Hotel La Fonda. Taos, 1950s
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In 1898, two young artists recently returned from studying in Paris, were on a sketching trip from Denver to Northern Mexico when one of the wheels on their horse-drawn carriage broke and left them stranded.
Ernest Blumenschein embarked on a twenty-mile trek to Taos, then a remote frontier town, with the broken wheel, while his friend Bert G. Philips kept an eye on their belongings.
The accident was fortuitous because the delay gave the two young men time to become captivated with the spectacular landscape and remarkable cultures of the Taos Valley.
They founded the Taos Society of Artists and spread the word about the incredible beauty and light in this mountain community located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and situated at an altitude of approximately 7,200 ft.
Other artists came to see for themselves and either stayed permanently or visited often.
Taos became known as the Art Center of the Southwest.
A hotel was established on the site of the current La Fonda De Taos as early as 1820 and offered respite to many weary travelers.
The hotel and bar became a gathering place for Blumenschein and Philips and other artists in the first half of the 20th century and these artistic pioneers regularly met there and hung their artwork for sale in the hotel lobby.
This tradition of selling the works of local artists continues at the hotel and today Taos is known for its vibrant arts community and also as a hub for skiing and hiking.
For decades, La Fonda de Taos has been a gathering place for local, national, and international artists as well as writers and filmmakers. Such celebrities include Georgia O’Keefe, Tennessee Williams, Robert DeNiro, Dennis Weaver, Dennis Hopper, Peter Fonda, Julia Roberts, Rock Hudson and numerous others, according to the hotel’s website.
Each order includes a print of the interior menu.
All printed in USA.
