NEW MEXICO CAPITOL

In keeping with my interest in architectural photography, I have photographed a number of state capitol buildings, including those in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Texas, and Utah.  So when we visited Santa Fe earlier this month, I took the opportunity to get a few photos of New Mexico's capitol building.  It is a relatively modern building without some of the charms and detail of older architecture.  Still, it has some interesting features.

New Mexico's state symbol is the Zia sun symbol, which consists of a circle with lines radiating from it in the four compass directions.  And that is the shape of the state capitol, as seen from above.  Here are a few of the photos that I got.

First is an exterior shot that I converted to a black and white that shows the circular curve of the central portion of the building.  Attempts to capture the design of the entire building would generally be limited to those taken from the sky.

Considering the building's circular shape, it is no surprise that there is a central rotunda beneath a modest dome.

And here are a few shots of the galleries that surround the rotunda.

I did peek into the senate chamber--functional.

The circular hallways also featured murals of local art.

John