A View From the Easel

Hilary Lorenz, a printmaker and self-described mountain ultrarunner, has transformed a rural workspace in New Mexico into a sanctuary for her artistic practice. Her studio, built entirely by hand, reflects her resourcefulness and deep connection to the land.

Lorenz has occupied her studio intermittently since 2013, though she only moved to the area full-time in 2022 after years of splitting time between New York City and Abiquiu, New Mexico. The structure, located in Medanales, was constructed with local stone, mud, salvaged timber, and windows from a Habitat for Humanity Restore. She built it with the help of two neighbors, avoiding the need for a mortgage or rent.

A typical day in her studio begins at dawn. After walking her dogs and running for an hour or more, she fills her water bottle and enters the workspace, where she works with paper—carving, printing, weaving, and assembling. Her process is tactile and direct, relying on natural light to guide her. Without electricity or Wi-Fi, she avoids digital distractions, focusing on production. On the hottest days, when temperatures exceed 90 degrees, she retreats to her home to handle administrative tasks such as grant writing and exhibition planning. Once the afternoon heat subsides, she returns to the studio for a final session.

The studio’s design fosters both solitude and openness. Large glass doors frame views of the surrounding mountains, and three entrances with ample windows create a balance between shelter and exposure. An attached corral allows her dogs to roam safely, and the acre of land provides space for large-scale projects like a linocut-printed paper canoe or the installation “Shipwrecked.”

Nature is integral to Lorenz’s work and life. As an ultrarunner, she spends extensive time in the mountains, which directly informs her artistic process. Yet the isolation of rural living can be challenging. While she values the independence of her self-built studio—where she designed and constructed the tables herself—she acknowledges the solitude can feel limiting. She longs for easier access to community, cultural events, and casual social interaction without a long drive.

Among New Mexico’s cultural offerings, Lorenz highlights Site Santa Fe and the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts in Santa Fe as favorites, though both require significant travel. She also praises lesser-known museums such as the Bradbury Science Museum in Los Alamos and the quirky Roswell UFO Museum.

For Lorenz, paper is not just a medium but a lifelong passion. She works with it through relief, intaglio, and lithography, marbling it using the suminagashi technique, cutting it, and weaving it into new forms—boats, books, and sculptural pieces. Her artistic output is rooted in the material, and she also collects works on paper.

Despite the challenges of rural isolation, Lorenz finds profound satisfaction in her studio. Built from earth and stone, it stands as a testament to self-reliance and creativity. Though designed to endure, it remains intimately connected to the landscape—one day, she notes, it will return to the ground from which it came. For now, it remains a quiet but powerful space of creation.