Emerson Woelffer, et al. The Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center has a rich assortment of attractions this summer. An Exhibition by Dale Chihuly showcases the artist's '70s-era glass work, which was inspired by American Indian art. One of his chandeliers has been installed in the lobby, and the solo also features the "Navajo Blanket Cylinder" series, which is cleverly paired with a show devoted to actual Navajo weavings. The CSFAC is also sampling its permanent collection with two gorgeous exhibits: Realism and Illusion and Art for Art's Sake. The former is filled with representational art, the later with abstraction. Don't miss the newly acquired Paul Cadmus or the many old favorites that have long languished in storage -- especially that Richard Diebenkorn. If all this weren't enough, there's also the spectacular retrospective Emerson Woelffer: Life in the Abstract. Woelffer was a Los Angeles artist who was a key player in the Colorado modernist scene in the 1950s, when he was director of the now-defunct-though-then-famous art school at the FAC. All shows through August 15 at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, 30 West Dale Street, Colorado Springs, 1-719-634-5581. Reviewed July 15.
LIFE ON EARTH and children's games. Pirate has been on quite a run lately with more good shows presented there in just the last few months than have been seen during entire years previously. Add LIFE ON EARTH to the list of these top-drawer attractions at Pirate. This impressive solo by co-op member Peter Illig is on display in the main space. The highlight is the unveiling of the artist's monumental "Deep Reality" drawing which, by the way, is 64-feet long! Illig is known for his noir-ish representational imagery, and "Deep Reality" doesn't disappoint in this regard; it features a large complement of enigmatic figures and objects arranged in free association. In the Associates' Space in the back is another great show, children's games, which is made up of Taos-based artist Warren Kelly's latest neo-transcendental abstract paintings. Clearly an outgrowth of his "Loop" series exhibited last winter at Cordell Taylor, but these new paintings are obviously different, too. They are more baroquely composed and more wildly colored than are the earlier pieces. Through August 1 at Pirate: a contemporary art oasis, 3659 Navajo Street, 303-458-6058.
Ordinary Adornments and Mr. Sparkle. The +Zeile Judish Gallery is highlighting the recent work of a pair of young artists. In the front is Ordinary Adornments, which is made up of New York artist William Crow's wall-mounted constructions that look like surrealist still-life scenes, among other things. The shapes are organic, but the surfaces are a riot of created and appropriated visual flourishes carried out via various materials, including paint and wallpaper. Crow's compositions have a retro feel, and the forms he uses recall those favored by Jean Arp and Joan Miró. The show in the back, Mr Sparkle, takes it's name from a Simpsons cartoon, and also reflects back on earlier modernism -- but in this case it's Andy Warhol and Kenneth Noland. Denver-area painter Colin Livingston creates smart and good-looking paintings that aesthetically are at the intersection of pop and minimalism. Livingston adds text to essentially hard-edged abstractions of the neo-minimalist sort. A pattern painting in green, black and white has the motto "The Original (Party Painting)" filling most of the bottom half. They are clever and conventionally beautiful at the same time. Through August 21 at +Zeile Judish, 2350 Lawrence Street, 303-296-0927.
Painting a New World. There are no famous artists in the Denver Art Museum's current blockbuster, but even without that kind of draw, it really shouldn't be missed. Donna Pierce, the museum's curator of Spanish Colonial art, organized it in-house, which means that it's a rare bird -- a traveling show that's actually departing from Denver instead of arriving here. The local origin is reason enough to check it out, but there are fifty other reasons, too: the magnificent paintings. Pierce started working on the project in 1999, when she was hired. Many of the pieces are from the collection of Jan and Fred Mayer, longtime museum donors, but Pierce not only hunted for things here in town, she also searched for them in the museums and private collections of Mexico and Europe. Many of the works on display are the kind we'd expect -- Spanish baroque religious paintings -- but others are completely unexpected, such as two unforgettable paintings carried out in feathers, an art form associated with the Aztecs. Through July 25 at the Denver Art Museum, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway, 720-865-5000. Reviewed April 29.
Repeat Offenders. The summer extravaganza at the Singer Gallery of the Mizel Center for Arts and Culture is Repeat Offenders: Serial Works by Colorado Artists. This large, over-the-top exhibit was put together by Simon Zalkind, Singer's highly regarded director and curator. The idea for the show -- work that has repeated or related imagery -- is fairly open ended since nearly all artists work in series. That means that nearly anyone could have been eligible -- which is probably why he crammed in pieces by more than two dozen artists. For the show, Zalkind selected paintings, prints and photographs by some of the best-known talents in the area, including, among a host of others, Stephen Batura, Roland Bernier, Clare Cornell, Sushe Felix, Susan Goldstein, Karen Kitchel, Bethany Kriegsman, Jerry Kunkel, Andrea Modica, Jeff Star and Eric Zimmer. In addition, Zalkind put in work by a smattering of youngsters just out of the gate. The kids hold up surprisingly well in the heady company, especially emerging photographer Jason Patz. Through August 22 at the Singer Gallery, Mizel Center for Arts and Culture, 350 South Dahlia Street, 303-399-2660. Reviewed June 24.
scene Colorado/sin Colorado. The Denver Art Museum's local extravaganza, scene Colorado/sin Colorado, has quickly become one of the most talked-about shows this year. And that's no surprise considering that it includes more than three dozen Colorado artists represented by more than seventy works of art. Dianne Vanderlip, curator of modern and contemporary art, organized the exhibit, pulling work from the impressive holdings of the DAM's permanent collection. A couple of the artists included no longer live here -- notably Gary Sweeney, whose piece inspired the show's title, and "genius grant" recipient Robert Adams -- but their works in this show were created when they did. Vanderlip decided to exclude deceased Colorado artists -- and that's too bad. However, even with this limitation, she's undeniably assembled a worthy cavalcade of talent. The pieces date back over the past quarter century, which is the period during which Vanderlip has held the modern and contemporary reins at the DAM. Though far from encyclopedic, the show does cover a lot of ground. Through August 22 at the Denver Art Museum, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway, 720-865-5000. Reviewed June 17.
Truth, Tales and Other Lies. The current duet at the Edge Gallery, Truth, Tales and Other Lies, pairs up work by Tim Flynn and Gayla Lemke. Both Flynn and Lemke are established artists who have exhibited around the area for years. Flynn is well known for his delicate, constructed sculptures, and Lemke for her ceramics sculptures. Flynn incorporates bent metal wire into his pieces, which recall abstract surrealism from the 1930s. The completely abstract arte povera-style Flynn constructions are very elegant despite the lowly wire and found materials out of which they're made. The pieces are completely abstract, and don't seem to have any narrative content, except in their titles, such as the one called "Mightier Than the Sword." Lemke is more pointed in her narrative because she marks her ceramics with words that clearly convey her sentiments. In "Hope Stones," Lemke covered small, ceramic shapes with quotes questioning the value of war. The forms are evocative of natural stones, but the words are crisp and mechanical, having been made with typeset letters pushed into the clay when it was wet. Both through August 8 at the Edge Gallery, 3658 Navajo Street, 303-838-8571.
