In the mid 90's I was living in Taos and shooting a lot for various Conde Nast magazines. Got an email one day from Conde Nast central saying that they were going to revive House & Garden and were looking for interesting homes for the initial issues. The very first thing that popped into my mind after reading this was the amazing home and gallery of friend Ken Nelson. Ken had relocated to Taos from San Cristobal, Mexico and taken up residence in an old adobe schoolhouse in Tres Piedras (about half an hour west of the gorge). We all know people that are incredibly talented. Some are great painters or sculptors, others have a gift for cooking or putting clothes together. Well, Ken had a unique talent for putting spaces together. His sensibility was eclectic & ethnic... but also highly refined. I absolutely LOVED his home, which was known to all the locals as The Old Pink Schoolhouse.
So...I visited Ken a week later and shot some polaroids. Mailed them to Conde Nast and within two weeks received the go-ahead to photograph the place on spec. What this meant was that they would pay me a guaranteed initial fee to shoot and then, if the story actually ran... I would receive full rate. Sounded great to me, so I dove in. Was shooting with a very interesting camera at the time...the Fuji GX-680. It was a medium format camera that could best be described as the marriage of a Hassleblad and a view camera. It shot 120 roll film like a Hassleblad but had swings and tilts on the lens plane like a view camera. My film was Fuji Velvia, the richest and most saturated transparency film available!
Pictured above is the entrance to the schoolhouse. The structure was comprised of three rooms. Ken is seen through the doorway, sitting in the gallery area. The stairs visible in the foreground lead to the two other spaces. Ken lived in the space to the left and kept the other as a guest room. As you can see in the photo, he used everything possible to put the space together. The bench and the mask had come with him from Mexico. The paintings and sculptures were from local artists. He grew the flowers himself and collected the other leaves and branches from the landscape.
The "gallery" was a large rectangular space that had originally been used as the gym in the old schoolhouse. It's large industrial size windows bathed everything in a gorgeous light and the wood lattice work ceiling added a golden glow. What I most loved about the place though were the walls...royal blue meets vibrant yellow! (with a dash of orange and green)! And then there was all of the "stuff". A cacophony of items thrown together in the most unusual, yet beautiful way.
In the above detail from the back wall of the gallery you get a closer look at the eclectic way in which Ken decorated. The red outlined painting in the upper right was an old piece from Mexico, as were the animal heads. Just about everything else came from local artists, including the table and the cross on the wall. Love the big rock on the floor!
The table was a decoupage piece that Ken created from a junk yard find. All of the imagery came from old magazines and he painted the detail work on the backs of the chairs. I loved it and bought it from him after finishing the shoot.
Pictured above is the work table in Ken's kitchen. The stove, fridge and counter were against the wall to the right. The table where he ate can be seen through the space on the left.
The detail shot was an assemblage that Ken created just above the the wall vent for his wood stove (which was the only source of heat in the winter). He used gold leaf on the wall to create the sun, then fashioned a cross out of two sticks.
Ken had a backyard area as well that he enclosed with a large wall made out of stacked fire wood. He would drive out into the wilderness, find a dead tree and then cut it up with a chain saw. He had the sculptures of a local artist on the grounds as well. I made this shot of one them shortly after sunset.
The photographs never ended up running in the magazine, primarily because a number of the paintings (by a frenchman named Pascal) were a bit too provocative. Am so happy I have this document of the place however because it was eventually sold (to a photographer from Dallas!) and Ken moved on. A testament to the Buddhist mantra that nothing lasts.
16 Comments
Aug 15, 2023, 8:33:24 AM
Kent Barker - Sorry for the delay in this comment. Yes...Ken's place was really remarkable. I loved visiting him and always left inspired. Drove by the building a week ago. Looked like someone was there, but could not make out who or what.
Aug 15, 2023, 8:30:09 AM
Kent Barker - Thank you for this wonderful message. Ken had told me a wool business occupied the building prior to his time there, but I did not know more than that. Love that you were in the Neimans Christmas catalogue. As a Dallas based photographer, I worked for them many times over the years.
Aug 15, 2023, 7:46:46 AM
Jan Davis - Along the timeline of this remarkable building's transformations and chameleon changes, it was briefly home to our business, Aspen Mountain Wool Company, which our Remewable Sweater Kit was featured in the 1987 Nieman Marcus Christmas Book. The Gallery, was not as stunning as what Ken created. In our time the main gallery was the workhorse of a vintage wool carding and spinning machine that catered to the artisan wool weaving business of the region. What a beautiful capture you did of this magical space.
