The Santa Fe Convention Center is certified "environmentally responsible". 88% of the materials from the previous building were salvaged and recycled.

I'm delighted to announce the new edition of SOFA, June 10 - 14, 2009 in Santa Fe, NM, the first city in the United States to be designated a UNESCO Creative City, as well as one of Travel + Leisure's 2008 World's Best Cities. SOFA WEST will be held at the brand new state-of-the-art Santa Fe Convention Center with its stunning Pueblo Revival style design—adobe walls, viga beams, molded corners and kiva fireplaces. Located in the heart of Santa Fe's historic downtown with an intimate 40,000 square feet of event space, it lends itself perfectly to a gem of a boutique SOFA fair, with an elite line-up of 40-45 dealers. Top dealers already signed up include Aaron Faber Gallery, New York, NY, Charon Kransen, New York, NY, Elliott Brown Gallery, Seattle, WA, Jane Sauer Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, Heller Gallery, New York , NY, Holsten Galleries, Stockbridge, MA and William Zimmer Gallery, Mendocino, CA.

New Mexico Museum of Art

When we scouted Santa Fe, we were greeted with open arms by civic and cultural leaders and are working closely with the Mayor's Office and the Santa Fe Convention Center & Visitors Bureau. We are developing relations with the influential Museum of New Mexico Foundation, whose mission is to support Santa Fe's world-class museums including the New Mexico Museum of Art (whose current show is Flux: Reflections on Contemporary Glass), The Museum of International Folk Art and Museum of Indian Arts and Culture.

Santa Fe's economy is largely driven by the arts and cultural tourism, and it has become a relocation hotspot for affluent Americans. It has always been a destination for international art lovers who flock to Canyon Road, Santa Fe's gallery district. The University of New Mexico's School of Business ranks Santa Fe as the second-largest art market—by sales—in the country, following New York, with 250 galleries and studios—more art galleries than any other city of its size.

	A shopper's paradise

The New York Times Travel section wrote about Santa Fe in 2007: "For many decades it has been, and remains, a dynamo of American art and culture. O'Keeffe, Willa Cather, Bob Dylan, Bruce Nauman, Susan Rothenberg, Cormac McCarthy —the roll call of arts greats who have spent time there is disproportionate for such a far-flung desert oasis." It is also home to the famed Santa Fe Opera, set amid the dramatic backdrop of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, which many rank second only to New York's Metropolitan Opera in the United States.

Click the image to download a brochure on The Santa Fe Convention Center

The handsome Convention Center is located within walking distance of Santa Fe's fine restaurants, museums and shopping, as well as 1,500 hotel and bed & breakfast rooms from the grand to the boutique to luxurious resorts with full-service spas. Long a melting pot of cultures, in recent years Santa Fe has come of age as a culinary capital, serving up innovative Southwestern to traditional Continental fare. Renowned also for its hundreds of shops in charming historic buildings, Santa Fe is a shopper's paradise of Southwest specialties as well as wonders from around the world. For nature lovers the city is surrounded by over 1.5 million acres of national forest, offering excellent hiking, camping, and downhill skiing. Santa Fe averages 300 days of sunshine and blue skies, and we are told that June is the most beautiful month of the year.

	The Santa Fe Convention Center

We believe that Santa Fe is primed and ready for SOFA! We are delighted with the official welcoming and when we toured the Convention Center under construction, we were completely wowed by its architecture and state-of-the-art facilities. As a bonus, it is a green facility with 88% of the materials from the previous building having been salvaged and recycled, and all exterior timber rescued from the Sierra Blanca forest fire. There will even be beautiful gardens on the roof to absorb heat and a rain water catch system!

I know you will be wowed by Santa Fe and the new Convention Center too; you can see more at santafe.org

Please mark your calender to join us for SOFA WEST: Santa Fe!

With kind regards,
Mark Lyman
Founder and Director of the SOFA Fairs
Vice President of dmg Art & Antiques

More information about the Santa Fe Convention Center is available at santafe.org