July 2025: Going Forth

It’s the day after the 4th of July—and the passage of the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill.” While others may be celebrating, I find myself grappling with anxiety. My family depends on Medicaid, particularly for my adult child who lives with Type 1 Diabetes and other health challenges. Managing this disease—even with the help of modern technology like continuous glucose monitors and insulin pumps—is incredibly demanding. The technology is a lifeline, but it’s also prohibitively expensive without insurance support. Add to that the difficulty of finding flexible, accommodating employment that allows for the unpredictable demands of chronic illness, and the stakes feel even higher.

Still, I’m someone who relentlessly searches for ways to turn challenges into opportunities.

Earlier this year, our family considered upgrading our home. Our current house poses difficulties, especially for my 93-year-old mother who struggles with mobility due to severe arthritis. But in light of recent legislative changes, our priorities have shifted. The focus is now on securing flexible employment for Colin Alexander—work that allows for the kind of time, adaptability, and attention required to manage this health condition safely and sustainably.

In that spirit, I’m choosing to lean into a long-held dream: opening a House of Cards gallery where Colin could work.

This gallery would highlight narrative artists—those who create not only original art but also card decks and illustrated books that tell stories. Originally, I imagined combining this vision with a larger home that could serve both as residence and gallery. After extensive searching, I’ve come to realize that for the gallery to thrive, it must be located in a walkable high-traffic area—like Nob Hill, Downtown, or Old Town Albuquerque. That kind of real estate is simply out of reach for a hybrid live/work space.

So, instead of buying a new home, I’m planning to use some of the equity from our house of 20 years (if the financial gods are willing) to lay the foundation for the House of Cards gallery. I also have a small financial backer who finds the concept exciting and worthwhile.

I’ll keep you posted on how things unfold in future newsletters. This dream is rooted in both necessity and hope—and I believe in its potential.

 The Latest Postcard to America

ALABAMA: Sweat Shop
Mixed media on paper, 26 x 40 inches

Click HERE to review this growing series of works-on-paper

Prison labor in Alabama is a longstanding and controversial system where incarcerated individuals are often required to work for little or no pay. Jobs range from fast food and manufacturing (many of these companies are referenced in this artwork) to public works. Work-release programs place inmates in outside jobs, but large paycheck deductions—sometimes over 40%—leave them with minimal earnings. In-prison jobs typically pay between $0.86 and $3.45 per day, and workers receive no benefits like sick leave. Refusing to work can result in severe punishments, including solitary confinement, loss of visitation, and extended sentences. Despite a 2022 constitutional amendment banning slavery and involuntary servitude, lawsuits argue that coerced prison labor continues under state policies that penalize those who decline to work. Black Alabamians, while 26% of the state’s population, make up 53% of its prison population—reflecting racial disparities rooted in post-Civil War forced labor practices. While the Alabama Department of Corrections frames work programs as voluntary and rehabilitative, critics argue they are coercive and exploitative. Advocates call for prison labor to be voluntary, fairly paid, and protected by worker rights.

 The Latest I Ching Hexagram

HEXAGRAM 62: Small Traverses
Mixed media on panel, 30 x 30 inches

I’m just two paintings away from completing the series and am planning to release a book, Hexagrams and Haiku, along with a companion deck of cards in the spring of 2026—hopefully launching it at the House of Cards Gallery!

Click HERE to review the rest of this nearly completed series.
(I hope to recreate Hexagrams 63 and 64 by the end of the year.)

Like a small bird flying through a storm over a mountain—each wingbeat a quiet act of persistence. Steady progress, even in the harshest conditions, can lead to safety. In this piece, the artist transforms the bird into a dove, symbolizing hope for peace amid the turbulence of war and conflict. This artwork is part of a series inspired by the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching, the 2,000-year-old Chinese system of divination composed of six-line patterns of yin and yang. Through this ancient lens, the artist explores timeless themes of transformation, resilience, and harmony.

Route 66 Centennial Art Show

Closes on July 11 during the Downtown Albuquerque Artwalk

Below are my artworks included in the show from the Postcards to America series.

They represent the four westernmost states through which Route 66 historically meandered.