Hilary Lorenz's Self-Built Stone Studio in Rural New Mexico

In the latest edition of Hyperallergic's 'A View From the Easel,' printmaker Hilary Lorenz shares insights about her self-constructed studio located in rural New Mexico. A self-identified 'mountain ultrarunner,' Lorenz has been utilizing the studio intermittently since 2013. After purchasing a small house in 2010, she began building the studio the next summer, using stones from the mountains, mud, local timber, and windows sourced from Habitat for Humanity Restore. Although she officially moved to the area in 2022, her address is listed as Medanales, not Abiquiu. The absence of electricity and Wi-Fi aids her in minimizing distractions. Her daily activities consist of walking her dogs, running for an hour, and engaging in various paper-based art forms, including printing and weaving. She enjoys the autonomy of her studio but finds the remoteness difficult, longing for nearby coffee shops or friends without needing to drive over 60 miles. Her favorite cultural institutions include Site Santa Fe, the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, the Bradbury Science Museum in Los Alamos, a telephone museum in Albuquerque, and the Roswell UFO Museum. Lorenz predominantly works with paper, creating prints, marbled pieces, and transforming them into boats and books.