Monique Parker
Painting, for me, has become an act of worship. During COVID-19, I started to paint as an extension of my devotional path. I painted daily over the course of seven weeks, producing two dozen paintings of deities and sacred images. My many pilgrimages to India and my love of color, texture, and holy symbolism inspired these works.
My background includes working as a copywriter, an English teacher, a yoga therapist and educator, and a teacher of Vedic chanting.
As a self-taught, late-blooming artist, I soon discovered that the painting process allowed me to transmit my love of the Divine through color, shape, mark-making, composition, and the unpredictability and magic of creating from emptiness. Much like Tibetan prayer flags that release holy prayers, my paintings are a way for me to offer blessings into the world.
Living at 8,100 feet elevation in northern New Mexico the past 19 years amongst diverse local cultures and traditions, and looking out at the rugged landscape and shifting light across Ute and San Antonio mountains, has informed and deepened my perception and sensitivities. My goal is to inspire those who see my work to experience the innate joy and beauty that surrounds us, and to slow down and reconnect with nature as a reflection of our inner world.
My artistic process relies heavily on my intuition and connection to nature and spiritual energy. I work primarily in acrylic because its characteristics align with the southwest in its unforgiving nature when it comes to drying quickly, the vividness of colors, and its willingness to be manipulated into different textures. My approach is to create diverse layers of energy like the elements that shaped this landscape.
See more of Monique’s work or contact her at moniqueparkerstudios.com or NorthernNewMexicoArtists.com. Her work also can be found on Instagram and Facebook and she has an Etsy store.
Mose Rainault
Thirty years ago, Mose, a native of Canada who has been a resident of Taos County now for 36 years, made a piece of furniture at someone’s request. He realized that furniture making was truly the creative and focused activity which could turn his life around. “Somebody left a little 10-inch table saw on the porch one day. I don’t know who it was, and I started making crosses.”
After this table saw was left on his porch, adding further buoyancy to his newfound direction, he moved to Sunshine Valley, then — as now — a rather remote area north of Questa, where he embraced a healthy lifestyle and opened the door to creating one-of-a-kind functional and beautifully crafted tables, shelves, bed frames, and trasteros (storage cabinets).
Rainault previously had a shop or two in Questa displaying his work. Now he only comes out of his home studio for the Questa Studio Tour every August. You are invited to call Mose, and he will bring photographs of his work and be glad to discuss your project with you. Contact him at (575) 224-4326 or jerryrainault1@gmail.com. His web page can be found on NorthernNewMexicoArtists.com.
