The Art Center of Western Colorado, formerly known as The Western Colorado Center for the Arts, is located at 1803 North Seventh Street in Grand Junction, Colorado. Founded in 1953, the art center has a permanent collection comprising mainly regional Western art. Its facilities also include four galleries, a gift shop, two enclosed courtyards, as well as several studios and classrooms.
History The Art Center originated from the Beaux Arts Club, a small group of people interested in painting during the 1920s. This club eventually evolved into the Fine Arts Association."Depression, War Big Obstacles, but Center for Arts 'Healthy'" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel July 4, 1976 Pg. 60 In February 1953, the group incorporated themselves as the Mesa County Art Center."Cultural Confidential: The Art Center celebrates 55 years" Glenwood Springs Post Independent September 4, 2008 In 1957, the organization was granted 501(c)(3) status. Then, in January 1968, the members of the organization voted to change its name to the Western Colorado Center for the Arts.
In 1947, Fred Mantey, a local philanthropist, offered to donate one acre of land and $1,000 to establish an art center in Grand Junction. Alfred Nestler, who was an interior decorator, artist, and Mantey's son-in-law, took the initiative to promote the idea and enlisted the support of other artists to organize the effort."Arts Center Program will Honor Founders" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel November 2, 1986 Mantey's donation became official in 1953.
Other people who dedicated their resources and time to the founding of the Art Center and served on its board included: E.L. Bacon- president of US Bank at the time Verona Burkhard - an artist and teacher, who designed and created the copper doors in the first building constructed to house the Art Center.
By 1940, the group had acquired and purchased six paintings for the Art Center's permanent collection. These artworks were stored at the central branch of the Mesa County Public Library and at Mesa Junior College (which later became Colorado Mesa University).McNab, Cheryl "Western Colorado Center for the Arts: Employee Handbook" 2012
The fundraising campaign encompassed various events and activities such as artists' balls, exhibits, sidewalk art sales, musical shows and rummage sales. One of the efforts involved a petition to school children, encouraging them to purchase a brick' for the new building for 25 cents. Art clubs in the area, such as the Brush and Palette Club, Paint for Pleasure, the Wednesday Music Club, and the original Colorado chapter of the American Artists Professional League, actively supported fundraising efforts by organizing their own project.
In 1957, the board of trustees, with the approval of Mantey's widow, made the decision to sell the donated land because it was too far from the town center.
In May 1960, the organization bought and remodelled a two-story frame house at 1745 N. Seventh Street in Grand Junction. The building was meant to serve as a temporary location until an ideal structure could be built. The Mesa County Art Center facility opened its doors November 1960. The main floor of the house was used for exhibits and recitals. Painting classes were held upstairs, and ceramics classes were in the basement."The Art Center Celebrates 50 Years" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel special feature July 13, 2003 pg. O&A 2 The Art Center had 121 members.
By 1965, the Art Center had outgrown the original house. A professional fundraising effort kicked off in October 1967, and the Art Center took over its own campaign several months later. A new building was erected just north of the two-story house."Business Biography" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel March 12, 1978 pg. 6 The facility included a kitchen, classrooms, and an octagonal room with walls designed for exhibits. This room also included a stage for music and dance performances and productions of a community theater group. The Art Center moved in April, 1970. The Art Center also purchased additional land north of the new building to Orchard Avenue which now serves as the parking lot.
The Art Center hired its first director in September 1978,"Art Center's New Director to Take Post" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel October 11, 1978 pg. 34 and programs were expanded to include more classes and some major juried shows.
In 1982, the Art Center received a $100,000 donation from the Grand Junction Lions Club. This money came with two conditions: Matching funds must be raised from the community and the Art Center must break ground on its second expansion before January 1983. The Art Center broke ground on the expansion just weeks before the deadline."Ground broken for Addition to Western Slope Art Center" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel December 18, 1982 pg. 26 This expansion turned a 7,800-square-foot facility into a 14,000-square-foot building.Dodworth, Allen "Western Colorado Center for the Arts Expansion Proposal" 1981 Art Center historical archives, accessed June 2016. New features included a lobby with an art shop, two courtyards, the North Gallery, storage areas, and a ceramics studio. Storage and dressing rooms were added to the theater area during remodelling of the existing building. Both the house and the new building were owned free and clear. The Art Center planned to reopen with an exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution featuring works of 20th century artists, including Pablo Picasso."Going Up: Expanding Fine Arts Center Awaiting Summer Opening" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel May 15, 1983 pg. 15
The $750,000 expansion coincided with the collapse of the oil shale industry and downturn of Grand Junction's economy. The Arts Center's funding drive to pay for the expansion failed."Art Center Climbs Back into the Black" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel August 6, 1987 pg. 1B
By 1985, the Art Center had 760 members. However, new membership was down, and existing members were renewing at reduced levels. Simultaneously, the operating costs of the Art Center had increased, and both investment and program revenue were down. The Art Center turned its focus to local artists and exhibits, and cut its professional organization memberships."Interest in Arts Center is Up but Revenues are Down" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel May 12, 1985 pg. 4C. The director resigned, saying the Art Center could no longer afford his position."Art Center Director Resigns: Dwindling Funds Force Board of Trustees to Consider Changes" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel June 18, 1985 pg. 1B
In 1986, 10 members of the Board of Trustees put their own money into sponsoring the biggest juried art show undertaken in Grand Junction to date. The show, titled ART-USA, was organized in less than four months. A sum of $10,000 would be divided among the top four artists. The unusually high cash prizes were designed to attract a large number of entries, and announcements were sent to art schools and institutions nationwide. The board of trustees anticipated thousands of entrants, followed by thousands of visitors to the 6-week exhibition."Backers Plan Huge Show: ART USA aims for a $10,000 purse" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel February 23, 1986 pgs. 1C, 8C. ART-USA was the first time the Art Center charged admission to an exhibit."Newest Arts Center Director Looks to the Future, not Past" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel October 12, 1986 pg. 10C
In 1986, the Art Center Foundation was established. This endowment is a separate, supporting entity to the Art Center.
