Beautiful Broomfield – Exploring the City's Public Art Exhibits

By Bette Erickson

Spring is here! The natural beauty and amazing amenities of Broomfield are all around us, and in an exploration of the City’s massive parks and trails system, visitors will find that public art is also alive and well in Broomfield, if you just know where to look.

Since 2004, Broomfield’s Public Art Committee (PAC) has managed an art in public places program, when the city and county adopted a 1% for art program funded through capital improvement projects. Using capital improvement funds from developers, Broomfield has benefitted with enlivened public spaces that serve to nurture a sense of community identity.

Photo by Pat Eichner

Take the Sculpture Trail for example. Located just south of the dog park at Broomfield County Commons (13200 Sheridan Blvd.), a saunter along the wide, paved footpath yields a discovery of more than a half-dozen unique sculptures including Aardvark, a fabricated life size, three-dimensional aardvark and Who Rescued Who, a dog and person looking at each other nose-to-nose.

Another monument sized sculpture is Dancing Family by Artist Boris Kramer.

“I am a sculpture,” said Kramer. “I heat and form metal until it emulates expressions of human relationships. When heated, metal is very forgiving, which is why I choose it as a medium. Through art, I explore humanity. In particular, the ways in which we are drawn together.”

Photo by Pat Eichner

“If you think about it, art is meaningful in everyday life,” Broomfield resident Kevin Newhouse explained on a recent walk along the Sculpture Trail. “Art in public spaces offers opportunities for visitors to connect, showcases a community’s unique identity and sense of pride and maybe even offers value to our wellbeing.”

Indeed, the Mission of the PAC states, “The mission of Broomfield Public Art is to reflect community spirit, enrich conversations, engage community, and elevate a sense of belonging.”

Photo by Pat Eichner

Another important and vibrant art endeavor in Broomfield is the first large-scale mural project in the community. The PAC sought to bring conversation, representation, and awareness to complex issues of mental health, diversity, suicide prevention, and inclusion with its eight murals installed on the brick wall at the intersection of Hwy 128 and US 287.

And the result was nothing short of amazing. The PAC’s goal was to give voice to essential conversations in our community through this multi-artist project. Rising teen suicides, increasing awareness of necessary equality work and more, were the cornerstones of the project’s theme. Multiple artists created works which complemented other artists’ visions at a critical traffic junction in the city.

If you’ve walked, cycled or driven by the southeast corner of 136 th Avenue and Main St., you may have noticed a large traffic box wrapped in floral vinyl. With that project, the PAC is hoping to beautify city corners by covering existing traffic boxes with original art. The vinyl wraps, which cost about $1,800, are popular and are an inexpensive way to add color and art around the city and county.

For more information about art in Broomfield, visit www.broomfield.org/145/Public-Art-Committee.

Bette Erickson writes about people, places, and events in Broomfield. Contact her at bette_erickson@hotmail.com with your story ideas.