Art From the Dark: Ayla Yarbrough at Carlsbad Caverns
Cloudcroft native Ayla Yarbrough just completed a three-week artist residency at Carlsbad Caverns National Park, and the park kept one of her paintings
For three summer weeks, Ayla Yarbrough watched a million bats pour out of a hole in the ground each evening.
“That’s my favorite part of being there,” said Yarbrough, 19, who grew up in Cloudcroft and just completed the artist residency at Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
“I’ve loved it since I was a kid. I grew up going to Carlsbad Caverns, and we visited so many times. It was nice to be there and see it through a different lens.”
Yarbrough’s previous body of work, paintings of sometimes-dead birds and flora, carries the precision of Audubon illustrations. Closely observed, taxonomically faithful, and arranged with the spare elegance of fine china patterns, negative space does as much work as the subject.
She came home from the Caverns with something new: landscape.
The park kept one of those paintings.
“They don’t have it on display right now,” Yarbrough said, “but they eventually hope to have a wall dedicated to all the different artwork throughout the program.”
Living in the Park
Cloudcroft readers may know Yarbrough from the Michael Nivison Public Library, where she helped keep the doors open and the summer program running during a difficult stretch of staff turnover in recent years.
She reached out to Carlsbad Caverns in January after a family visit the summer before.
The program accepted her for a three-week stay at a cabin on park property, a studio in the visitor center, and five or six hours of painting each day in front of visitors who wandered through.
“It was my first time painting in front of that many people,” she said. “It was one of my favorite parts — getting to paint while people watched me paint. That was definitely new for me.”
Before leaving, she led a one-time watercolor postcard workshop for park visitors.
According to Yarbrough, the residency program itself is young. Carlsbad Caverns now brings in new artists every three weeks from May through October across media: painters, photographers, and sculptors.
Conservation and Creation
Yarbrough’s path to conservation biology runs straight through Cloudcroft. She grew up hiking and camping with her family, drawing wildlife as far back as she can remember.
“It’s something I’ve known I wanted to major in since I was 13 or 14,” she said.
In Fort Collins, Yarbrough finished her freshman year at Colorado State University (CSU), where she’s majoring in fish and wildlife conservation biology and eyeing a possible education minor.
The two pursuits, science and painting, aren’t in tension for her.
“I want to paint these animals that maybe don’t get as much recognition.”
— Ayla Yarbrough
“I think a lot of people assumed I was going to go to art school,” she said, “and it threw some of my family off when I didn’t. But for me, my artwork directly shows people why conservation is important. That’s my goal with some of my work. I want to paint these animals that maybe don’t get as much recognition.”
This spring, she was also part of CSU’s Engage Scholars program, doing community conservation projects in the Fort Collins area, including planting trees in Rocky Mountain National Park. That experience, she said, pointed her back toward the Caverns residency, illustrating the value of meeting people doing real park work and getting a foot in the door.
She returns to Colorado State in August.
She said of the residency, “It gave me something to look forward to. It really made me love it out there.”
Stories like this are made possible by the support of businesses like PVT:
Thank you to our business sponsors:
Cloudcroft Art Society
Located in Old Red Brick Schoolhouse: Holiday and Saturday art showsNoisy Water Winery
Family-owned winery crafting thoughtfully made wines from New Mexico grapes, inspired by mountain living.Be in the Mountains Yoga & Massage
A cozy space for yoga and massage therapy at the Village PlazaOsha Trail Depot
Your destination for unique, hand-crafted treasuresThe Stove and Spa Store
We offer a variety of services to ensure your hearth and spa dreams are met!The Lodge at Cloudcroft
Landmark Choice Among New Mexico ResortsCloudcroft Art Workshops
Enhance your artistry while enjoying the beauty and coolness of the mountains!Sacramento Camp & Conference Center
Come to the Mountain — Let God Refresh Your SoulLaughing Leaf Dispensary
Discover a world of wellness at Laughing LeafInstant Karma
Adventure Within: Transformative Yoga, Ayurvedic Wisdom, Nourishing Organics, Fair Trade BoutiqueOff the Beaten Path
Eclectic gifts & original artworkFuture Real Estate
Raise your expectations.Ski Cloudcroft
The Southernmost ski area in New Mexico.Cloudcroft Therapeutic Massage
Maximizing Movement, Quality of Life ImprovementHigh Altitude
Your favorite little outdoor outfitter on Burro AvenueBlushing Yucca Esthetics
✨ Book your glow-up today✨The Elk Shed
Purveyors of Southwest + Mountain Provisions, Goods & FineryThe PAC
Pickleball Addicts of Cloudcroft—Pickleball in the CloudsPeñasco Valley Telephone Cooperative
For all the ways you love to connectBre Hope Media
Professional photo and video servicesDiscover Cloudcroft
The local go-to guide
And, readers like you. Will you support independent local news?
Subscribe to Cloudcroft Reader for free to receive posts like this, sent directly to your inbox.
Ayla is an amazing artist, scholar- an empathetic, intelligent and thoughtful person.
I speak for many-we are so very proud of her. Here is to the wondrous things she will do in the future-you are awesome, Ayla🩵