Meet the Districts
Meet the Pilot Arts and Cultural Districts
These New Mexico towns and cities personify the ideal that Arts and Cultural Districts strive to represent. Each community is rich in its own unique history and artistic expression. Las Vegas and Silver city were the first Districts, authorized as Pilot communities in January, 2008. Taos, Los Alamos, Raton and the Albuquerque Downtown Action Team (DAT) have since joined the ranks of Arts and Cultural Districts.
Las Vegas
With over 900 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, the streets of Las Vegas serve as a living museum. The town’s nearly 15,000 residents live and work among adobe buildings created during territorial times, Victorian structures that arrived with the railroad and California Mission styles that invoke visions of San Francisco. The unusual architectural profile of the community is a product of its varied roots. In 1835, the last land grant given to Spanish settlers by the Mexican government led to the establishment of Nuestra Senora de los Dolores de Las Vegas Grandes, later shortened to Las Vegas. As one of the largest towns on the Santa Fe Trail, Las Vegas quadrupled in size from 1860-1880. With the arrival of the railroad in 1879, a whole new influx of culture reached the city. European immigrants joined the unique mix of Native peoples, Spanish and Mexican families. When you add in the youthful influence from students attending New Mexico Highlands University, you have the ideal ingredients for artistic exploration.
Film makers have found the beauty and heritage of Las Vegas an inviting backdrop for movies like “Easy Rider” and “Red Dawn.” Most recently, the Award winning Coen Brothers found their artistic match in Las Vegas. Their Oscar Award Winning Best Picture “No Country for Old Men” prominently featured the interior and exterior of the Plaza Hotel, Old Town plaza, and the historic Douglas Avenue District.
For a detailed look at the future of Las Vegas, click here to see their Arts and Cultural District Cultural Plan.
Silver City
For a town of 11,000 residents to be home to nearly 40 galleries and artistic outlets speaks to Silver City’s artistic evolution. Founded in 1870 as a mining town, the rough and tumble history of the city includes Apache raids, the thieving ways of Butch Cassidy, and the boyhood days of Billy the Kid. As the bottom fell out of the silver market, the town turned to ranching and copper mining to stay alive.
Today’s Silver City is home to one of the most renowned artistic scenes in the Southwest. Painters, weavers, glass blowers, jewelry makers and a whole host of other artisans have found a home here. The city is also proud of their performing arts, including the Cowboy Poetry and Music Festival and the Silver City Blues Festival. The renovated historic Silco Theater (built in 1923) provides performing artists a stage for their works. Additionally, film festivals, concerts, art fairs, and gallery showings dot the Silver City social calendar.
For a detailed look at the future of Silver City, click here to see their Arts and Cultural District Cultural Plan.
Taos
With its natural beauty and confluence of cultures, Taos has long been a destination for artists, writers and culture driven economy. Going back nearly 1,000 years, Native artists from local pueblos produced pottery, and later fiber arts. The arrival of the Spanish in the mid 1500’s led to uneasy and often violent relations. The 1700’s saw trade with the French open up the area to new influences, and the area become home to rugged “Mountain Men.” This combination of Native, Spanish and Anglo cultures fueled the areas unique cultural offerings.
In 1898, European trained artists Bert G. Phillips and Ernest L. Blumenschein stopped to have a wagon wheel fixed in Taos, and were compelled to make it their home. They spread word of the enchanting beauty to their fellow artists who flocked from as far away as New York and Paris to experience Taos.
In the early part of the 20th Century, Mabel Dodge Luhan and Millicent Rogers arrived, and became central figures in attracting influential friends and celebrities to Taos. Renowned figures like Ansel Adams, D.H. Lawrence and Georgia O'Keefe were instrumental in cementing Taos’ reputation as an artist’s haven. In the 1960’s, Dennis Hopper and like minded artistic friends called the area home, exposing the area to hippie vibes and commune living.
Today, Taos is home to renowned artistic destinations like the Fechin House, the Blumenschein Museum and the Harwood Museum. The District includes 65 galleries and is centered in the 200-plus year old historic Plaza. The area also features incredible natural attractions, like the world famous Taos Ski Valley, and the Taos Gorge, site of the second highest suspension bridge in the US.
For a detailed look at the future of Taos, click here to see their resource team reports.
Los Alamos
Think of Los Alamos not just as an Arts and Cultural District, but as a creative culture district. Creativity takes many forms, and Los Alamos is renowned for being home to the world’s most creative scientific minds. In 1942, in the midst of World War II, the U.S. Government was looking for the perfect spot to put its top-secret weapons development program, the Manhattan Project. So, in 1943, thousands of scientists and workers arrived to develop the world’s first atomic weapon. In the Cold War era, Los Alamos remained at the forefront of weapons technology. But, it was also diversifying into all branches of scientific research, leading the way in computer development, environmental efforts, and medical breakthroughs. In 1981, LASL become Los Alamos National Labs, and is today home to 36 square miles of research and testing facilities.
The Fuller Lodge stands as a perfect example of the combination of past and present. Once used as a wartime guest quarters and mess hall, it is now the community’s center of artistic activity. The Bradbury Science Museum is an outstanding example of the efforts of Los Alamos’ creative minds, capturing the past and present scientific achievements of the area.
Raton
The growth of Raton as a railroad and mining town is reflected in its unique architectural heritage. A walking tour covering five blocks of downtown Belen is the perfect way to take in the structures that were built between the mid-1880’s through to the early 1900’s. The tour includes the historic Shuler Theater, a gem that has stood on 2nd St. since 1915, the Old Pass Gallery (built in 1910 as the Wells Fargo Building), and the beautiful Victorian buildings of historic First St.
The downtown Arts and Cultural District is seeking to highlight the impressive number of venues and activities in the area, striving to make Raton “Northeastern New Mexico’s Center for the Arts.” In addition to many galleries and museums, the town also boasts a youth theater, dance school and a performing arts school.
Albuquerque (Downtown Action Team)
Albuquerque is unique among Route 66 cities in that it is the only location in the U.S. where the old and new alignments of the road intersect. Although some of the historic flavor of those days remains, there is a renewed interest in preservation and restoration of the artistic neon signs that once lit the way through town.
Albuquerque is New Mexico’s largest city and has always been a gathering place for an eclectic array of artists. Events like Mariachi Spectacular, Summerfest, GO! Downtown Arts Festival draw over 200,000 people downtown each year. Coupled with the historic KiMo Theater, the Albuquerque Convention Center and a wealth of performances spaces, Albuquerque is the states leading live performance destination.
For a detailed look at the future of Downtown Albuquerque, click here to see their resource team reports.