HOTEL CASA SANTO DOMINGO

Saturday night was the opening / apertura of my solo exhibition, HUIPILES / HOMENAJES at the Hotel Casa Santo Domingo, the culmination of a dream, a vision, I have carried for 20 years. On a trip to visit my dear friend Dita, who is no longer with us, I was here in this very room in the early nineties. The day we chose to visit happened to be the orchid festival, and from the entry through the entire grounds, the pathways were decorated with petals, palm fronds,  blossoming branches and every kind of tropical flower. (before iPhones and Facebook, so no photos of that luscious floor)
Passing by the reception desk, which used to be on the right, we were greeted on the left with lush green gardens, a softly gurgling fountain, and screeching red, blue and yellow macaws. 

Macaws that live in the gardens in the hotel.

Fountain and gardens outside the window of the artist's sala.

Rose petals and candles, such tranquility!

The Artist's Sala at Santo Domingo

Sunlight in the sala.

I remember a tranquil, spiritual energy about the entire place, an ancient stillness that was profoundly familiar. It seemed to rely on nature and all the elements, to fulfill its reason for being. The way the sun streamed into the windows and laid across the tile floors, the breezes that danced the ferns in the garden, the blooms that created patterns of shadow on the stone walls. That captivated and inspired me to believe that yes, I would really love to return one day with my work. 

At the time, I was not making contemporary huipils. I was not, in fact, making any kind of art that would be easy to travel with. Large paintings do not make for ease of shipment. Besides, I had never at that time, traveled to another country with my work. But I tucked that gallery space into my heart, and the next time I visited there, I had he courage to go talk to the director, Ana Claudia. That was in 2006. From that day on, I began sending her information about the shows I was having. 

The timing was right only when I visited last year and the huipils were ready to travel here. What wonderful memories this trip holds, and now I suppose the story about the opening will have to wait until the next post. Thanks for sharing the journey with me.