Wherever you were at Taos Vortex, the three-day music festival thrown by New Mexican art collective Meow Wolf, if you saw the 18-foot-tall praying mantis named Barry Roe Mantis, you knew you were at the right set. Whether it was stage left for Flying Lotus' groundbreaking 3D live show (complete with free glasses), in the back of the Glade Tent for Justin Martin, or in the camp grounds during Sunday night's closing renegade set, Barry was there waving his glowing front legs to the funkiest beats – but what made Barry really unique was that, sometimes, there was a five year old at his helm.
The second-annual Taos Vortex festival was all about community. It brought intimacy and imagination to the quaint town of Taos, taking over Kit Carson Park with two full stages, a spattering of interactive art installations, and headline sets from George Clinton's Parliament Funkadelic, Lykke Li, Zhu and more.
While it was quite literally crawling with small children, the family-friendly atmosphere was never at the cost of any freak-flag-flying freedom. There were just as many ravers in their 40s, 50s and even 60s boogying down in glittering gear. Dancers of all ages flocked from California, Colorado, Arizona and even Florida to see what a Meow Wolf music festival was all about. It turns out warm welcomes, quirky lifestyles and artistic ingenuity is at the heart of New Mexico's way of life. It's a tradition that goes back more than 100 years and begs to be discovered.
The southwestern state's status as an artistic mecca dates back to 1898 when painters Bert Geer Phillips and Ernest L. Blumenschein founded the Taos Art Colony and the Taos Society of Artists. The wealthy patron Mabel Dodge Luhan was instrumental in supporting the community, bringing artists and writers to the area throughout the early 1900s. D.H. Lawrence, Georgia O'Keeffe, Ansel Adams and others famously made New Mexico their home and their muse, and Meow Wolf is at the head of an explosive new generation.
The collective's permanent installation, The House of Eternal Return, is based in Santa Fe and was heavily funded by Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin.
It's famous as a world-class immersive experience, a 20,000-square-foot active performance art piece, and visitors are part of the play. Festival ticket holders received complimentary admission to the Meow Wolf headquarters where nothing is hands off and everyone is welcome to dive deep. That ethos of playful abandon extends to everything at the Taos Vortex festival.
Meow Wolf brings its nascent festival to the neighboring town as a sign of goodwill, spreading tourist dollars across the state. Taos is an hour-and-a-half drive northwest of Santa Fe, and whoever said deserts were drab has never taken this ride. Visitors will be stunned by rolling mountains, giant gorges, and deep green brush amid gold and purple landscapes.
Attendees can camp on-site or stay at nearby hotels and airbnbs. Festival passes grant discounts at cultural attractions, including the centuries-old Native community of the Taos Pueblo, where current residents keep Tiwa traditions alive, and the 100-percent sustainable Earthships Bitecture community where ecologists build science fiction-style homes from rubber tires and cement, decorated with discarded bottles and cans.
