Arty Parties: Your Guide to February’s First Friday

In a world being overwhelmed by unsolicited AI-generated cyber junk, artists create work that reminds us what it means to be human, whether it’s through repetitive patterns, lush paintings of nature or themes of culture and family — all types of work that can be found around Denver this month as galleries open new exhibitions ahead of First Friday.

First Friday is a largely unofficial monthly event celebrating community, culture and art on the First Friday of every month, drawing thousands of people looking to shop, eat, browse galleries and immerse themselves in the arts scene of the Art District on Santa Fe, the River North Art District (RiNo), Tennyson Street Cultural District, 40 West Arts District in Lakewood and more. The colder months are a good time to duck into galleries and check out the city’s art.

February’s First Friday falls on February 6, and every month, Westword lists some of the most interesting shows opening, plus ongoing shows worth a visit.

But first:

Where is First Friday in Denver?

Art District on Santa Fe: Spans from West 13th Avenue to Alameda Avenue and Kalamath Street to Inca Street. The bulk of the galleries are in a walkable area between Fifth and 11th avenues.

RiNo: Most galleries are on Blake, Walnut, Larimer and Lawrence streets between Broadway and Downing Street.

Tennyson Street: Along Tennyson Street in the Berkeley neighborhood in northwest Denver.

40 West Arts District: Lamar Station Plaza, 6501 West Colfax Avenue, Lakewood

There are art galleries all over the city, though! Other popular locations include the 1400-1500 blocks of South Pearl Street, and arts areas in Englewood, Littleton, Arvada and Colorado Springs. Englewood holds its art walk on the second Saturday of each month rather than on first Fridays.

Art Shows Opening Around February First Friday

There are new shows opening all over town on First Friday weekend. Here are some of the most intriguing:

Ostinatos
Opened January 29; On display through March 21
Robischon Gallery, 1740 Wazee Street
In musical terms, ostinatos are a continually repeated phrase or cadence. In Robischon Gallery’s Ostinatos group exhibit, eleven artists explore colorful, repetitive patterns in visual art.

Double Opening Reception: Brian Keith Stephens + Nadezda
Opening reception: Friday, February 6, 5-7 p.m.; On display through February 28
Abend Gallery, 1261 Delaware Street, Suite 2
My Mother Let Me Be a Cowboy by Brian Keith Stephens and She Is Garden by Nadezda open this month at Abend Gallery. Stephens’s exhibition explores a deeply personal approach to the cowboy, not as a costume, but as a symbol for freedom, uncertainty and courage. Meanwhile, Nadezda’s She Is Garden features a series of new paintings lush with greenery, gardens and warm light.

Ode to the Road: Resident Artists of the Wayfaring Band
Opening reception: Thursday, February 5, 5-8 p.m.; On display through February 13
Leon Gallery, 1112 East 17th Avenue
The Wayfaring Band’s Ode to the Road includes work by resident artists capturing the beauty of the disability community through painting, sculpture, dance, textiles, composition and more, with each piece serving “as an ode to the road and the relationships formed along the way.”

a different distance
Opened January 31; On display through March 8
Friend of a Friend, 3575 Chestnut Place
a different distance features the work of artists John Lake, Marius Lehene and Regan Rosburg, who wrestle with “incommunicable ideas
surrounding location through points in time, place, and mental state.” The exhibition includes installation work, paintings, photography and sculpture that weave together stories of depression, landscapes, nature and hope.

Nuestras Historias
Opened January 29; On display through May 17
Museo de las Americas, 861 Santa Fe Drive
Nuestras Historias/Our Stories is Museo de las Americas’ first-ever youth-curated exhibition, featuring work from young artists exploring themes of tradition, justice, identity and playfulness through embroidery, painting, drawing, ceramics, poetry and video.

Yes &…
Opened January 29; On display through May 3
Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, 1750 13th Street, Boulder
In Yes &…, eighteen contemporary visual artists are “united by their human-centered focus and perspective” as AI becomes increasingly ubiquitous. The artists of Yes & remind viewers of what it means to be human through colorful, imperfect and beautiful work.

RAW, CONCRETE
Opening reception: Friday, February 6, 5-8 p.m.; On display through February 28
Cottonwood Center for the Arts, 427 E Colorado Avenue
The Brutalist Movement of the 1950s-1980s got its name in part from the French phrase béton brut— “raw concrete,” according to Cottonwood Center for the Arts. The art center’s February call invited artists to create works influenced by Brutalism for RAW, CONCRETE, showing viewers pure materials, utility and economy, and a message on the importance of authenticity.

Ongoing Art Shows Worth a Visit

X Somos Chavos: Un Archivo de lo Banal (Oh Well, We Are Young: An Archive of the Mundane)
Through February 20
910Arts, 910 Santa Fe Drive, Studio 12B
This show features the work of artist Ruth Alvarez Luna, who describes the show as “a materialized archive of identity.” Within everyday banality “unfolds a culture that connects us and shapes us,” she says. “Mexican iconographies — our symbols, colors and gestures — operate as a silent language: they carry stories, inheritances, and affections even when we do not name them.”

The Long View: Making Art a Part of Life
Through February 23
DAVA, 1405 Florence Street, Aurora
The Long View is a retrospective of the work of Downtown Aurora Visual Arts founder Linda Graham and her constantly evolving nature as an artist. “This retrospective is so overwhelming and amazing,” Graham says. “I could never have dreamt of how it was going to turn out.”

Gone to the Dogs 8
Through March 1
Niza Knoll Gallery, 915 Santa Fe Drive
More than twenty juried artists are featured in Niza Knoll Gallery’s eighth iteration of Gone to the Dogs, artwork dedicated to Denver’s favorite four-legged friends. The exhibition includes drawings, paintings, photographs and more — showing off the variety of pooch personalities.

Illuminations and Ruminations: Photographs & Other Works by Albert Chong
Through March 18
Emmanuel Art Gallery, 1205 10th Street Plaza
Illuminations and Ruminations is a retrospective of the work of Albert Chong since he moved to Colorado in the early ’90s. Often featuring themes of ancestors, family members and other important figures in the artist’s life, the exhibit revolves around Chong’s photography and sculpture work.

Gary Simmons: Rush
Through May 9
Cookie Factory, 425 West 4th Avenue
The Cookie Factory‘s latest show features the work of Gary Simmons, known for using erasure as both a material process and a conceptual strategy. Recognized his unconventional use of the blackboard, Simmons brings the medium into the exhibition space, drawing with chalk and partially erasing it by hand, commenting on history, imposed identities and a liberated vision of the future.

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