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'Tis the season?
The value of The Dairy Center for the Arts to the Boulder community is evident in the community support for this event, an idea that was inspired by the "Cows on Parade" project in Chicago. Given Colorado's ranking as 50th in funding for the arts, and Boulder's long-time support of art and artists, event chairman Lynn Grigsby recognized an opportunity to organize an independent project similar in nature. Of course Boulder doesn't have the same kind of financial freedom or affinity for cows as Chicago, so creative adjustments had to be made. A history major and artist, Grigsby began by asking the question, "Where did the Dairy get its name?" and let the research lead her. The facility that now houses the Dairy and its 14 resident arts organizations was previously the Watts-Hardy Dairy, a 40,000 square foot dairy processing and storage facility. Grigsby decided to re-create the arched door and frame of the original building using 130-year-old wood planks, clay and miniature brass hardware. Then, she cast a rubber mold from that piece to serve as a symbol of The Dairy's role as Boulder's "doorway to the Arts." Last June, she and the committee for the Nuts and Bolts Event selected 21 artists and gave them 20-inch-by-30-inch white casts of the door to decorate or transform. Since Oct. 1, the Dairy Doors have been on public display at locations throughout the city. "The artists really got into the spirit of the project," says Grigsby. "We're thrilled by the originality, diversity and quality of the finished Doors, each of which represents an artist's generous donation of time, energy and materials." An avid supporter of art, community and all things free, I hopped on my bike to see how many Doors I could hit in an afternoon. My scavenger hunt began at Breadworks bakery on north Broadway. Doing away with the original mold, artist Cha Cha designed a steel Door etched with hieroglyphics. A maroon orchid set against a teal background peeks out of the window. Cha Cha's piece is a beautiful object that raises interesting questions: What is the relationship between the task and the product in a community project? And how far can an artist push the boundaries of a group assignment before creative ingenuity overpowers unity? Artist Stephen Smalzel takes an inspiring approach to the challenge. He flips it completely around. Smalzel is the only artist to play with both the physical and social construction of the Door, turning it horizontally and transforming it into a big bursting sunflower. Just like his landscapes that hang beside it at Mary Williams Fine Arts gallery, Smalzel's Door invites you to walk through it (or in this case, to crawl on your side). For a whimsical mish-mash of whacked-out delight, you must check out Gayle Crites' Door at the Smith-Klein Gallery. "All great paintings have a sense of mystery about them," Crites says. And the gold-knockered, angel-winged, crescent-mooned creation-complete with plastic Wizard of Oz figurines-certainly make her words ring true. Meanwhile, Rik Sargent's Door at Q's Restaurant negotiates the limitations presented by the project by literally bending the rules. Sargent has replaced the provided Door with a cracked and weathered Door of his own that peels back from a haunting landscape painted on the original frame. I wish I could have checked out all of the Doors around town that day. I hear the Door at Trios and the two hanging in the window at Barnes and Nobles prove worthy strays off the Pearl Street path. But I figure there's still a week of October left, and, anyway, I plan to attend the black tie bash on Nov. 1 to see the faces of the talented artists behind their Doors of perception. Respond: letters@boulderweekly.com Artflash events for the week of 10/24/02
Boulder County John Weller - Nature photography. National Center for Atmospheric Research, Gallery 1, 1850 Table Mesa Dr., Boulder, through Nov. 1. Liv Helmericks - Substructure paintings. Andrew J. Macky Gallery, Macky Auditorium, CU Boulder, 303-492-8423, through Nov. 13. "Neutral Ground" - Work by Stefan Kleinschuster. Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, 1750 13th St., Boulder, 303-443-2122, through Nov. 9. Paintings - By Gail Gitin and Melissa Scheid Fratz. Dearborn Rieder Fine Art Gallery, 1420 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-442-4777, through Oct. 27. "Prominent Features" - Work by Carrie Olson. Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, 1750 13th St., Boulder, 303-443-2122, through Nov. 9. Robert Striffolino - Oil paintings. Maclaren Markowitz Gallery, 1011 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-449-6807, through Oct. 31. "Streams of Vision Are a Sometimes Cloud of Being" - Work by Annie O'Brien. Magnum Opus Fine Art Gallery, 366 S. McCaslin Blvd., Louisville, 720-890-4948, through Oct. 30. "Whose Song Shall I Sing?" - Work by Juan Logan. Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, 1750 13th St., Boulder, 303-443-2122, through Nov. 9.
Denver Metro "Colorado Men in Clay" - A group show. Artists on Sante Fe, 747 Sante Fe Dr., Denver, 303-573-5903, through Nov. 16. "Nineteenth Century Communication: Canals, Harbors, Waterways and Telegraphs" - Unique maps. Denver Central Library, Level 4, 10 14th Ave. Pkwy., Denver, 720-865-1111, through Dec. 15. "Peace" - A group show. Heart Studio and Gallery, 4325 W. 41st Ave., Denver, 303-480-1053, through Oct. 24. Rick Visser - Mixed-media works. Barking Dog Café, 447 Main St., Lyons, 303-823-9600, through Oct. 30. |
As Halloween looms ever closer and nostalgic longings for sugar rushes and shaving cream wars nearly overtake you, fear not: The Dairy Center for the Arts is providing an exciting but perfectly grown-up reason for going door to door. This year's annual fund-raiser for the Dairy features 21 Doors designed by local artists and displayed in stores, restaurants and galleries all over town. The Doors will be hanging for the rest of this month and will then be auctioned off at the Nuts and Bolts Event on Nov. 1. With open bars, gourmet cuisine, a live and silent auction, and music by Triad, this is a party not to be missed.
