The University of New Mexico Harwood Museum of Art in Taos presents “Tracking the Ghosts and Other Residency Stories,” an unconventional lecture by artist-in-residence Shelley Horton-Trippe, on Thursday, July 12 at 7 p.m.
Photo: From “Brides Templar,” an installation in Edinburgh, Scotland by Shelley Horton-Trippe
The artist will talk about her residencies world-wide, share new videos of recent projects, and lead attendees on a tour of her site-specific installation. The program is free to Harwood Museum Alliance Members and the UNM community, or $8 for general admission. Horton-Trippe will also hold an open studio on Sunday, Aug. 5, 1-4 p.m.
Painter and multi-media artist Horton-Trippe graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1977 with a Master of Fine Arts in video and installation. The artist intended to study painting, however changed her focus after reading the banner which hung outside the university art building proclaiming: “Painting is Dead.” Despite being formally trained in video and studying in Paris with Man June Paik and later Gary Hill, Horton-Trippe has remained a painter, resulting in projects which embrace varied mediums and methods.
During a summer residency at the Harwood, Horton-Trippe is exploring place as a means for inspiration. A resident of Santa Fe, Horton-Trippe seeks to spend time away from her home base in artist residencies. “Every few years it is important to my creative process to travel to parts unknown and to capture the essence, the substance of the place. Taos is just that – inspiring, unique, with amazing light and exquisitely strong history,” she said.
In Taos, Horton-Trippe is finding influence by place – and not just place in the abstract, but the Harwood building, which she claims is inhabited by a full-time ghost whose presence becomes known in the evening hours, curtailing her studio work right after 9 p.m. and creating the smell of rabbit skin glue. Researching the Harwood building, Horton-Trippe believes this spirit is that of Smith Simpson, the original owner of the Ledoux Street complex who came to Taos with Kit Carson.
As with her past residencies, Horton-Trippe has allowed her new environment to reveal inspiration. In the case of the Harwood, the building itself is becoming part of the artwork in an installation Horton-Trippe is creating. “These installations are very site-specific and motivated by the ghost and by this history of the place,” she said.
For more information call (505) 758-9826 ext. 105 or visit Harwood Museum.
Media Contact: Lucy Perera-Adams, (505) 758-9826, ext. 105; e-mail: lperera@aol.com
Posted by scarr at July 9, 2007 10:54 AM