If a city is left off a caricature mural at a state history museum, does it really exist?

That’s the question following the omission of Rio Rancho on a map mural at the newly opened New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe.

Of course, that’s not really the question most people are asking around the City of Vision. Most people here are asking, “How can you leave off the third-largest city in the state?” We first learned of the omission from resident Judy Walker at one of Mayor Swisstack’s community meetings a few weeks ago, following the opening of the museum. Upon hearing the news, it seems totally unacceptable to leave Rio Rancho off the map, but it began to make more sense once we actually saw the mural.

The art in question, part of the “Telling New Mexico” exhibit, was done by Silver City artist Karen Carr. The piece shows the entire state and has caricature-style drawings throughout. For example, the Roundhouse depicts Santa Fe and the downtown Hyatt is shown for Albuquerque. Never mind the fact that both cities are too far north on the map, it’s not geographically accurate and nothing is to scale.

There’s scarcely space for Rio Rancho, and if there were, what symbol or image could accurately reflect our city? Would it be an image of Intel, the Star Center or possibly housing developments? It’s a good question and it’s one each of us should consider as we ponder the identity of Rio Rancho.

The City of Vision may be large, but it’s also young, and even the mayor admits that we need to do a better job of marketing the city and creating an identity. We at the Rio Rancho Observer want to hear from our readers on this subject. What, if anything, would you add to the mural at the New Mexico History Museum that could accurately reflect Rio Rancho?

Send your comments and suggestions to editor@rrobserver.com. We’ll be sure to share some of the suggestions with you in an upcoming issue.