What do pioneer homes, locomotives, gold mines, and cowboys all have in common? They are all apart of Colorado's state culture. The state's rich and colorful history is encapsulated timelessly in the artwork of its regions. There's no better way to learn about the past than to float through a museum of artifacts, paintings, and photographs from a certain era. The visual arts of Colorado hold ingenuity and education that are a wonderful insight to the creatively artistic minds of both the past and present.
The North
The Leanin' Tree Museum and Sculpture Garden of Western Art, located in Boulder, hosts the private art collection of Ed Trumble. With 250 paintings, 150 sculptures, as well as an outdoor sculpture garden, this location is a must-see for art enthusiasts. Enjoy a stroll through the beautiful landscaped gardens outside the museum and let your imagination run wild with the vividness of the life-size sculptures.
Also in Boulder is the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art. This museum is committed to the exhibition of inspirational present-day art. With three galleries, the museum promotes not only local and regional artists, but national and international ones as well. Through many different mediums, such as sculpture, paintings, and photography, this museum educates through the eyes of others. Some other places to visit in Boulder that feature photography and artifacts are: Carnegie Branch Library of Local History, CU Art Museum, University of Colorado Heritage Center, and The Boulder History Museum.
Other art galleries and museums in the northern part of the state are the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art and Loveland Museum/Gallery.
Metro Denver and South Central
The Denver Art Museum has every kind of art imaginable. Not only is the art dramatic and passionate, but the collections are from every corner of the world. Along with its collections, the museum has temporary exhibitions throughout the year. There is something for everyone, no matter what the age, on every floor of this 146,000 square-foot architectural masterpiece. The Metropolitan State College of Denver/Center for the Visual Arts, Museo de las Americas, and the Museum of Contemporary Art are other art galleries to visit in the Denver area.
The Salida Artwalk is an annual, one-of-a-kind event. For one weekend in June, stroll the streets of historic Salida and peruse fantastic art. Patrons can also meet the artists and bid on works of art in silent auctions. This three day event showcases art in over 40 venues and is a must-see.
Southwest
Fred Harman, creator of the famous comic-strip, "Red Ryder and Little Beaver," was also a western painter and sculptor who helped found the Cowboy Artists of America. As a real cowboy himself, Harman worked aside his father on their farm in Pagosa Springs, but always kept his sketch pad with him. A self-taught artist, Harman went to Kansas City in his early 20s to take a job at a film company. It was here that he met his roommate, Walt Disney. Later "Red Ryder" became the largest syndicated comic in the world, printed in over 750 newspapers in the United States, and 300 overseas. The Red Ryder character kept American rapt for 30 years and was created with the idea of the true American cowboy in mind. The Red Ryder BB Gun is still made today. Red Ryder truly is Western legend, and visitors can see it all at the Fred Harman Western Art Museum, in Pagosa Springs.
The Gunnison Arts Center is an amazing place with three exhibition galleries. These galleries rotate artists' work monthly. The Center has a gallery shop where many eccentric items can be purchased. Also, beginning in May, 16 different events kick off the art festival and gallery walk of Gunnison-Crested Butte. The Gunnison Arts Center along with Crested Butte Center for the Arts team to make spring and summer an extravaganza of art.
Around the first weekend in August, Crested Butte's Festival of the Arts is an amazing site. Covering three blocks of the historic district of the town, white-topped tents will hold an array of items. Categories include clay, baskets, fine arts, jewelry, sculptures, photography, wood, metal, paper, floral, and leather. One hundred and eighty artists and craft makers are chosen for this fabulous festival which has been rated one of the top five in the state.
Southeast
The Western artist Arthur Roy Mitchell, or A.R. Mitchell, created cover paintings for Western pulp magazines. After his service career and stint in New York to learn about art, he traveled back to his birthplace, near Trinidad, and started teaching art classes. He also worked tirelessly to restore and preserve old buildings in Trinidad and the Baca-Bloom Museum Complex is a direct effect of his efforts. The A.R. Mitchell Museum in Trinidad perpetuates the same ideas of its namesake: to educate and through artistic and historical experiences. The western building that houses the museum has its original wood floors, tin ceiling, and horse-shaped mezzanine. The mezzanine is a gallery for featured artists to display their works, while the main floor has 250 paintings by A. R. Mitchell. The Atrium Gallery, First Street Gallery, Young Artists Gallery, multimedia Gallery/Little Theater, pottery studio, and children's classrooms are all on the third level. The museum also houses Spanish Colonial art, Plains and Pueblo Indian artifacts, collections of historic photographs (of Trinidad), and cowboy and ranching material.
Down in the far southeastern part of the state is the town of La Veta. It is here that Kathy Wells Hill gets her artistic inspiration. Whether the medium be watercolor, oil, or acrylics, she creates wanderlust with her brilliant strokes. Not only does she work in La Veta, which lies at the foot of the Spanish Peaks and the Sangre de Cristos, but she also teaches and has her own gallery here. In addition to solos, she has shown her work with other artists at the Koshare Museum in La Junta, and at the A.R. Mitchell Museum in Trinidad.
The Sangre de Cristo Arts Center has six exhibition galleries. The Francis King Collection of Western Art, Gene Kloss Collection, and the Ruth Gast Collection of Historic Santos are their three permanent art collections. The Gene Kloss collection is the largest of all the artist's works anywhere, and the museum was also the recipient of her personal items. Here visitors can see her printmaking gear and tools. The Center also has its own library, the Ryals Family Library, named after its donors. This library holds Gene Kloss's own personal book collection, as well as the personal library of Western Art Collector Frances E. King.
The artists and galleries in Colorado hold aesthetic values, as well as educational ones. The artists of Colorado have created amazing works of art, creating rich tapestry of art that is a must-see for almost any vacation.
