away below ground to the garden where it will benefit plantings. We think the contractor, Sunsilk Landscaping, did a great job not only making it more inviting and safer but also fitting the changes in with the historic surroundings.

Hot on the heels of the success of the brick installation, planning for one of the most exciting educational enhancements of the Master Plan came together. This is the revival of the historic acequia which was the life force of the property during the time that it was an active farm. The Canyon Road Community Ditch fed the farms along the full length of what is now the bustling downtown city street, and an attentive viewer can see hints of it in the landscape at several points. It is, however, fully inactive, and so our acequia will be contained to the short section along the east edge of the garden, recirculating in front of the portal.

The project, which was designed by Surroundings Studios and is being constructed by Oasis Aquatics, is reusing every possible piece of stone lining the historic path. When it is completed, a small lock gate, as is used in still active acequias, will allow HSFF staff and docents to demonstrate how the system works to flood irrigate fields and gardens. In conjunction with the impending interpretive space inside, this will greatly add to the Foundation’s resources to enact its educational mission. Stay tuned for more exciting updates as The El Zaguán Master Plan becomes reality.

In Memoriam: Nancy Owen Lewis

We have lost a wonderful friend, a committed scholar, a valuable leader at HSFF, and a great lady. Nancy Owen Lewis passed away last Wednesday evening, and there is a void at 545 Canyon Road.

“Dr. Lewis provided us with wisdom on the Board of Directors, leadership on two projects that were dear to her – the 5th edition of Old Santa Fe Today and the history interpretation plan as part of our Master Plan for El Zaguán. I believe the first time I met Nancy eight years ago now, she was prodding me to have the foundation publish a new edition of the book, and so proud that The School of American Research, SAR (now the School for Advanced Research), had published the first edition of OSFT in 1966. She had a long affiliation with SAR as a Scholar in Residence from 2011 to the present and as former Director of Scholar Programs. Likewise, her long-time commitment to HSFF filled many roles: former Chair of the Board, Board Director, Chair of the El Zaguán Interpretation Committee, Editor, and coordinator of the publication committee for Old Santa Fe Today, 5th edition.

She is an integral part of our foundation’s history and has moved us towards our future.

It is a very sad time in Santa Fe for everyone she worked with and touched. I will miss her sagacity and her wit. Several years ago I visited her office in the SAR Press building and after a serious conversation about some HSFF governance issue, I turned to leave and saw a table lamp that appeared to show a cow, inside the clear body of the lamp, being raised in a beam of light to a UFO hovering above. I was certain this was a person to be reckoned with. And so she was.” — Pete Warzel, HSFF Executive Director

Read the obituary and find out about the services for Dr. Nancy Owen Lewis.

As a Board Director and historian, Dr. Lewis had an incredible passion for the history of Santa Fe especially surrounding many of the women who arrived in Santa Fe and Northern New Mexico in the 20th century including the White Sisters, El Zaguán owner Margretta Dietrich, and Dietrich’s sister, the artist Dorothy Stewart. We are pleased to offer a wonderful example of her ability to engage an audience through her fascinating storytelling abilities based in scholarly research. In this video, she traces the history of the home of Historic Santa Fe Foundation and its many inhabitants over its history. We always enjoyed a presentation by Nancy with her lively style and personality and evident knowledge and passion for her topics. We hope you enjoy this video of Nancy’s history of El Zaguán.

For so many reasons, we will miss Nancy Owen Lewis at Historic Santa Fe Foundation.

Soil Testing at El Zaguán - Santa Fe Extension Master Gardeners

The Santa Fe Extension Master Gardeners, along with our gardener Linda Churchill, are the caretakers of the El Zaguán Garden located at 545 Canyon Road. In their recent newsletter, they published a piece showing the results from their recent soil analysis. You may read the entire article below or click the images to download. Find the 1991 pollen study here. Please note that the garden is referred to as the Bandelier Garden, a name that no longer is attributed to the garden at El Zaguán.

Historic Buildings and Sites of Santa Fe

An article by Pete Warzel

Kim Strauss, our good friend who commits much of his time to the Randall Davey House at the Audubon Center and Sanctuary, Santa Fe, sent me a pristine copy of the 1962 pamphlet Historic Buildings and Sites of Santa Fe. The cover price was 10 cents, and he promises he did not pay much more for it. 

Timing is everything, and we have included a pdf version of the HSFF published pamphlet in this article for your education and entertainment, since this was the pre-cursor to the first edition of our iconic book, Old Santa Fe Today, to be published in its elegant new fifth edition by the Museum of New Mexico Press in Spring 2022. We are eagerly awaiting the new copy, so long in coming with so much volunteer commitment and professionalism since we began the planning process. In November 2018, Melanie McWhorter and I met with Anna Gallegos and Lisa Pacheco at the Press to make our pitch and they were immediately all in.

Interior spread of the Historic Sites Brochure (click on image to download pDF of both sides of the brochure)

So, this pamphlet, what we would consider today a proof of concept, cited our first 10 Register Properties, with another eleven properties described and located on the map. Seven of those additional eleven would be added to the Register over the ensuing years. “THIS PRELIMINARY LIST of historic buildings is a small fraction of those worthy pf preservation, but by bringing to a wider audience these few first examples of Santa Fe’s truly indigenous architecture, it is hoped that these buildings and others like them may be preserved for the enjoyment of our own and future generations.” It should be noted that one of the “buildings” is not in fact a building – Acequia Madre – but was added to our Register in 1989. Another listing, not a singular building is rather a group of historic buildings - the Barrio de Analco, included in this pamphlet but added to our Register in 1964.

I find myself frequently consulting the original board minutes of the Foundation for my own orientation of how we came to be where we are now are. February 1962 is the first discussion of preliminary list of properties to be “marked” by the Foundation. In March 1962, there is a rough draft of the pamphlet with a map and key. In May 1962, the budget estimate for the printing is given as $36.00 for artwork, and a total of $225 for the entire project. A draft press release announcing the publication of Historic Buildings and Sites of Santa Fe is dated July 29, 1962, and, by September, it is reported that over 1600 pamphlets have been sold, generating many visitors to El Zaguán.

In parallel, the plaque design was in process, and so our Register and the seeds of Old Santa Fe Today were moving forward quickly, as HSFF had not yet received its tax exempt status at this point.  

Contrast that February to September timeframe to our 5th edition of Old Santa Fe Today, from November 2018 to Spring 2022. Granted, there are 96 properties included in the new book, all on our Historic Register, new photographs, new research, map-making and a massive group effort of volunteers, staff and contracted creatives. The costs are not $225 all in, and fundraising for the project  took the first half of 2020 to complete, just as we all entered a health emergency shut down.

Enjoy this electronic version of the first publication by the Historic Santa Fe Foundation, and think of it when you have the new edition of Old Santa Fe Today in hand. The #13 entry in the pamphlet states that one of the apartments at El Zaguán “…is now an office for The Historic Santa Fe Foundation, Old Santa Fe Assn., Spanish Colonial Arts Society.” One office for these three entities. I do hope they rotated their time in there in 1962.

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Pre-order the upcoming Old Santa Fe Today, Fifth Edition below (due May 2022)

Old Santa Fe Today: A History & Tour of Historic Properties (5th Edition)

$40.00

Old Santa Fe Today: A History & Tour of Historic Properties

Audra Bellmore, Author
8”x10.75”, 288 pages, 173 color & 82 black-and-white photographs, 8 maps, flexi-binding
Now Available

Old Santa Fe Today is an engaging read about Santa Fe’s architecture, history, and important figures through its culturally significant properties, among them churches, government buildings, and homes. The book also serves as a walking tour guide for locals and visitors wanting to sightsee. Originally published in 1966, Old Santa Fe Today has been used by writers and scholars exploring the history and architectural significance of Santa Fe. With new essays updating the 1991 fourth edition, this fifth edition of the classic reference book also has a complete inventory of properties—now approximately one hundred—including those recently added to the Historic Santa Fe Foundation’s “Register of Properties Worthy of Preservation” since 1961. Each property entry includes revised and expanded narratives on its architecture, history, and ownership, providing social and cultural context as well. Among the Register are the former homes of past influential artists and writers such as Olive Rush and Witter Bynner. The William Penhallow Henderson House, 555 Camino del Monte Sol, was the home of the famed painter and craftsperson and his poet wife Alice Corbin Henderson. Constructed over a decade from 1917 to 1928 and designed in the Spanish Pueblo Revival Style, it would serve as a model for other artist home studios in the heart of the Santa Fe art colony. The de la Peña house located at 831 El Caminito is a nineteenth-century Spanish Pueblo adobe farmhouse owned by the de la Peña family for eighty years. Artist, writer, and historic preservationist Frank Applegate purchased the home in 1925. In the late 1930s, the National Park Service added the house to its Historic American Buildings Survey, an honor reserved for the most important historic structures in the United States.

Photographs shown here by Simone Frances, 2020 for Old Santa Fe Today, 5th edition.

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Frank Blazquez on the New Mexico PBS series, ¡COLORES!

Frank Blazquez on New Mexico PBS series, ¡COLORES!

Introduction by Pete Warzel

Sometime during the Thanksgiving holiday 2018, I read a fascinating article in The Guardian newspaper about a photographer in Albuquerque who had overcome bad personal choices and graduated from UNM with a degree in history, magna cum laude, but also was causing a stir with his portraits taken from experience with people in the ‘War Zone’ (now the International Zone) in Albuquerque. The portraits were stunning, riveting, unapologetic. They presented gang members, drug addicts, ex-inmates with their gloriously inked bodies and faces, up close and fearless. They presented people.

I knew we had to have an exhibition at El Zaguán of these photographs, as acknowledgement of a culture so alien to Canyon Road. 

Frank Blazquez came to visit us at our office and we quickly decided he would print and we would hang an exhibition for January 2019. We helped with the printing cost, but neither of us, Frank or HSFF, could afford framing, so we decided to make something raw of it and hung the large prints from industrial wire, secured to the wall by large iron nails. It worked. The sala at 545 Canyon Road came alive with the edgy energy of the War Zone.

Frank is a wise, focused, caring man, with huge talent. He has since won prizes at the Sangre de Cristo Arts Center, Pueblo, Colorado, shown at the History Colorado Center in Denver, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, and will be part of an exhibition at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery during 2022 as one of the finalists in the triennial Outwin Boochever Portrait Cempetition. He deserves it all. 

Below is a link to a segment from the New Mexico PBS series, ¡COLORES! Broadcast on January 22, 2022. The subject and interviewee is Frank Blazquez and his art.

Watch this episode of New Mexico PBS series, ¡COLORES!