Seeing New Mexico: Pueblos

by Tim May

This is the first of several photo essays focusing on trips to New Mexico I have taken in the past few years. The pueblos of New Mexico are unique Native American towns centered around a church or mission. During my trips to New Mexico I visited several pueblos. Most of them do not allow picture taking which I completely respected and honored. Some of them allowed pictures to be taken either with permission (Laguna) or by buying a photo permit (Taos and Acoma). Even with permits there were restrictions and during Festivals no camera ... (more)

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Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico
This is a view of a part of the pueblo as seen from Interstate 40. The white...

Adobe Wall
The church sits on a hill and the courtyard is surrounded by the wall in the...

Copper?
I wonder if the green stain on the walls below the bells is because of...

Flow
One of the wonders of this style of building is the way that the roundness of...

Entrance
The main entrance to the grounds of the church are through a door way...

In Service
The churches at all the pueblos I visited were still vital and active centers...

Power and Glory
The church dominates the hill and the pueblo as I imagine it has a...

Courtyard
I have made this image black and white to show the starkness and forms of the...

Centuries
Through the opening in the wall you can see a smaller cross. For me,...

Sculpture
The sides of the building are not straight, but rather they flow and...

Paint
The church is mostly painted white. A part of the niche is in a contrasting...

Calvary
I don't know about the motif used on this building of the stepping...

Weathered
My first response to this cross was that it should be repaired or...

Lines and Angles
This is a close-up of the back of the church. It is one of the few...

"Let he who is without sin..."
I almost called this image - generations - because it evokes the newer...

Looking Out
This image was taked from the steps in front of the church. The brown...

Lesser
This is a detailed shot of the cross at the top of the entrance way.

Angled Flow
When I was in high school geometry I remember discovering the curve...

Context
I have come to love this image the more I look at it. It places the...

Acoma Sky City
Acoma Pueblo sits on the top of a mesa. It is the oldest continually...

Stone Stopper
The top of the mesa is open to the weather. The building show the wear...

Aging Stairs
The top of the mesa is not flat and the houses, which are built of the same...

San Esteban del Rey Mission Bell Tower
The church was build in 1640. Our tour guide gave us a detailed...

Bell
Notice the detail in the interior roof of the bell tower.

Humanity
The houses are all of the adobe brown color, but the people who use them have...

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article published 1/29/2004

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Please add more pictures for viewing of Acoma,and other surronding tribes,the information is very important to viewers,

Patricia
— Patricia leach, April 15, 2007

Tim...wonderful gallery!!!
Tim, What a wonderful feeling of isolation....sky...mortar.....a sense of heat!!!
— Linda Z, February 3, 2004

Looking out
The cross in the foreground is exactly aligned with the door opening. Not only does it provide a nice geometric composition, but it also suggests the Spirit guards this household.
— Carol, January 30, 2004

Drawing the Line
Funny how the sign on the ladder is so out of place here and yet so very necessary. The doors are modern, I notice, another sign of more modern life that must live inside. As a tourist we want everybody to still live the same way...in the past.
— Carol, January 30, 2004

Centuries
I love this shot. The cross shining through the opening suggesting that or faith endures all. He is with us always!
— Carol, January 30, 2004

thanks for sharing; your shots are very beautiful. ciao
— Paolo Motta, January 30, 2004

What a beautiful set of pictures, I like the peace and quiet they seem to evoke. I also really like the shots with the bits of color against the adobe.
— monique jansen, January 30, 2004

Tripod
All of the images from all of the pueblos were photographed hand held. Since I shoot digital I have a lot, I mean a lot, of shots that didn't work.
— Tim May, January 30, 2004

Restrictions at Acoma Sky City
I recently drove to Acoma to photograph but when I got to a scenic overlook a couple of miles from the mesa I saw a sign that said tripods and monopods were prohibited. How did you photograph there without the aid of a tripod?
— Tom Schwab, January 30, 2004

Thanks for the reminder
Your beautifully clear photos captured the special details that make spending time in New Mexico so rewarding. I don't take many photos, so it was wonderful to see again places I have been, but where the memory was faded.
— Pam McMickin, January 29, 2004

A Southwestern Feast
Your images urge me to pick up my own camera and head to the pueblos. There are many evocative photographs here -- "Culture" and "Different Flower" strike home with incongruity. "Romeros", "Shops", and "Essence" are memorable because of how they use color to express ideas. "Kiva Stairs", "Worn", and "Peace" are elegantly composed, built around rhythm and pattern. Even "Puppy" is memorable because of the vantage point you selected. You managed to overcome many challenges here to bring a sensitive and expressive insight to these Native American communities.
— Phil Douglis, January 29, 2004