Arts en Plein Air

Art for the Inside to help the Outside

By Alan Kleinfeld, 12-08-06

You may or may not know, but this past September the City of Albuquerque recently unveiled its spanking new Open Space Visitor Center. According to a page on the City’s web site, the Visitor Center, “is a work in progress that will offer the public information and resources on the Open Space program and interpret the Piedras Marcadas Pueblo Village. Renovations of the facility were completed in September 2006. The Visitor Center has children's exhibits, a bookstore, and trails to the pueblo site.”

Additionally, renovations on the caretaker’s residence, an existing dwelling next to the Visitor Center, will be completed in 2007 to provide office space for staff. Matt Schmader, Superintendent of Open Space Division, tells me that renovations to change the existing pool house structure into a meeting room and possibly other office space is also planned. “We will also focus on completing connections from the main building to a wildlife viewing platform that will over look agricultural fields and continue to the north side of the building,” Schmader said.

In case you weren’t aware, “Open Space works to acquire and protect the natural character of land designated as major public Open Space in the 1988 revised City of Albuquerque Comprehensive Plan. These lands, which are comprised of over 28,000 acres in and around Albuquerque, are managed to conserve natural and archaeological resources, provide opportunities for outdoor education, provide a place for high and low impact recreation, and define the edges of the urban environment” according to the city website.

The land that encompasses Open Space includes these larger masses, each consisting of several smaller parks, trails and other outdoor areas.
—Sandia Foothills Open Space (which includes Elena Gallegos Park and Embudo Canyon Trailhead)
— Rio Grande Valley State Park (the Rio Grande Nature Center is found here)
—Open Space Farmlands (which holds Los Poblanos Fields)
—West Mesa Open Space (where you will find the Petroglyph National Monument)
—East Mountain Open Space
—Montessa Park
—Sandoval County (which is home to Placitas and Golden)

So where does the art come in? I’m getting to that.

The Open Space Division gets most of its funds from interest generated by a $20 million permanent fund created by land sales in the Elena Gallegos acquisitions and monies from the City’s general fund.

But the Open Space Alliance, a nonprofit group of volunteers that works with the Open Space Division to preserve, protect and promote Open Space program in general, does things like sell art in order to raise funds for its work in supporting Open Space. Therein lies the crux of this story. With the opening of the Visitor Center, the Alliance put together an art exhibit to sell paintings of Open Space actually painted in the Open Space space to raise funds for the Alliance. Could it be any simpler?

The Alliance’s goals are to increase awareness of Open Space lands, build partnerships with groups who share Open Space values, promote conservation, strengthen volunteerism and, of course, provide financial support.

So until December 17, 2006 at the Open Space Visitor Center you can view and buy paintings of all sorts by a myriad of artists. One of the interesting elements of the show is that all the paintings were actually painted en plein air fashion, meaning “in the open air” in Open Space lands.

Schmader’s forte may be overseeing the land that comprises the Open Space, but of the art he says, “it comes down on December 18th, unfortunately. I say that because the artwork of our Open Space looks beautiful in the building.”

The Visitor Center is open Tuesday – Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located at 6500 Coors NW (between Montano and Paseo del Norte). Phone 505.897.8831.

For information on the Open Space Division and its new Visitor Center, visit http://www.cabq.gov/openspace/

For information on the Open Space Alliance, click http://www.cabq.gov/openspace/openspacealliance.html

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