Billed as the Jewel Box of art tours along the banks of the Rio Grande, the Pilar Studio Tour was decidedly small in attendance but emphatically large on talent. It was my first time visiting the town of Pilar, New Mexico. I should have known to slow down as I got closer because I blew right past this small town and ended up in Taos! After a few phone calls to the studio artists, I headed back reducing my speed through the horseshoe turn on Highway 68 and enjoyed a leisurely afternoon wandering from studio to studio. 
This year marked the 15th annual Pilar Studio Tour which included artisans Meredith Garcia, Bruce Gourley, PattyMara Gourley, Carl Gray Whitkop, Kit Lynch, Patric Carter, Stephen Kilborn, Anita Bauer, Arthur Gledhill, Leslie McNamara, Sheena Cameron, Laura Ramnarace and Sunita Smith. Three artists in particular resonated with me. Kit Lynch, an international artist known as the “painter of unleashed, untamed nature,” Patric Carter, an explorative photographer, known as the “Image Alchemist,” and Sunita Smith, a mystical, spiritual painter of wood, canvas and blocks.
Kit Lynch’s paintings reflect the movement of water, wind, clouds, leaves, branches, churches and adobes that implies unity and interdependence. Her paintings of wild waterfalls and dark skies hold the promise of a storm coming on the high wind. Lynch’s paintings are big, often seen as diptychs and triptychs. Patric Carter can take an image of a sunset or an adobe wall and transform it into a world of chaos, colors and rhythmic illusion. His work is known for its “phenomenal sense of expansive healing energy.” However, it was the work of Sunita Smith that captured my heart. Her beautiful, soothing paintings calm me after a full day of driving and walking. Smith’s Lotus block, with its translucent hues of blue and orange radiates both energy and peace. Her artisan faire and market was enhanced by the soundscape music, “Enchanted Lands,” provided by her brother John Patrick Funk.
As a side bar to my review, Pilar (formerly Cieneguilla) is a small unincorporated town of just over 10,000 people located in Taos County. It is located on the Rio Grande. The name Pilar comes from the Spanish word “cienaga” which means marsh or marshy place. The swampy ground is caused by several streams running across a small flood plain formed by a bend in the Rio Grande. For more information about the Pilar Studio Tour visit pilarstudiotour.org or call (575) 758-0135.
