Vail's Public Art Nationally Recognized
10th Mountain Division Memorial Scott Stearmand and Vicor Issa Bronze, 1998
(Vail)—Vail continues to receive national attention for its public art. The latest work to be recognized is the Verdant Meadows outdoor ice sculpture exhibit which was created along Gore Creek during the winter of 2008. Sponsored by the Town of Vail Art in Public Places (AIPP), the sculptures were a collaboration between Denver artist Lawrence Argent and ice sculptor Scott Rella. They’ve been named among America’s best public art projects in the U.S. for 2008. The award was announced during this year’s Americans for the Arts annual convention in Seattle which took place June18-20.
Vail is one of only 45 award recipients from among 32 cities in 15 states and the only recipient in Colorado to be honored by Americans for the Arts this year. There were more than 300 entries from across the country. Americans for the Arts is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in the U.S.
“Verdant Meadows was a truly exciting public art project,” said Leslie Fordham, who served as Vail’s AIPP coordinator until recently. “People applauded when it lit up at night and expressed sadness when it melted in the springtime.”
Verdant Meadows, which represented a larger-than-life alpine meadow, included 17 ice sculptures, some 8 to 12 feet high. They were illuminated with LED’s for nighttime appeal. Due to the exhibit’s popularity, and thanks to the generosity of Triumph Development and other sponsors, AIPP presented a second Triumph Winterfest ice sculpture exhibit last winter called Conduit, which has been featured in the June issue of Sculpture magazine.
This is the second year Vail has been recognized by the Americans for the Arts. In 2008 the AIPP program was honored for its Windmill Project featuring artist Patrick Marold and his 2,700 hand-made light generating windmills which were installed during the spring of 2007. The exhibit makes its way to Burlington, Vt., beginning in August.
Vail’s recognition comes while AIPP is launching its most ambitious summer program to date which includes the initiation of a sculpture loan program with the Denver Art Museum, three art exhibitions, the recent dedication of artwork on Meadow Drive, an outdoor painting contest, bronze sculpture workshops, demonstrations and guided tours of the art collection. Most of the public art activities are free and open to the public. For details, visit www.artinvail.com or contact Greg Hall at 479-2160.
Email
Print
Feed
