Headline, May22, 2013

'''TRUTH OR CONSEQUENC​ES'''

Many places seek to enhance themselves with art, but few are so compellingly kooky as  -Truth or Consequences. This desert town of hot springs and 1950s era billboards, on the banks of Rio Grande 150 miles south of Albuquerque, is home to a growing community of artists and eco-seekers all following   -to some degree-   the Ur-example of the original New Mexico artist-settler Georgia O'keefe.

Being an artist here, says art elder and celebrated painter Delmas Howe, is akin to living in the Galapagos. ''It allow us to develop our own vision.'' But he adds,'' it's a vision that doesn't necessarily put us in the mainstream.'' Evidently -Truth or Consequences- has never been mainstream.

To the Spanish it was Las Palomas del Ojo Caliente   -Doves of the Hot Springs-  and an Apache stronghold to be avoided; in the late 19th century it was known as Geronimo's hometown, and by the early 20th as the original Las Vegas  - a place of speakeasies for men working on Elephant Butte Dam.

To Ralph Edwards, the radio and TV host, it was the town that took up the offer: he would do his program from the first town that renamed itself after the show. Hot Springs took on the new name, and in exchange, Edwards came to the town's annual fiesta, bringing with him Hollywood's starlets, including Jayne Mansfield and, on one occasion, an Elephant.

''He came until they had to prop him up in the car,'' recalls Howe. But all in all, Truth or Consequences is a good place to focus, says cartoonist Bret Berman, owner of one of the town's few cappuccino machines, located in a bank most likely built by the uncle of Paris Hilton's great-grandfather Conrad Hilton. ''You have to learn to amuse yourself here,'' he offers.''It's an hours drive to somewhere happening   -and Las Cruces isn't exactly happening.''

But there's much to do than watch turkey buzzards play overhead. You can watch the Mexican Band at Pine Knot, visit ghost towns, and browse for art in dozen galleries. and still have time to fantasize. ''The whole Twilight Zone thing keeps us inspired,'' says Painter Suzan Koenik, who move from New York.

Truth or Consequences may not have the institution backed heft of Marfa, Texas, home to the Chinati and Donald Judd foundations, but it is still serious about self-expression. The artist community has fought off many ordinances to outlaw the display of some aspects of art. 

At the other extreme is Q, a self-styled artist-magician who says  -cosmically speaking-  I receive information here I can't get anywhere else on the globe.''

In Truth or Consequences, a town on the edge in almost every aspect, that's probably true!  Best wishes to The Latest Influential Art Enclave!!

With respectful dedication to All the Students of America. See you all on !WOW! : One & Only.

Good Night & God Bless!

SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless