Church Ranchos de Taos

Gustave Baumann

This is a rare impression from the first edition of Church Ranchos de Taos. There is a pale yellow border outside of the dark blue border and this yellow was used to highlight the roofs of the buildings at the left edge of the image as there is no negative space in the image. There is only one canale (downspout) and it is visible near the rear of the church. This impression has pink printed on top of the yellow ochre in the ground at the base of the church.

The second edition was also of 100 impressions but its coloration closely followed the tempera. Some of the blocks were recut and in these impressions negative space contours the crown on the left side of the church, highlights the foremost of the two canales, the roof of the building at the left edge, the umbrella, and the ground at the base of the church and near the figures. Two solid lines form the border.

The third edition, printed in 6 colors in two campaigns in the 1940s, was projected at 125 and printed on Baumann's Zanders Hand in Heart watermarked laid paper or on Ansbach wove.

The adobe church of San Francisco de Asis was begun in Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico around 1772 and completed in 1816. Over the next 200 years it has been the subject of innumerable works of art; paintings, photographs, etchings, woodcuts etc. done by artists from throughout the world. Baumann chose the rear exterior for this composition. A procession of parishioners is shown at the lower left.