appointed me the director of regents for all four state museums and nine parks.” Edwina has also served on “the boards of nearly every museum here in Santa Fe.” (Museum Hill’s Milner Plaza was named for her and Charles.) She has since retired from them all, except that of the New Mexico School for the Arts. It’s therefore not surprising that art is very much a part of the Milners’ life together; it quite literally surrounds them, and the landscape often changes with new acquisitions. “We usually give each other art pieces for birthdays and anniversaries,” Edwina says. The couple’s taste is wide-ranging, defying easy categorization. “I realized recently that my theme is materials and how the artist uses them,” Edwina says. “I have a BFA from the University of Texas at Austin, and I’ve worked in every medium, so I know if the art is any good.” However, she’s quick to note that, before anything new is added to the collection, she and Charles both have to like it. Clearly, in the 61 years they’ve been married, the Milners have found a lot they both like. Every type of art is represented in their home: paintings, sculpture, jewelry, ceramics, metalwork, woodwork. Interspersed among such pieces are abstract paintings by Edwina herself, who is currently working in her home studio on mixedmedia collages, taking inspiration from Gustav Klimt and incorporating flowers and gold leaf. A number of her works are currently showing at Waxlander Gallery. Not surprisingly, the couple’s personal collection prominently features work by female artists—often living and often local to New Mexico. “Here in Santa Fe it’s wonderful,” Edwina says. “There are plenty of women represented in galleries, and they’re gallery owners.” The Milners own several sculptures by Star Liana York and Roxanne Swentzell, as well as a piece by Swentzell’s daughter Rose B. Simpson (Chiaroscuro Contemporary Art), whom Charles says is “one to watch.” No doubt the Milners have seen many careers blossom over the decades, but the investment aspect of collecting art is more or less a moot point for them. “Some people buy art to sell it a few years later,” Edwina says. “I buy it because I love it. If it’s supposed to be here, I can find a place for it.”
With distant views of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains as a backdrop, the Milners’ backyard is like an outdoor gallery. From right, a Wind Ripples kinetic sculpture in orange fusion patina by Mark White (Mark White Fine Art) and Mares of the Ice Age, a large bronze sculpture by Star Liana York (Sorrel Sky Gallery).
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The view from a picture window near the entryway overlooks a waterfall and koi pond. Sculptural pumice-crete columns (at left) echo other artistic uses of the building material throughout the home.