Ivar Zeile of Plus Gallery says he’s never hosted an MFA thesis show before, though he’s undoubtedly had the opportunity. But there was something about the work of University of Denver grad student and adjunct professor Kristin Stransky — a combination of 3-D printing technology, digital imaging and interactive projects…
Sex later in life is a subject many people try not to think about, but retired English teacher Jane Juska opened up a whole discussion on the subject when she serendipitously placed this personal ad in the New York Review of Books: “Before I turn 67 — next March —…
One reason Westword awarded last summer’s inaugural Valverde Bazaar the Best New Flea Market designation in our 2014 Best of Denver issue is the fact that it’s so hard to pin down, and that keeps us all on our toes. Like a labyrinth of earthly delights, the Valverde is a…
Nobody knows better than Tracy Weil, who’s been there from the start, how much the River North Art District has grown and changed in the past ten or so years. But most people who now come to RiNo to enjoy its bountiful galleries, restaurants, breweries and watering holes don’t know…
Downtown Denver will be ground zero this afternoon if you’re looking for something fun, free and totally unexpected to do: From 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., students from the University of Colorado Denver’s College of Arts & Media digital design program will put their learning to work for the two-hour Kinesthesia…
Earlier this week, twenty handpicked local artists, each representing a different Denver restaurant or bar, gathered at the McNichols Building, where they’d been invited to participate in the touring “Red Bull Curates: The Canvas Cooler Project,” a contest that could take two of them all the way to Art Basel…
Denver Cruiser Ride big wheel Brad Evans continues to find ways to keep the weekly, costumed bike crawl on a roll. So when the first ride of 2014 — with a “Reds and Robes” theme — starts tonight at five bar locations, the shared destination will be a bona fide…
#83: Andy Berg Andy Berg sees painting as an inner calling, and offers no conceptual mumbo-jumbo when explaining what he does: He paints. His large abstract canvases are imbued with the mystery of invention and the creative process, and almost paint themselves — using Berg and his armory of brushes…
In a town with such an active co-op and alternative art scene, you don’t want to limit your gallery adventures to First Fridays — because you’d miss out on a lot of great art, including shows opening this weekend. Keep reading for a trio of exhibits worth seeing. See also:…
While debate continues over the city’s handling of public art projects, there are some promising back-door efforts in the private sector. One of those, the OneWall Project, sponsored by Bellco and the Denver Theatre District, will get off the ground tonight when its first effort, MASSIVE, a celebration of work…
“One morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got in my pajamas, I don’t know.” It’s vaudevillian lines like this, uttered famously by Groucho Marx as Captain Jeffrey T. Spaulding in the Marx Brothers classic Animal Crackers, that let you know you’re not anyplace even resembling modern…
CultureHaus, a young-professionals’ support group for the Denver Art Museum, works all year to raise funds for selective DAM programming. But Banner — a big party with changing artsy themes — is its annual blowout, and this year’s event, Banner 2014: Art of Light, will be particularly illuminating, as well…
MCA Denver’s Huevos Rancheros series is more than just a chance exchange of culture, says museum programming director Sarah Kate Baie; after three years of exhibits and programs with Guadalajaran artists, it’s becoming more of a bridge. “Guadalajara is a city a lot like Denver in many ways,” Baie notes…
It’s the little things that help a community thrive, and that’s where ArtPlant artist residencies fit into Denver’s scene, spreading the wealth by creating an atmosphere of good will and collaboration. Last fall the program’s first resident, Kansas City installation artist Rashawn Griffin, took full advantage of the ArtPlant offer,…
Last summer, Ivar Zeile and Ryan Pattie of Denver Digerati brought a quiet revolution to the Denver Theatre District’s giant LED screens: Between the ads and promos most often seen flashing on the screens, Zeile and Pattie’s curated series of short Friday Flash programs traded commerce for cutting-edge digital art…
#84: Joel Swanson Words and letters and the physical act of writing elegantly float through Joel Swanson’s world, where he explores and deconstructs their shapes and meanings in stylish installations. And he’s a busy man: Swanson started the year with a well-received solo at MCA Denver; now he’s off on…
First Friday comes but once a month, with an embarrassment of gallery riches: fresh exhibitions, pop-up parties, people-watching, performances and great art. Organized navigation isn’t always necessary to have a good time on First Friday; still, it doesn’t hurt to have some direction — especially since there are some don’t-miss…
#85: Kristin Stransky There’s a new kind of alchemy happening in the art world, a creative compound where art and science merge. At the University of Denver, it’s called Emergent Digital Practices, and Kristin Stransky, who teaches there, is at the forefront of the movement, making stuff that wouldn’t have…
Once upon a time, there was Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, and together they were the Swell Season, a pair of folk-rockers from Ireland and Czechoslovakiathe Czech Republic and then out of, love. Ironically, the bandmates became enamored while making the 2006 film Once, the story of an Irish and…
Ceramics artist Jean Smith chose the enigmatic title Teased, Torn, Coddled & Pampered for her annual showcase at Zip 37 Gallery, but her explanation makes sense: “It’s how I work with the clay,” she says. “Sometimes I kinda tease it, and then you have to coddle and pamper it as…
Technology has already drastically changed the way we get things done, and on its tail comes a pioneering wave of DIY entrepreneurship. We call people who’ve found a way to fuse the two “makers,” and if you count yourself among that group, the inaugural Denver Mini Maker Faire, set for…
For its fourth year, carver and show organizer Rob Yancey decided to move the annual Muertos in May art exhibit to the heart of his Westwood/Morrison Road neighborhood to raise awareness of positive changes, from new murals to new development, taking place in the depressed area. “It’s the most overlooked…