The second ART-USA exhibit saw 1,600 entries from across the US and abroad,"ART USA 'Running Away' with Success" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel August 23, 1987 pg. 8C and allowed the Art Center to repay its debts.
In the spring of 1989, Dr. Arch Gould approached the Art Center to donate $100,000 worth of Navajo rugs to the ACF permanent collection and $100,000 to expand the Art Center facility if the community could raise $100,000 for the long-term maintenance of the collection. A collector from the eastern United States promised six additional rugs worth an estimated $75,000."Funding Success: Navajo Rug Challenge Nearly Met" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel September 8, 1990 The new space, dubbed the Gould Gallery, was dedicated in January 1991.
Beginning in the 1990s, the Art Center struggled once again with space restrictions, high use, and limited finances. The Art Center tried twice to negotiate a loan from the city of Grand Junction, but was unsuccessful."Arts Center Finds Unlikely City Ally" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel May 28, 1992 pg. 1A In 1992, an emergency membership drive was staged, and the board agreed to charge a general admission fee to the Art Center as a "last resort.""Arts Center Seeking Funds to Remain Open" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel June 23, 1992 pg. 1B
The Art Center has tried twice to relocate for the sake of space. In 1993, the Art Center abandoned plans to move into the old Main Street Mercantile building when another buyer beat it to the purchase."Arts Center Loses Ground on Fulfilling Goal to Move" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel February 1, 1993 pg. 1B In 2001, the Art Center approached city parks officials with a proposal to build a new art center on a former mill-tailings site near the Colorado River, adjacent to the Grand Junction Botanical Gardens,"Arts Center wants to relocate on city land near the river" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel February 16, 2001 pg. 1B but this relocation plan was eventually shelved in favor of addressing more immediate goals at the current center. The Art Center devoted itself to maximizing use of the current space and expanding existing programs."A year of celebration; Art Center turns 50, plans a variety of events" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel January 3, 2003 supplementary publication
2000s
In 2009, High Noon Solar donated and installed a 9.02-KW solar electric grid tie system to the Art Center, and Blue Moon Electric donated time and energy to help wire the system."The Art Center goes solar" Glenwood Springs Post Independent January 1, 2009 That same year, the Art Center also sponsored a used bookstore, with books donated by local artists, to raise funds for the young adult intern and scholarship programs."Best Kept Secret: Book store at The Art Center" Glenwood Springs Post Independent March 5, 2009
Renovations totaling $80,000 have adapted the building to meet the requirements of the American With Disabilities Act."Grand Junction Art Center's new director to focus on strengths" Glenwood Springs Post Independent August 27, 2015
Permanent collection The Art Center maintains over 600 works of art in its permanent collection, some of which are owned by the Art Center Foundation. The collection includes western landscape painting, Navajo rugs, and Ancestral Puebloan pottery. The two most represented artists are Alfred Nestler and Paul Pletka. A collection of Japanese art—mostly ukiyo-e prints but also drawings, bugaku masks, and woodcuts by Shiko Munakata—was bequeathed to the ACF in 2015 by Bill Robinson, the founderof Colorado Mesa University's theater department.Mawdsley, Melinda "Robinson feted for 90th Birthday" Grand Junction Daily Sentinel January 13, 2013
Programs and partnerships The Art Center offers classes, workshops and exhibits.
The Art Center offers an average of 15 regular classes each session, with five sessions per year. Additionally, the Art Center puts on 18 to 24 workshops per year."Avery Glassman takes over curatorial position at Western Colorado Center for the Arts" Glenwood Springs Post Independent December 11, 2014
Classes and workshops Classes and workshop topics cover painting, photography, stained glass, sculpture, figure drawing, mixed-media collage"Alchemists of art - collage & mixed-media creation takes on new meaning" Glenwood Springs Post Independent Nov 1, 2012 and ceramics.