Over the past year the Mesa Prieta Petroglyph Project has collaborated on a unique project with the Española Valley Fiber Arts Center (EVFAC). Fiber artists came to the Wells Petroglyph Preserve and made drawings of petroglyphs that interested them. They returned to their studios and  over a period of months produced a fiber art creation from their drawings. The extremely varied works were exhibited in Española, Santa Fe, and Taos over several months. The exhibitions were so successful that a full-color catalog of the work was proposed. The endeavor is now complete and can be seen here. A print version is in the works and will be available at EVFAC, 325 Oñate Street in Española, soon.

 

This month we feature "Fido" a charming image of a canine found on the Wells Petroglyph Preserve. Fido is a Puebloan image that may represent someone's faithful family mutt. We know that the Puebloans had two domesticated animals, dogs, and turkeys which were raised for their feathers and, presumably, food. When Asian peoples who became the first Americans began populating the North American continent around 14,000 years ago they were probably accompanied by dogs that would have been helpers as well as pets. The image may have other significance or meaning that we are not privy to.