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This Mother鈥檚 Day weekend, Placitas hosts its 29th annual studio tour. Visitors have the chance to experience work by 62 Placitas-based artists at 48 studio locations.

Nancy Holley, who has been the president of the Placitas Studio Tour for 10 years running, said the beauty of Placitas鈥� rolling landscapes, with their expansive views of the Sandia and Jemez mountains, is almost as much of a draw as the art itself.

鈥淧eople who have never been to Placitas, or even if they have been here before, they can鈥檛 get over the beauty of this area,鈥� Holley said. 鈥淎t every turn is a a vista you can take in. 鈥� And that鈥檚 why so many artists live here. It鈥檚 because of the light, the colors, the movement of the wind.鈥�

The artists on the tour work in a wide array of media, from painting to photography to jewelry and sculpture.

鈥淲e鈥檝e always established that we鈥檙e not a juried tour, because you鈥檝e got to have something for everybody,鈥� Holley said.

In years past, the tour took place over two days, but a third day was added this year.

鈥淲e asked the artists if they would consider expanding the tour to three days, not two, because the No. 1 complaint we got from our visitors was that there were so many studios, they couldn鈥檛 see it all. And the No. 1 complaint we got from the artists was that they couldn鈥檛 see it all,鈥� Holley said. 鈥溾�� Everybody said yes. So, now, we are Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and the studios are open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. all three days.鈥�

Not sure where to start? Check out the preview exhibition at the Placitas Community Library, where a representative work by each participating artist will be on view. Visitors may pick up maps there, as well.

鈥淲e have people coming from all over the country for this (studio tour) specifically, because they either have a connection with one of the artists, or they just want to come and see because they鈥檝e heard about it. 鈥� So, we get people from everywhere,鈥� Holley said.

A few of the artists on this year鈥檚 tour were part of the original group who showed in the first tour 29 years ago, Holley said, including Lisa Chernoff, who makes colorful fused-glass sculptures, and Peaches Malmaud, who hand-prints nature-themed designs onto clothing.

鈥淭hen, Logan Ortwerth 鈥� who鈥檚 done all of our social media videos, is the youngest of all of us up here. She鈥檚 in her 20s,鈥� Holley said. 鈥淪he goes out and finds rocks and sand, then grinds that down into pigments to make the paint that she uses.鈥�

Holley moved to Florida during the 2008 financial crash with her husband, Jim Holley, who makes welded steel sculptures. For a while, they lived in Weeki Wachee, near a tourist attraction featuring live mermaid shows, before returning to New Mexico in 2013.

鈥淲e never looked back. We just love it here,鈥� Holley said. 鈥淲e bought an old home that had been homesteaded in 1963 and, bless its heart, it was a disaster. That鈥檚 the nicest way to put it. It鈥檚 not the typical Placitas home, by any stretch of the imagination鈥� It had green shag carpet held down by duct tape.鈥�

鈥淲hat is really fun is that a lot of our returnees come to see Jim鈥檚 steel sculptures, and the other two artists who we鈥檒l have with us here, but they also want to come and see what we鈥檝e done with the house 鈥� because it鈥檚 totally different,鈥� Holley said.

The 62 participating artists represent 鈥渏ust a smidgen鈥� of the artists who live in Placitas, Holley said. She thinks what attracts so many artists to the area, besides its natural beauty, is how friendly and welcoming the other artists are.

鈥淓verybody鈥檚 always got smiles, they鈥檙e so helpful and they鈥檒l refer you to other artists. 鈥� We all work together, and that鈥檚 the beauty of it,鈥� Holley said.

Logan Royce Beitmen is an arts writer for the sa国际传媒官网网页入口. He covers visual art, music, fashion, theater and more. Reach him at lbeitmen@abqjournal.com or on Instagram at .