AwA Collabs

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The MEDICINE of ART

ON THE CORNER of Sixth & Oak Streets, the new Health and Human Services building has a mission to improve the quality of life for people in Northwest Colorado through safety, self-sufficiency and a contemplation of art.

One of the most notable features of the new building is the impressive collection of art by local creatives. Purchasing Director Julie Kennedy worked with Steamboat Creates to identify pieces that would create an atmosphere of calm, reflection and hope. “This is one of the most significant public art projects for our local artists in the history of the town,” said Kim Keith, Executive Director of Steamboat Creates. “It truly shows a commitment to work with, celebrate and invest in local creatives.”

The artists commissioned are a who’s who of Routt County sculptors, painters, glass artists, photographers and more. Names like Jill Bergman, Wendy Kowynia and Chloe Wilwerding may be familiar to AwA readers. In addition are artists who have sold work nationally and globally and are now hoping to inspire people as they begin to transform their lives. The opportunity has created new collaborations between artists including Denise Bohart Brown and Sandy Graves, whose Dragonfly installation fuses bronze dragonflies with glass wings. “In almost every part of the world, the dragonfly represents change, transformation, adaptability and self-

by AwA

realization—in our minds, that is the definition of the human condition”, say the artists. The creatures hang from the ceiling in the same way you would see dragonflies gather near water, with grace and flow that makes them appear they are in motion.

Ceramicist Julie Anderson’s Shaped by Our Environment, brings aspen trees to life, with a twist. Some of the aspens have a split where a soft underbelly of natural textures is revealed, held together by ceramic buttons, screws and zippers, in the same manner we often hold ourselves together day-by-day with whatever tools we can.

Another collaboration by woodworker David Winters and painter Madeleine Burrough takes viewers into a literal gardening shed, or Potting Shed filled with seeds, plants and tools; anything one might need to grow and bloom. The tools will be crafted by paint and by wood, for a more immersive experience. This is a space where life begins and can be nurtured just as the building, serves as a space for life to begin again and be nurtured.

There will also be a collaboration of 5th grade students from Sleeping Giant, Soda Creek and Strawberry Park elementary schools. Each student will have the opportunity to create a ceramic tile to reflect their personal identity. The tiles will be placed within a larger installation called Youth Identity.

The intention to bring art into a building focused on health recognizes the critical role art can play in contemplation, inspiration and healing.

ELEVATE THE ARTS: Visit the Health and Human Services Building at 135 Sixth Street to view artwork by Steamboat’s top artists. Purchase local artwork by visiting Steamboat’s galleries. An Artwalk brochure can be picked up at the Depot Art Center. AwA

Containers for Knowledge, by Chloe Wilwerding

“ The mixed-media series explores the interplay between the physical, mental and emotional aspects of being human.”

Photo courtesy of Chloe Wilwerding

“call it a soul, a presence…making art was really about the problem of the soul, how not to lose it. How to inhabit the world and not become lost to it.”

Rachel Kushner, The Flamethrowers