October 4, 1957: a dark day for America, the day the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the first artificial satellite ever to orbit Earth. It was the first milestone of the USA vs. USSR space race, and we totally blew it. But we didn’t let it get us down. On the…
This is one in a series of posts in honor of Denver Arts Week that salute some of our favorite people and places on the arts scene. “Linda,” John DeAndrea’s life-like sculpture of a sleeping woman, is one of Denver’s favorite and most mysterious artworks. Since the Denver Art Museum…
Beverly McIver, whose work was displayed in a solo show last year at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, is the kind of painter who pulls no punches. She paints bold, expressionistic statements based on her experience as an African-American woman, touching unflinchingly on issues of race and class. And…
The long-awaited opening of the Clyfford Still Museum takes place next week, and I was able to get an advance look inside. Before I report on that, however, here’s a quick rundown of its history. Clyfford Still attained master status by being among the pioneers of abstract expressionism, the style…
This is part of a series of posts in honor of Denver Arts Week, saluting some of our favorite people and places on the arts scene. I didn’t think my childhood was different from that of anyone else who grew up in a working class home — until a slumber…
When Carlos Fresquez teaches young children about Día de los Muertos, the day of the dead, he has a strategy for making the skeletal imagery not so scary: “I would just say, hey, knock on your head. There’s a bone in there. You yourself are a skeleton. And when you…
What is Colorado culture? It’s a good question, and one that is either fiercely debated or laughed off, depending on who you talk to. For example, when Kenneth C. Arkind, a local poet and Hot Congress Collective member, went to New York recently, he overheard a few people talking about…
This year’s Denver Arts Week will be bigger than ever, boasting the largest number of participating theaters, museums, galleries and artists that the city has yet seen for the annual celebration. The festivities begin tonight, and are coinciding for the first time with the Mayor’s Awards for Excellence in the…
Ain’t it beautiful? That’s Judy Anderson and Salvador Flores-Martinez of Denver’s PlatteForum accepting the 2011 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award from Michelle Obama yesterday at the White House. Their voyage to Washington also marked Sal’s first-ever jet flight and an ensuing sense of utter awe at being in…
Unlike California or Florida, Colorado isn’t known as a sports car state. We simply have too much crazy weather. But, despite mother nature’s push to get us into all-wheel drive vehicles year round, there is a market for super-fast, super expensive sports cars. Ferrari of Denver specializes in selling cars…
Cold beer, crispy tacos and badass skull art was the trifecta of treats last night at El Diablo. The restaurant at 101 Broadway was packed wall-to-wall for the third annual Dia de los Muertos Tattoo Artist Skull Show & Charity Auction, and the only thing better than the Day of…
Light Supply, a glowing group exhibition that opened last summer amidst a flurry of local shows playing with light, features works by a number of well-respected magicians of illumination. Three of them — Lonnie Hanzon, Jen Lewin and Collin Parson — will join Museum of Outdoor Arts director Cynthia Madden…
The cat’s now out of the bag: Earlier today, PlatteForum founder and artistic director Judy Anderson, education director Meagan Terry and nineteen-year-old student representative Salvador Flores-Martinez were honored at the White House by First Lady Michelle Obama, when they were handed their 2011 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award,…
What is street art? Where does it belong? We’re still asking that question. But in the meantime, this moment frozen in time comes from artist Rodney Wallace, who spotted it on a counter at the DUI education center, BI Incorporated. We won’t ask what he was doing there, but he…
PlatteForum has some big news to share with you. Problem is, the folks behind the Central Platte Valley nonprofit that pairs artist mentors with at-risk youth in collaboration with partnering youth programs can’t talk about it. Not yet. Let’s just say it involves a major honor, some money and even…
Sometimes the exhibition calendar seems to have a mind of its own, which is periodically revealed when there is a critical mass of shows on the same or similar topics all being mounted around the same time. This season, there have been many shows featuring unconventional views of Colorado. Some…
Everyone knows that, aside from being the greatest of facial accoutrements, the mustache serves several versatile and important societal functions — it’s great for saving small amounts of food, for example, and it’s incredibly sexy — but did you know that the mustache can also cure cancer? That’s the idea…
Quit horsing around! It’s time to come clean about how you feel about the public art at Denver International Airport, a collection that includes everything from Gary Sweeney’s beloved “America, Why I Love Her” to the loved, and loathed, “Mustang,” aka Blucifer, the devil horse. From 5 to 7 p.m…
What is it about Paonia? That scenic, green-leaning Western Slope haven of old hippies, envirojournalists and organic gardeners has produced yet another grim work of post-apocalyptic, steampunk sci-fi, set in a near-future devastated by climate change, genetically engineered plagues and humanity’s boundless capacity for betrayal and debasement. The book is…
Last weekend, zombies filled downtown. This weekend, it was gorillas — 1,200 of them, all participating in the eighth annual 5K Gorilla Run, which benefits the Denver-based Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund. That’s more runners than there are mountain gorillas left in the wild. See the slide show here…
Bill Amundson, once a local character and still the inimitable creator of what might be the densest work on the planet, took off last year for his home state of Wisconsin. But he’s back for a visit, and what might be the show of his lifetime (at least so far):…
Being a haunted house actor is a real niche job and one with a fairly short season. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy, says Mythica von Griffyn. In fact, acting in a haunted house takes a lot of work, with make-up, costuming and the constant need to frighten people for…
