Adobe Church Project
There are hundreds of adobe churches scattered throughout the high desert of the American Southwest. A few, still in existence, date back to the mid-1700's, while many others were established as far back as the early 1800's. Some are large, imposing structures, but most, built by parishioners, are small and modest.
Each is unique and worth exploring. They stand as symbols of deep faith, homage to centuries old customs still practiced in towns and villages found throughout Southwest.
Adobe is among the most ancient of building materials. Of the earth, and in need of constant care, it is ideal for structures determined to endure as expressions of faith and culture. Unfortunately, many churches are in disrepair, while others, in an effort to reduce maintenance costs, are being plastered over with modern building materials -- a process that may forever change the fragile relationship between the parishioners and the dedication needed to maintain their heritage.
It is remarkable that many of the towns and villages, despite the rapid modernization that descended upon the Southwest in second half of the 20th Century, continue to carry on the many customs, ceremonies and rituals that evolve around their churches
The story of Ranchos de Taos is an interesting one. The residents used stucco to plaster over the exterior of their church (San Francisco de Asís), but, once they had time to reflect, they found the results to be unsatisfactory. They decided to remove the stucco and replace it with traditional adobe.
I am delighted to be able share this project with you on my web site. Four photographs -- "Sangre de Cristo," Cuarteles, "Capilla de Santa Rita de Cascia," Bernal, "Santa Clara," Santa Clara Pueblo, and "Agua Negra Presbyterian Church," Holman -- are part of the Palace of the Governors, Sante Fe, Photo Archives Collection. And, "San Francisco de Asís III" was recently acquired by the Berman Museum. Also, I am extremely excited to announce that this project was awarded a Luminous Landscape Grant from the Luminous Endowment for Photographers. The Endowment has made a significant contribution to support this project. Without such support, this project would not have been possible.
The colored border is meant to be part of the image. It represents the earth -- the source of the mud used to make adobe bricks. Originally, I would tea stain my silver prints to achieve this result. However, now that I have transitioned to ink jet printing, I have developed my own Photoshop technique to replicate the tea staining process.
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