Folk Art & Fantasy in the Land of Enchantment

On more than one occasion, I have used this platform to ponder on the differences between what is considered art and what is deemed craft.  Frankly, I'm not even sure that I know what separates folk art from fine art.  I mean, is it training or merely a matter of retrospection?  Exactly how many decades separate Uncle Max's matchstick picture frame (made during that stint in the state pen) from authentic American folk art?  And is it simply a matter of years before my Blue Bunny Baby riding a Dream-Sized Dream Pet transitions from "Crazy Crafty" critter to museum-worthy exhibit?

What me, arty?

The crown jewel of Santa Fe, New Mexico's Museum Hill is the Museum of International Folk Art.  The best part of the collection is the Girard Wing, the result of one man's lifelong infatuation with world art.  After our visit to the museum, I thought I was beginning to get a better handle on the answers to all of my nagging questions.

MUSEUM OF INTERNATIONAL FOLK ART

Folk art is dioramas.

Folk art is fully-hinged conjoined twins.

Folk art is castles.

Folk art is dolls (with pencil-thin mustasches that would make William Powell and Dali green with envy).

Folk art is dress-up.

The folk art museum was a revelatory experience.  Moving on almost immediately to Tinkertown, however, I found myself squarely back at square one.  Sure there were dolls and dioramas, but the folk art fantasy that is Tinkertown is so much more wonderfully folksy! 

TINKERTOWN MUSEUM

Tinkertown Museum (est. 1962) - Sandia Park, NM

Tinkertown has to be one of the best roadside, one-man, trash castle, folk art installations in all of central New Mexico.  Okay, maybe the world.  A breathtaking assemblage of desert debris, animated dioramas, vintage arcade novelties, hand-carved figurines, coin-operated vignettes, famed watercraft, and legitimate antiques, Tinkertown is a friendly "up yours" to the precious nature of curated museum collections.  There is so much to see that Tinkertown is borderline stimulation overload, but the bevy of bottle-glass walls and hand-painted signs keeps everything nice and orderly.

I've always been a fan of bad puns and dad jokes but
the older I get it, the deeper my affection grows. 

Fortunately, admission - even for a group of four  - was not cost prohibitive (less than $10 total, if memory serves).

I am a sucker for signs and bottle walls!!!

And he is a sucker for automated puppet bands!

The real heart of Tinkertown is its 60-foot-long, old west diorama.  At regular intervals, guests can push a button and parts of the diorama spring to life with automation!

The sets are unbelievably detailed, from the matte-painting backdrops to the menagerie of animal characters.

The carved figures are incredibly evocative.

Shadow boxes filled with odds and ends round out the dingbat collections.

The wild west diorama is a sight to behold but the state's "Largest Miniature Circus" was my favorite oxymoron in the joint!

The miniature circus diorama has everything - three rings, a circus wagon,
trapeze artists - but you will always find Mr. Tiny at the sideshow!

The whole experience was a "living art gallery," just like the Tattoed Lady!

"Snow White said, 'Send the prince back home!  I'm with the King!'"

Now normally, I loathe inspirational quotations; just because you write something down or publish a meme doesn't mean that you've captured the wisdom of the ages.  I can see that the founder of Tinkertown and I are obviously simpatico, as I was charmed by nearly every bit of hand-painted wisdom scattered throughout the museum grounds.

"Live life as the pursuit of happiness."

"Yet there are souless[sic] men who would destroy what time and man will never build again."
This one broke my heart.

"I get up every morning both determined to change the world and to have one hell
of a good time.  Sometimes this makes planning the day difficult." - E.B. White
Genius!

It probably sounds corny, but I am so glad to have taken this road trip with my nephew.  If he's anything like his uncle, he will have essentially zero recall of his life as a five-year-old boy.  Nevertheless, I know he will be a better, more interesting person for this exposure to the sane-yet-subversive world of weird roadside attractions and fantastic folk art.  I will be a better person for having him in my life!

