Dudley Huppler: Drawings Book

Eli is a friend of mine. In this book he tells a gossipy story about the place I have called home for nearly 30 years. Told in a series of short chapters with titles such as, "A Memorable Night at Claude's Bar" and "Indians Forever" his stories deal with the very early days of the Santa Fe art colony and end about the time I moved to Santa Fe in the early 80's. It was a special treat to read about these people, many of whom I met later in their lives, and the places, such as Canyon Road, which have been forever changed by the growth of the city. A growth which had begun in earnest by the time I arrived in 1981.

Eli is an agnostic humanist if ever there was one, which allows him to take hard and sometimes cruel looks into the failings of others. His socialist leanings make him not so much a graceful or poetic writer as a utilitarian one. But his stories of early Santa Fe are vividly told and populated with real people. It especially takes off for me when he speaks with such love for his mentor Arthur Haddock. And here he also has the opportunity to talk with great surety about the nature of painting as he sees it.

Eli has always been in-the-mix of Santa Fe's art scene. He has always been observant and curious about the activities of others while continuing upon his prolific personal journey. No one else in Santa Fe could have written this book and I am thankful to him for having done so.