Historic site’s Davison Koenig takes a deeper dive into E.I. Couse’s work
DAVISON KOENIG has worked as the executive director and curator for the Couse-Sharp Historical Site in Taos for the past six years. The campus includes the home and studio of E.I. Couse, the studios of Joseph Henry Sharp (founders of the Taos Society of Artists 1915-1927), the gardens designed by Virginia Couse and Ben Lujan, and the Lunder Research Center.
In this year’s issue of Land, Water, People, Time (published by the Taos News and edited by Tempo editor Lynne Robinson), photographs taken by Irving Couse a century ago were featured as the magazine’s cover story, penned by Rick Romancito.
In this conversation with Tempo, Koenig takes a deeper dive into the relationships, the art, and the collaboration that nourished this unique chapter in
New Mexico history.
What makes the Couse-Sharp Historic Site significant and why is it such an integral part of our history?
The Couse-Sharp site illuminates what life was like in Taos for artists who migrated to the West, and provides a context for the confluence of Indigenous, Hispano and Anglo cultures. The Couse House (1936) is a time capsule, as if the homeowners walked out an hour ago. The home features Spanish Colonial religious art and furniture — the buildings are perfect gems of Taos vernacular architecture; the Taos Society of Artists (TSA) paintings are intimate and masterful; plus, the Lunder Research Center houses Native American art, letters, photographs and research material on the TSA. Not to mention the contemporary work that has been inspired by this unique period in time.
Can you tell me a little bit about the camaraderie amongst the Taos Society of Artists?
What makes the Taos Society of Artists singular is that they worked collectively. They had to rely on each other in this remote outpost. They created traveling exhibitions, critiqued each other’s work and shared resources. They wrote articles for national magazines, and their exhibitions traveled all over — including Boston, New York, Cincinnati and the west coast. They knew they were stronger together than apart. They strove to create a uniquely American art with a vibrant palette inspired by their colorful subject matter. They also drew collectors like J.D. Rockefeller to Taos.
Can you tell me a little about the artists’ relationships to their Pueblo models?
The relationships the artists forged with their Indigenous models was, and is, significant. Artists had their favorite models, as it was a challenge to create a narrative story through a pose. It was very much a collaborative process.
The models were not merely passive sitters but agents of social change at a time when indigenous peoples were referred to as the “Indian Problem” and Americans’ exposure to indigenous people was through popular culture depictions of “warring Indians.” The Taos Society of Artists depicted their indigenous partners with dignity and respect, portraying the interior life of Taos Pueblo.
One of my favorite photos is of Jerry Mirabal on a stool looking at a portrait of himself by Henry Sharp, with a cigarette in his mouth. He is obviously critiquing the portrait. The models and artists were very self-aware, this was not a naive relationship.
One hundred years ago, people needed each other to survive. Unlike today, where we all have cell phones and insular careers. Sure, the relationships were complex, but people relied on each other in the remote outpost of Taos.
What makes New Mexico’s history unlike any place in the world?
What sets New Mexico apart is its cultural diversity — spanning millennia. Ancestral Puebloan peoples on the perimeter of Mesoamerica, this land has been occupied over 15,000 years. The Spanish arrived over 400 years ago and still hold onto their traditions. And then you have the migration of easterners in the 1800s. The confluence of culture and art is unmatched by any region in North America, but don’t take my word for it, come pay us a visit at couse-sharp.org.