This picture brings me so much joy! 

So, do you know what the difference is between crazy crafts, fine art, and folk art?  Wherever it lies, I know we'll never get bored on our hunt for the answer!  I'm just hoping that fine or folky, we're allowed to watch TV while we're creating our art!

"Toy Tinkers" (1949)

Museum of International Folk Art
706 Camino Lejo
Santa Fe, NM
(505)476-1200

internationalfolkart.org


Tinkertown Museum
121 Sandia Crest Rd
Sandia Park, NM
(505)281-5233

tinkertown.com


Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Just SLIDE Over Here and Give Me a Moment!

Yesterday we had the wonderful opportunity to go out to Palm Springs for a little taste of Palm Srings Modernism Week.  We woke early and motored out to the Annenberg Theater at the Palm Springs Art Museum for a special slideshow presentation by Charles Phoenix.

Mr. Tiny & Mary around the book stalls.
We were there as audience members and active participants.  I've always been told that I have a great face
for radio and I was afraid that I would scare people off,  but I think we actually drew a pretty good crowd.
Okay, okay...Mary and the books didn't hurt either.

The beach ball (one of many) was representative of the show's theme,
"Pools, Patios, & Barbecues" - a celebration of American backyard culture
and an extension of the larger museum exhibit entitled "Backyard Oasis."

Speaking of beach balls, they were flying before the show!

The star of the show, Charles Phoenix, King of Kodachrome,
Ambassador of Americana, Keeper of the Kitsch, Retro Slideshow Showman
Extraordinaire,and dare I say, connoisseur of wacky tacky, standing in front 
of the first slide of the series - a kid caught mid-air as he dives into his 
backyard swimming pool from one of those great, old, springy, diving boards
 that have been banished from existence.

Each image in the show was thoughtfully culled from a collection of over
70,000 slides.  The shrieks of delight from the audience that accompanied
the advance of every frame cemented the fact that it was going to be a
crowd-pleasing show.  There were so many slides that I told myself that I was
going to remember and use as inspiration for design projects that, unfortunately,
have already been lost to age and ADD.  One that really stuck with
me, however, was a slide of people at a backyard luau laying on their stomachs
in a ring around a watermelon spiked with booze and straws.  Each person
claimed a straw and drank from the melon!  I loved it not just for the sheer genius and
novelty of the idea, but also because it showed a group of people actually having fun
at a party.  I think we get caught up in being so sophisticated and taking ourselves so
seriously that we forget to drop the facade and enjoy the party!

Mary, Charles, and Mr. Tiny.
What a colorful bunch of bananas!
Dig Mary's rattan, turtle, basket purse.

After the show, we adjourned to King's Highway
at the Ace Hotel for lunch.

This is what happens when you hand over
camera duties to someone else.

David & Susan, the reigning King & Queen of 3D! 

You can see the 3D camera that David holds has a viewer

attached that really makes the images come to life!

Cool!  Cool!  Cool!

The only way we were able to get a group shot was in the mirror.
It's a modernist take on the last supper.

No trip to the desert is complete without a trip to the date farm.
But which way do we go?

Overall, it was a most marvelous kind of day in our local desert.  If you have never seen a Charles Phoenix retro slideshow or if you are not yet a fan, do yourself a favor and get with it!!!  His surname is no accident, like a phoenix from the ashes, he resurrects not just long-forgotten images, but a pastime once doomed to obsolescence, and turns them into performance art.  His shows are delightful and as a showman, he takes the notion of a "boring family slideshow" and turns it on its ear!  Make a point of signing up for the "Slide of the Week" emails at charlesphoenix.com where you can also see a list of upcoming shows, purchase books, and view videos of his test kitchen and appearances on Martha Stewart and Conan O'Brien.  Also, be sure to like Charles Phoenix on Facebook.  What are you waiting for?


Cheers!

Mr. Tiny