A FEW MILES NORTH OF TAOS, a massive pair of thick-rimmed glasses peers out onto NM 150 near the driveway to the Bareiss Gallery. In 2002, Texas artist Steve Teeters constructed two sculptures of Buddy Holly’s iconic spectacles—one black, one rusty, each roughly six feet across—for the Buddy Holly Center in Lubbock, Texas. “They chose the black one,” says gallery owner Philip Bareiss. “He brought the other one to me.” Bareiss and Teeters, who passed away in 2014, worked together in the early 2000s. “He just liked coming out to Taos,” Bareiss says of the sculptor. Holly, who was born in Lubbock, helped put Clovis on the rock-and-roll map by recording hits like “That’ll Be the Day” and “Peggy Sue” at the Norman Petty Studios. The horn-rimmed nod to the legendary rocker has become a local selfie spot, with people stopping almost every day. And yes, the sculpture is for sale, Bareiss notes.
A Spectacle to Behold
Constructed by artist Steve Teeters in 2002, the giant metal Buddy Holly glasses can be found on NM 150, just a few miles north of Taos.
The giant Buddy Holly glasses were constructed by Steve Teeters in 2002. Photograph by John McCauley.
