Littleton – “A Breath Away From Heaven” is the title of Andy Marquez’s new book, but the title carries an added meaning for the Littleton photographer.
The 55-year-old Marquez nearly died two years ago when a motorcycle struck him as he strolled his Roxborough Park neighborhood. His friends were not sure he was going to survive, let alone get behind a camera again.
But after he spent six weeks in the hospital and underwent painful rehabilitation, the recently released book is a signal to his friends and fans that Marquez is back.
Still hobbled by a limp, he continues to travel the world searching for scenery and the perfect natural lighting. He has traveled 26 countries, from Prague to China to Colorado’s mountain peaks, in a career that’s spanned more than 20 years.
The support of his family and community continue to inspire him to get up before sunrise and struggle for the sake of getting a good shot.
“It’s still tough to get around, and I don’t do the kind of hikes that I used to,” Marquez said. “But maybe it was the brain injury I suffered, but I’m seeing light for my photography a lot better than I was before the accident.”
Marquez was out with his wife, Teresa Marquez, and friends Sept. 25, 2004, celebrating the release of his children’s book. The couple decided to walk down a quiet neighborhood street.
That is all he remembers of the night that a motorcyclist veered out of control while taking a curve and careened into him. The crash left Marquez with a broken hip, a shattered left kneecap and a snapped right femur. He also suffered a skull fracture, a broken collarbone and internal bleeding.
The motorcyclist was sentenced to 30 months for fleeing the scene, authorities said.
In recent years, the number of privately owned shops in Littleton’s downtown has waned as new development has sprouted. Marquez’s gallery, at 2509 W. Main St., has been one of the mainstays since it opened in its rented space in 1992.
While Marquez learned to walk again during rehabilitation at Craig Hospital, the tightknit merchant community held fundraisers and pulled together money to help the gallery stay afloat.
Other artists also helped by displaying his art at an important show in Albuquerque while he was in the hospital.
“We could have gotten really behind financially,” Teresa Marquez said.
Within a year of the accident, at the challenge of his rehabilitation counselor, Andy traveled to China with a friend and assistant, John Steineger, to shoot a sunrise over the Great Wall.
“After the accident, I thought Andy would have to give up on taking photos in these remote locations and give in and start taking wedding photos for a living,” Steineger said. “With a pretty gimpy leg, I didn’t think he was going be able to make it, but he just kept pushing himself.”
Judging by sales of “Colorado: A Breath Away From Heaven,” the latest of Andy’s four coffee- table books available at his gallery and Barnes and Noble bookstores, the new book promises to be his most popular. More than half of the 77 images were taken after the accident.
“This really is my tribute to Colorado,” Marquez said. “I’ve traveled all over the world, photographing beautiful places, but Colorado will always be where my heart is.”
Staff writer Manny Gonzales can be reached at 303-954-1537 or mgonzales@denverpost.com.
