The late 1980s and the 1990s is a romantic period in history, swirling in the throws of upheaval and great shifts in consciousness. The near-impossible struggle to bring idealism and reality together is the struggle of the romantic. The classicist conversely, does not waste time wrestling demons and breaking rules. Instead, this person seeks them out. To romantics, they are prisons.
Some romantics try to smother inner voices by creating things or escaping into addictions.
Others become crusaders, obsessed with sublimity, beauty and an abstract passion for good. In Summer 1994, the Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Fe mounted an exhibition bringing masterworks to the Museum. Much art produced in New Mexico follows the romantic tradition. At mid-century, Transcendentalism was important here, with Raymond Jonson leading it. Also, Georgia O'Keeffe caused romantic modernism to become the most popular aesthetic in New Mexico.