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"Posh Article"
by Shelly Swope
New Mexico is full of countless exceptionally talented and dedicated artists. Choosing four to profile in this artide was extremely difficult. After much deliberation, four artists were chosen; Bill Bakel; Steve Hanks, Dee Sanchez and Nick Harmon.
On the verge of stardom, Bill Baker's pastel images depict native people from around the world, their vibrant clothing juxtaposed against subdued backgrounds. World renowned watercolor artist Steve Hanks paints what he knows best, sunlight in combination with his own emotions tbrough poignant images of women. Dee Sanchez, whose popularity is growing by the day, uses cutting edge tecbnology and the internet to matket her colorful acrylic landscapes of traditional New Mexico subjects. New to tbe art world, Nick Harmon creates unique abstract images with pigmented Elmer's glue on sheetrock reminiscent of stained glass.
Bill Baker ...
"Indiana Jones of the Art World"
What do these traits have in common?
Talented artist
Daring world explorer
Courageous travel aficionado
Generous humanitarian
Dedicated husband and father.
Only one thing ... Bill Baker.
Bill is a natural adventurer who loves to travel and immerse himself in primitive remote cultures. His love of life is evident by how he lives his life. He has visited over 50 countries and has great stories about his journeys and the people he meets. In fact, his audacious lifestyle and one particularly memorable adventure have earned him the title of "The Indiana Jones of the Art World", quite an accomplishment for a 45 year old husband and father from Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The subject of Bill's art is the people that he visits and helps. He does humanitarianmissionary work for the least reached people all over the globe through Road Runner World Missions. "If they need a well drilled, we will tap them some water," Bill says. He lives with the people he helps and respects their ability to live off the earth. These people eventually become the subjects of Bill's artwork. After living with and helping them, the people become comfortable and trust Bill enough to let him photograph and sketch them going about their normal business. It's through those candid photos and drawings that Bill creates beautiful vivid pastels of the people he lived with.
Bill's fascination with other cultures led him to his most legendary adventure into treacherous jungles, through guerrilla terrorized regions, into mysterious potentially dangerous villages and, in the end, a surreal brush with mortality.
Having always had a fascination for anthropology, Bill happened to read a short article on the elusive Arhuacos tribe in Columbia. There wasn't much information on these people because they live in a perilous area of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta Mountains in northeastern Columbia, distrust strangers and despise photographs.
Bill wanted to see these people, so he and his friend Paul embarked on the adventure of a lifetime - finding the mysterious Arhuacos Indians. They drove to Panama and then caught a flight to Santa Marta in northwestern Columbia. The Arhuacos village was still thirty miles away so the men took a bus to the closest town called Corona. During the trip, Bill heard the locals complaining about the fare increase, from .20 cents to $2.00. While watching the onboard television he learned local radical groups were stopping buses, getting everyone out, robbing them, mowing them down with machine guns, and setting the buses on fire. The fare increased because the town they were headed for was where these radicals lived.
The men were frightened, but luck was on their side and they made it to Corona without incident. With topographical map in hand, the men started on the physically demanding hike to the Arhuacos. They hiked for two days through coffee plantations protected by armed guards, stopping only to sleep with the coffee pickers in huts. At the end of the third day, the men had a strike of good fortune when they came across a local rancher who offered them food and shelter and to guide to the Arhuacos the next day.
They were not welcomed when they arrived at the village. The villagers wanted them gone so much they gave them a guide to help them find the next bigger village, about three hours away. Unfortunately the reception was the same, but Bill was so exhausted he wasn't willing to go onto the next village. He decided to give the people gifts, anything he could out of his backpack, to convince them to let them stay. It worked and they were permitted to stay 10 days.
The men were escorted to a hut and were told not to come out. They were also told that if they took any photographs, even just one, they would be killed. The rancher agreed to come back for them in 10 days. After three days in the hut a village elder came to check on the men. Bill noticed a wound on the man's foot and gestured to help him. With supplies from his travel medical kit he cleaned and dressed the wound. After that the men were gIven a warm reception and allowed to leave the hut.
At the end of the week Bill & Paul were on a hike when they noticed a woman with a small child harvesting bananas. Paul, without thinking, whipped out his camera and took a picture. The woman let out a blood curdling scream and came after the men with a machete. The men ran for the village, grabbed their goods, and kept running. The woman, who was right behind them, told the other villagers what happened and they gave chase. Thankfully, the men outran the villagers, but they still had to get back to Corona and their bus ride to civilization. They found the trail they came in on and decided to wait there, hoping their guide would soon pass by on the way to get them. The men were famished, covered with fleas and ticks, and exhausted when the rancher finally found them. After resting at the ranch for the night, the men set out on the miserable hike to Corona. They hiked in the pouring rain for two days and finally got to Corona in the middle of the night. They tried to flag down a bus, none would stop. They knocked on doors to see if anyone would give them shelter for the night, no one would answer.
Bill and Paul decided to get out of town and find a safe place to sleep. While walking they heard a child calling after them, "Senor, Senor". The child said that his mother wanted to speak to them, to come back. When they got back the mother invited the men to an already prepared feast. She said, "Come in, sit down, I made this for you. You are staying here tonight." She told the men of an Arhuacos Indian that had come to her home earlier that day and said, "Two men, late this night, will be passing by, give them food and shelter", and then left. In the 30 years she had been living in Corona, she had never come in contact with an Arhuacos Indian until then, so she did as he requested. Bill believes the woman saved their lives that night and that it was divine intervention, a guardian angel sent to make sure they made it through this adventure alive. And they did.
Not all Bill's adventures are dangerous. In fact, his favorite destination is Mexico's Copper Canyon where he likes to visit at least three times a year. This area is home to the primitive Tarahumara tribe, quite often the subjects Bill's artwork. Bill shows his brilliant images at the The Michael McCormick Gallery in Taos Article continues on with stories about Steve Hanks, Dee Sanchez and Nick Harmon.
Article written by Shelly Swope
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