Paula Baxter was on the show today and she's very interesting, as most of our guests are.  All of our guests have a similar thread of the arts running through their lives in some form or fashion. In her case, it was 1986 when she was in Santa Fe and bought a piece at Ortega's on the Plaza. It was like an epiphany for Paula. She needed to be more aware of this material. 

Paula has worked as the head curator of art and architecture for the New York Public Library, she worked at MoMA, and she was a humanities professor.  She held these significant positions, but at the end of the day had always wanted to be a writer. I think that's what her gift is to the world. 

She's done these wonderful books on Native American jewelry. Her most recent book "Navajo and Pueblo Jewelry Design: 1870–1945," is a really great book. In fact, it's been at my bedside for a long time because the material is wonderful, the photos are beautiful, and the timeline she inserted is very helpful. The amazing photographs were taken by her husband, Barry Katzen. 

So I think this podcast is one that follows the journey of somebody's life, you know, and how they get to where they get and why they're on planet Earth. Palua is clearly here to spread the word and to educate. To tell people that Native American jewelry is such an important art form. It is a form of art that is very close to my heart and it's a privilege that I can wear and appreciate every single day.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the podcast. I know I did. Art Dealer Diaries Podcast episode 271 with Paula A. Baxter.

I wanted to re-air John Morris's podcast. I had him on episode 11 back in 2018. John recently passed and was such an interesting human being and I'm so happy that he took the time during Indian Market in 2018 to come talk to me about his life. 

You know, John was a guy who was intimately involved in the 1969 Woodstock show. He booked all the people he worked with, all the acts. You know, he was if you look at the Woodstock movie. He was a unique man who had multiple interests and never took himself too seriously. He had all these interesting people like Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison or Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, all of these musicians he knew and worked with. 

I knew him for 15 years before he even discussed the Woodstock. The only reason he did is that I saw the movie and I saw him on the TV. His real gift to our culture and the Native American world was that he loved Native American material and tribal art and he, along with Kim Martindale, promoted shows.

They promoted different shows that were the objects of art shows, both in San Francisco as well as in Santa Fe. ohn did one in Seattle as well. So, you know, it's sad when you lose somebody of his magnitude, but I wanted to replay his podcast so we could all bask in the wonderful beauty of John Morris.

I had a wonderful podcast today with William Haskell. We had done a podcast together two years ago in the middle of the pandemic, but it was really nice to actually spend time with him in person. 

Instead of focusing on how got to where he is today (since that story was told in epi. 129), I wanted to find out about his new show that he's doing for us. He's going to have 15+ paintings in a one-man show this coming January. We delve into not only the show and the paintings but at the more technical aspects of his painting process. It was a very introspective podcast and it was amazing to hear him speak on his process and how he solves the problems that he encounters at the easel. We also go into AI-generated art and discuss the ramifications artists are going to face down the road. 

So that's the kind of podcast it is and the kind I enjoy doing the most.  We get to have a nice back-and-forth and explore what's happening in his world and the world of art as a whole. It was a really fun podcast and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Art Dealer Diaries episode 269 with fine artist William Haskell.

Visit Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery in Tucson, AZ for a show and sale of new works by William Haskell.  Opening night is Friday, January 12, 2024, from 5 - 7 pm, (artist in attendance).