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New Mexico Museum of Art

Introduction

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This 1917 building is home to one of New Mexico's oldest museums. The New Mexico Museum of Art is one of four state-run museums found in Santa Fe, which are part of the Museum of New Mexico system operated by the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs. The museum is known for its St. Francis Auditorium and over 20,000 pieces of art which include works by Ansel Adams, Gustave Baumann, Georgia O'Keeffe, Fritz Scholder, T. C. Cannon, Bruce Nauman, Luis Jimenez, Maria Martinez, members of the Ashcan School, Los Cinco Pintores, Transcendental Painting Group, and the Taos Society of Artists. The museum also features an art library.

Images

New Mexico Museum of Art as seen today

New Mexico Museum of Art as seen today

The St. Francis Auditorium

The St. Francis Auditorium

Francisco Rizi (1614-1685), The Dwarf Miguelito, ca. 1680-1683, drawing

Francisco Rizi (1614-1685), The Dwarf Miguelito, ca. 1680-1683, drawing

Standing Woman Wearing a Mantilla (Maja), c 1827-8, posthumous pre1859 impression, Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), Etching and aquatint. Courtesy British Museum (loan to New Mexico Museum of Art)

Standing Woman Wearing a Mantilla (Maja), c 1827-8, posthumous pre1859 impression, Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), Etching and aquatint. Courtesy British Museum (loan to New Mexico Museum of Art)

Temple of St. Francis Art Gallery (Santa Fe sketches) circa 1917 Gustave Baumann, American, born Germany, 1881 - 1971 Charcoal and chalk on paper Gift of Jane Baumann, 1979

Temple of St. Francis Art Gallery (Santa Fe sketches) circa 1917 Gustave Baumann, American, born Germany, 1881 - 1971 Charcoal and chalk on paper Gift of Jane Baumann, 1979

John Sloan, American, 1871 - 1951 Under the Old Portal, 1919 (reworked 1945) Old Portale, Santa Fe oil on canvas Collection of the New Mexico Museum of Art. Gift of Julius Gans, 1946

John Sloan, American, 1871 - 1951 Under the Old Portal, 1919 (reworked 1945) Old Portale, Santa Fe oil on canvas Collection of the New Mexico Museum of Art. Gift of Julius Gans, 1946

Chimayo 1917 George W. Bellows American, 1882 - 1925 oil on canvas Gift of an anonymous donor, 1974

Chimayo 1917 George W. Bellows American, 1882 - 1925 oil on canvas Gift of an anonymous donor, 1974

Untitled, not dated Victor Higgins oil on canvas Gift of the Joan Higgins Reed Estate, 1984

Untitled, not dated Victor Higgins oil on canvas Gift of the Joan Higgins Reed Estate, 1984

3 Eggs in Pink Dish circa 1928 Georgia O'Keeffe American, 1887 - 1986 oil on canvas Gift of the Georgia O'Keeffe Estate, 1987

3 Eggs in Pink Dish circa 1928 Georgia O'Keeffe American, 1887 - 1986 oil on canvas Gift of the Georgia O'Keeffe Estate, 1987

1920s photo of the museum. P.O.G photo archives, NM History Mus.

1920s photo of the museum. P.O.G photo archives, NM History Mus.

Backstory and Context

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The museum is located one block off the historic Santa Fe Plaza. Designed by Isaac Rapp and built in 1917, it is an example of Pueblo Revival Style architecture, and one of Santa Fe's best-known representations of the synthesis of Native American and Spanish Colonial design styles. 

The museum’s permanent collection includes over 20,000 works of art such as paintings, photographs, sculptures, prints and drawings. Notable artists in the collection include Ansel Adams, Gustave Baumann, Georgia O'Keeffe, Fritz Scholder, T. C. Cannon, Bruce Nauman, Luis Jimenez, Maria Martinez, members of the Ashcan School, Los Cinco Pintores, Transcendental Painting Group, and the Taos Society of Artists.

The St. Francis Auditorium, located in the New Mexico Museum of Art, is the venue for various cultural and musical organizations, including the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and the Santa Fe Community Orchestra. The auditorium has a seating capacity of 450. The auditorium displays several murals depicting St. Francis of Assisi which were originally designed by Donald Beauregard and completed by Carlos Vierra and Kenneth Chapman.

The museum library contains art books, periodicals, biographical files of artists represented in the permanent collection and catalogs of exhibitions since 1917.

Sources

Sheppard, Carl D., Creator of the Santa Fe Style: Isaac Hamilton Rapp, Architect, University of New Mexico Press, 1988 pp 83-88

Wilson, Chris (1997). The Myth of Santa Fe: Creating a Modern Regional Tradition. University of New Mexico Press. 

Jaques, Susan (2012). A Love for the Beautiful : Discovering America's Hidden Art Museums. Guilford, Connecticut: Globe Pequot Press. pp. 186–187.

A Report on the Cultural and Arts Survey of New Mexico. New Mexico Arts Commission. 1966. p. 60.

Sheppard, Carl (1989). The Saint Francis Murals of Santa Fe : The Commission and the Artists. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Sunstone Press. 

Fromme, Babette Brandt (1981). Curator's Choice : An Introduction to the Art Museums of the U.S. New York: Crown Publishers. p. 97.

Additional Information