May 1-6, 2022
Time number two visiting Ghost Ranch did not disappoint. This time I would be focusing on drawing and charcoal, and staying at Casa Del Sol, in a private area about a mile away from Ghost Ranch proper (still on the property, just isolated).
Upon arrival at Ghost Ranch proper, the staff greeted me saying I would be traveling about a mile down gravel to my living quarters for the week. They informed me to take a right at every opportunity and when I got to the end of the road I was there. As I puttered along at 10 miles per hour I noticed so many landscapes that Georgia had painted in her 40 plus years at Ghost Ranch. I also wondered if I might, just might, see her home a little closer than the horseback ride the previous year. I chose a right and then a right and lo and behold, there it was. Clear as day: Georgia O’Keeffe’s Ghost Ranch Home with Pedernal sitting off in the distance. Obviously I got out and had a moment.
Getting back in my car I traveled about a quarter mile and arrived at Casa Del Sol. My understanding is that Casa Del Sol was built by the same architect as Georgia’s home and I felt like I was staying at her Ghost Ranch Twin Home.
The home was pure magic. A courtyard facing Pedernal with our rooms surrounding three sides. Over the next six days we would spend our days painting bones, flowers, and the landscape in charcoal and watercolor. We would spend our evenings hiking the mountains around. There were ten of us in the class and by the end I loved everyone of them dearly. I especially bonded with Vanessa, who I met and hiked with the previous year at the Ghost Ranch Oil Painting Retreat.
I would honestly recommend Ghost Ranch to anyone who needs a hot minute to rediscover themselves and the world around. It is amazing how much learning and growth that can happen when I am being fed (breakfast, lunch, and dinner included), nourished (daily art), and loved (powerful women encouraging one another with goodness).
I had never really used charcoal before and loved the process of adding and subtracting with reckless abandon. I also had an aha moment when it comes to Georgia. She paints bones and blossoms and they appear to be floating in the sky. Art historians talk about the deeper meaning of elevating the bones and blossoms. Sure, there is always something deeper, but they are still lifes. As I was rendering my first bone I needed to elevate it so it was at eye level. I got a stump to bring it up to eye level. That improved the perspective. After working on my bone for a bit I thought, “Dang, there’s Pedernal right there in the background. Might as well put that in there.” What?! Georgia! It’s a still life. She was sitting on her patio painting still lifes and I’m sure laughing to beat the band that we thought it was magic. Ok, she is magic, but, it’s a doggone still life.
I made a movie of this adventure if you would like to truly feel the sights and sounds of Ghost Ranch and Casa Del Sol. Originally I had more defining details, but my teacher asked me to remove any references to her or Ghost Ranch. Weird. I thought I captured the essence of the experience and she would be honored to be included in a Half-Pint Adventure, but whatevs. Here is my Bones and Blossoms Ghost Ranch Adventure:
TLDR: Ghost Ranch is wonderful. Georgia was painting still lifes.