The Netflix documentary series “Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99” dives deeply into the facts behind this counterculture music festival’s steady decline into complete anarchy. It explores the sociological, cultural, and economic factors that led to its demise through first-person testimonies from participants, organisers, promoters, and employees. Pilar Law, then-assistant to Woodstock creator Michael Lang, was one of them. If you’re interested in learning more about Pilar’s life, career, and whereabouts today, read on.
Pilar Law: Who is she?
It should come as no surprise that Dhana Pilar Law has always been artistic given that she is the daughter of renowned music and lifestyle photographer Lisa Law and creative thinker/designer Tom Law. She really graduated from Tamalpais High School in 1985 with a concentration in Design and Applied Arts before pursuing a Bachelor’s in Design at the University of California-Davis (1991). The curious creator later entered the entertainment sector and followed in her parents’ footsteps by taking part in the Woodstock Festival. Her parents belonged to the generation that was born in 1969, while she was born in 1999.
Pilar did it all that fateful summer, from assisting her boss to working on particular aspects of the event, from hanging out behind the scenes to recording her adventures as much as she could. Since Lisa was an authorised Woodstock photographer, she even had her mother with her, but neither of them could have predicted just how horrific their weekend would ultimately turn out to be. They did pick up on a few stray clues, but the savagery, wrath, violence, and riots much exceeded their wildest expectations. They also realised that the situation involved far more than just the concert-goers.
Now, where is Pilar Law?
Pilar Law appeared to do everything she could to help with the confusing aftermath of Woodstock ’99 and was one of the first people to be contacted about the on-site rapes. Only then, as hinted in the Netflix original, did she move on with her life as best she could, especially in light of the undeniable lasting effects the entire festival had on her. Before fully returning to her actual passion—photography—she took on a design-based consulting position, experimented with marketing/advertising, and even got involved in the business side of various projects.
After living in Los Angeles and Kansas City, Pilar returned to her homeland of Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 2015. It was then that she combined her professional experiences to start her company. The founder and curator of the Edition One Gallery, a distinctive concept art gallery situated at 728 Canyon Road in Santa Fe, is a photographer and photographer’s advocate with more than 15 years of expertise.
Pilar is not only a well-known production consultant, but she has also had work published over the years in a number of books, periodicals, and online journals, as if that weren’t enough. The digital asset, archive, licencing, fine art sales, and historical photography specialist appears to think that getting to discuss every aspect of her line of work with her mother is the best part. She even works for the nonprofit Acequia Madre House.