by Kastle Waserman
artist Kaci Karnes Orosco shares her love for New Mexico in art
ARTISTS HAVE LONG TALKED ABOUT “the golden hour,” the brief moments at dusk and dawn when the sun is low, the light is soft and colors seem to glow in warm yellow and orange tones. This is when artist Kaci Karnes Orosco sees the desert full of overlooked beauty and sees herself as a “vessel” to convey it to others.
“I feel like my job is just to pause, take a look and figure out what the beauty is, then just capture that,” Orosco says. “There are so many beautiful places, either natural places in New Mexico or the quirky adobe buildings and beautiful churches that are our cultural hubs. It’s what’s special and the heart of New Mexico. I think it’s the soul of this region.”
Orosco considers herself primarily a painter and mixed media artist. Color is central to her work, and she uses a wide range of materials, including oil and acrylic paint, house paint, natural powder pigment, spackle—even kitty litter for texture—and a variety of tools, including cotton swabs, palette knives and magic erasers.
She layers different materials to achieve richness and depth she says a single medium cannot provide. She recently returned to mixed media and experimental techniques after years of focusing on oils.
The result is contemporary Southwestern expressionism with strong influences from Fauvism and Impressionism and even subtle hints of Surrealism, as much of her work has a vibrant, dreamlike quality.
Orosco grew up in Las Cruces but spent most of her adult life in Southern California. She knew by around age 10 that she wanted to be an artist. “I always had a pencil in my hand, or I was doing something creative,” she recalls.
She started as an art major at Pepperdine University, attended classes at Watts Atelier of the Arts in Southern California and studied under acclaimed portrait artist and illustrator Stan Stevenson.
She returned to Albuquerque in October 2022 after realizing her deep connection to New Mexico, its culture and the area’s landscapes. Although she’s a physician assistant by profession, Orosco is committed to pursuing art as a career. In addition to commissioned work, her art can be found at the Dakkya Boutique in Hotel Chaco and on her social media. She says she feels it’s now her duty to share what she sees around her.
“Growing up as a Las Cruces girl made me see things that I believe get overlooked,” Orosco says. “We think about the desert as being so desolate and barren, and really, it’s not. It has a lot of color and excitement to it, and I’m attracted to that. Whether it’s an imperfect old building or a plant blossoming in the desert, I can help people see that this is beautiful.”
Learn more at kaciorosco.com
