 The 1898 visit by Bert Geer Phillips and Ernest L. Blumenschein to Taos was an early step in the creation of the Taos art colony and the Taos Society of Artists.In addition to the society, Mabel Dodge Luhan was instrumental in promoting Taos to artists and writers within her circle.In the early 20th century modern artists infused the area with a new artistic energy, followed in the 1950s by abstract artists.