Alumni Award Recipients
Nedra Matteucci
Zia Award, 2011
Enter some fine art galleries around the world, in Paris, New York or London, and you’ll find beautiful art. But you also might find that the ambience – especially if you’re just there to look – can be rather cold.
Not so at Nedra Matteucci Fine Art, a world-renowned gallery in Santa Fe. When you step inside the spacious adobe compound you receive a warm welcome and are invited to explore the galleries and the tranquil sculpture garden out back at your leisure.
That inviting attitude is a direct reflection Nedra Matteucci’s view of art and her approach to her business. She was recently asked what accomplishment she’s most proud of, and she said she’s proud that her gallery “has always been a welcoming accessible destination for the simple, pure enjoyment and appreciation of art by visitors of all ages and interests.”
She’s come a long way, and yet remains relatively close to home. Nedra hails from Dexter, a small farming community in southeastern New Mexico. She attended high school in El Paso, Texas and earned her bachelor’s degree from UNM. Nedra had a passion for art from an early age and learned about the art world by working in the gallery she now owns. At the time it was known as the Fenn Gallery.
She opened her own gallery on Canyon Road in 1986 and two years later purchased the Fenn Gallery, renaming it Nedra Matteucci Galleries. The gallery specializes in 19th and 20th-century American art, including artists of the American West and Taos Society Artists. O’Keefes, Remingtons and Russels are on display beside up and coming painters and sculptors. She and her husband, Richard, also own Morning Star Gallery on Canyon Road which features Native American antiquities.
Through the years Nedra has built her galleries into destinations for art collectors and art lovers worldwide. In the process, she’s also established a reputation for honesty, professionalism, approachability, and generosity.
Nedra shares her passion, expertise and energy with the art industry and in her community. She is active in the Fine Art Dealer’s Association and is on the board of directors of the National Sculpture Society.
Closer to home Nedra has been on the board of the Santa Fe Opera for years and has been a member of the New Mexico Amigos since 1990, serving as president of the group in 2006. As an Amigo, Nedra is a business ambassador for the state nationally and internationally.
And by all accounts Nedra is a wonderful amiga to many people. A close friend says Nedra is a fun, people person who loves to be surrounded by friends and family. It sounds like wherever Nedra goes she has friends -- or can make one quickly.
In Nedra, the art community, the state of New Mexico, and UNM have a wonderful, warm, and generous friend indeed. Nedra, through your hard work and generous spirit, you have made the world a more beautiful place for us to experience. Congratulations, Nedra, we present you with UNM’s 2011 Zia Award!
