Burning Man Fig. 1. Self Portrait by William Shuster (1893–1969), 1931. Signed and dated “Self Portrait, 1931/ WillShuster” (backwards) on easel. Oil on canvas, 30 by 24 inches. Photograph courtesy of Zaplin Lampert Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico. In 1920 serious health issues brought William Shuster to New Mexico, beginning forty-nine years of creativity, exploration, and community engagement. Though he received some fine-arts training in Philadelphia, it was not until he experienced the inspiration of Santa Fe that he decided to dedicate his life to art. Almost immediately he integrated himself into Santa Fe’s burgeoning bohemian art scene, and made a reputation for himself as an eccentric and passionate member of the community with an unsurpassed lust for life. Shuster embraced the unique beauty of New Mexico, from Carlsbad Caverns to Canyoncito and the Badlands. The artwork he left behind illuminates the natural beauty and rich cultural heritage of the state that gave him a new lease on life. Shuster quickly moved to the center of the Santa Fe art scene, becoming close friends with American modernist painter John Sloan and a member of one of the city’s first artists communities, Los Cinco Pintores.