May 19, 2023, 6:58:16 PM
Kevin Beltz - I really enjoyed the few times I stopped in there. An amazing place inside and out, Ken has a gift for putting a place together.
Sep 1, 2022, 3:54:36 PM
Kent Barker - Taylor...the building was sold to a Dallas photographer some years ago. He lived in it for a while, but it sits empty most of the time now. Ken stayed in Taos for a few years after that, living in various places and then moved out of state to be near his brother.
Sep 1, 2022, 3:21:22 PM
Taylor Drob - Been so intrigued by this building and it’s story since about a year ago! Passed it on the way to Aspen, CO and can’t help but wonder if the gallery is still open/accessible for guests? This would be an amazing place to explore.
Apr 16, 2020, 11:25:32 AM
Kent Barker - Christian,
Yes...Ken's dogs were quite intimidating! They did chill out a bit as time worn on because he realized they were keeping people from stopping. And I agree with you wholeheartedly, his space was absolutely remarkable. I LOVED visiting him because I always left inspired. Call Barry Norris in Taos to get his contact info. Barry is a long time friend and has kept up with him. (575) 737-0779
Kent
Apr 15, 2020, 7:47:02 PM
Christian Griffith - I visited the pink school house multiple times and bought a couple amazing pieces there from Ken. i have visited a lot of famous buildings in the world and Kens treatment of that space made it one of the most special i have ever seen in my life.. the pack of mexican dogs he was breeding that circled the place was pretty intimidating.. my first trip i almost didn’t get out of the car.. do you know how to reach Ken? he had a couple of pieces that i would still love to buy!
Apr 12, 2020, 2:08:00 PM
Kent Barker - Lauren,
From what little I have seen of the place, I think a follow up series would be disappointing. Ken was an absolute master of the environment and created an absolutely magical place. The current owner does not go there much anymore and mostly stores motorcycles there.
Apr 12, 2020, 2:00:51 PM
Kent Barker - Kat...yes, the building was sold and Ken moved on. He now lives near his brother in another state and the building was purchased by a former photographer from Dallas.
Apr 12, 2020, 9:50:39 AM
Lauren Fallis - I have been so curious about this building and last summer when I drove by there was a large yellow RV and a small car outside which I imagine belong to o your friend. I would be so interested to know what it has transformed into based of your friend taking residence in it. Any thoughts of doing another photos series?
Feb 2, 2020, 9:46:27 PM
Kent Barker - Richard...the schoolhouse has been owned by a photographer friend of mine for many years. He lived in it for a while but then got into a relationship. The girlfriend was not so excited by life in Tres Piedras, so they now spend most of their time in Dallas.
Feb 2, 2020, 1:48:02 PM
Richard R Barron - When my wife and I passed through in October 2019, the Schoolhouse appeared to be unoccupied. Do you have any idea what might become of it?
Aug 31, 2018, 8:20:00 AM
Kat Morgenstern - Fabulous pics that bring back memories. I visited this place when I lived in Taos in the early 90s and was absolutely enthralled by the magic of this very special place, the collages, the euphorbias and the dogs. It had an air of magic about it. I just found the business card I picked up on that visit and felt compelled to see if it was still operating. It seems not. Change is the only constant. I cherish my memories and very much appreciate your photo essay to help bring them back to life.
Aug 3, 2018, 10:30:59 PM
Stacey A Johnson - Wow! Just used Google to look at the pic I took of it today to search for info and your site came up. It is such a cool place! Do you know what it is used for now? It didn't look like anyone lives there, but the front door was decorated with a decoupage of faces.
Aug 17, 2017, 8:39:47 PM
Mark A Dierker - I love this! I think we have similar sensibilities as documentary photographers. I've been exploring the San Luis Valley in CO and NM since the mid-80s. I've seen the Old Pink Schoolhouse dozens of times and always wondered what was inside. At times it has looked abandoned and at others I'll see a couple cars pulled up or people outside. I've gotten mixed reactions from just going up to a residence and knocking on the door to ask what was inside so I never did with that place. Makes you wonder how much of what Ken created was left intact when he moved on!
Peace!