History for History’s Sake
We were just visited by my nephew Jason. Jason is my sister Barbara’s oldest child and he is now over forty years old though he always seems younger to me. Jason did not go to college where his younger sister attended Cornell University as an undergraduate and went on to get her veterinary degree at Kansas State. Jason has supported himself by being a specialized garage door guy who apprenticed with a company that he eventually left to start his own business. He has a small but successful business and is quite expert at his specialty as I can attest as my garage doors function perfectly. Jason is also an artist par excellence who has created our beautiful kitchen backsplash as a custom Southwestern motif mosaic. Both his eye and his craftsmanship are amazing.
Jason honed his early artistic skills as a kid who did lots of graffiti to the point of getting arrested for it a time or two. He has turned his artwork into a great hobby that both gives him great personal pleasure and the respect of many for whom he creates. He most recently did a large wall-sized mural for our garden that is done in the Otomi native art Style that compliments his kitchen mosaic artwork, but is its own art form. It makes a meaningful statement for our house and garden.
I have recently written about two things that have now come together to give Jason another medium for artistic expression for our house. I have reported on my recent obsession with the California Mission history and my quest for visiting all twenty-one of California Missions. I have also reported that I am in the process of replacing our front door and repainting all of our entrances changing them from steel blue to Chinese red, a color palette that matches out home better with the shadesail and even our outdoor furnishings. As I was conceiving of the replacement door (having decided not to buy a full replacement entry, but rather just the door), it occurred to me to ask Jason to make a mosaic that would make our door unique. When I called Jason, he immediately jumped at the chance to do the project and promised to send some design ideas.
One of the things I have known about Jason is that for some time now, he has become obsessed with history and gone beyond his art and his love of vintage Lincoln Continental’s (which he restores). Jason is of Dutch descent on his father’s side and he carries a last name that is decidedly Dutch-sounding. He was born in the Netherlands before his parent’s emigrated to the U.S. in 1978. He has lived his entire life in Las Vegas, Nevada and has spent a great deal of time exploring the surrounding desert areas as a hiker and runner and more recently as an amateur archeologist.
When I called Jason a few weeks ago to check in on the status of the mosaic project, he told me he didn’t have any drawings for me yet, but that he hoped to come and visit this past Saturday to bring me the mosaic. He then went on explaining to me that he had an idea about creating a piece that was in honor of the history of California and the Camino Real. Jason has spent time studying both the history of Las Vegas and the history of the Mojave Desert and the explorers and settlers that passed through that desert over the centuries. When I told him about my interest in the California Missions he became especially excited at how perfect his creation would be in merging with that theme.
When Jason arrived yesterday in his pick-up truck, he had stopped along the way to explore a few extra Mojave encampments that he wanted to explore, he had the mosaic wrapped in towels and secured in the back of the pick-up bed. He set it up for viewing and invited Kim and I to see his work. He had created a marvelous mosaic in the shape of the state of California with a depiction of the arrival in the foreground of the Conquistador Juan Bautista de Anza, who was born in New Navarre in New Spain, in what is now Sonora, Mexico, into Southern California. The mosaic shows the horseback Bautista riding on the Camino real towards the first of the Missions, the Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcala. He is shown passing through the Mojave desert with its cacti and the distant seaside hills and Pacific Ocean beyond. Above it all is blue sky and sun that shine down on California almost every day. It is a large and magnificent piece that will proudly adorn our front door for years to come.
I spent some time talking with Jason today about his interest in Mojave and Las Vegas history. He came right out and asked if I would consider engaging in a writing project with him to put together a book and/or series of stories about the mysteries of the Mojave, which he feels he has an extensive insight into and are all fascinating stories in their own right. I talked it all through with him and we decided that the theme we would pursue would be the “Lost Dutchman” tag line which would not only connect him directly to the effort, but would also connect with one of the Mojave’s most famous tales, which is the tale of the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, which is supposed to be in the southern Mojave nearer to Phoenix than any other major city. This was the mine supposedly discovered by Jacob Waltz, a German immigrant who prospected across the region in the Nineteenth Century.
The project is not intended to really be about treasure hunting, but rather to tell stories to expose the interesting historical tales that can be found when doing something like looking for treasure. We have agreed to make a listing of stories that Jason has compiled and figure out whether we can find a format and narrative arc that can be compelling around that Lost Dutchman theme. I am more interested in storytelling than in Mojave history per se, but I respect Jason’s adopted passion for the part of the world he inhabits. I also respect anyone that can take a passion in life beyond the pure commercial value. That is not to say Jason wouldn’t love to make a successful commercial venture out of his passion, but it is clear that he would pursue the topic regardless of its potential for monetary gain. It is like his art. It is art for art’s sake just like it is history for history’s sake. I am glad to help Jason pursue his passion and I am certain the storytelling will be good for me as well.