Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center

Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center
Jeffrey Beall · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Name	Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center
Established	1936
Location	30 West Dale Street, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Type	Art museum, performing arts theater, art school
Architect	John Gaw Meem

Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center. Founded in 1936, it is a multidisciplinary institution encompassing a major art museum, a professional theater company, and a community art school. Located in the city's historic North End neighborhood, the center is renowned for its significant collection of American art, Hispanic art, and Native American art, with a particular focus on the Southwestern United States. It operates as part of Colorado College while serving as a cultural cornerstone for the Pikes Peak Region.

History

The institution's origins trace to the earlier Broadmoor Art Academy, founded in 1919 by Julie Penrose and other patrons, which became a significant artistic hub attracting figures like Boardman Robinson and Lawrence Barrett. In 1936, with a generous gift from Alice Bemis Taylor, the current facility was constructed to consolidate the academy's programs with a new museum and theater. Designed by renowned Pueblo Revival architect John Gaw Meem, the building opened its doors that same year. Throughout the 20th century, it expanded its collections under directors such as Robert L. McGrath and formed a key affiliation with Colorado College in the 1990s, culminating in a full merger in 2020 that integrated its academic and curatorial missions.

Architecture

The building is a celebrated example of Pueblo Revival style, designed by Santa Fe-based architect John Gaw Meem. Its design incorporates elements inspired by the Taos Pueblo and other indigenous structures of the Southwestern United States, featuring stepped massing, rounded corners, and vigas. The exterior is clad in stucco to resemble traditional adobe, while the interior houses significant New Deal-era murals, including works by Boardman Robinson and Peppino Mangravite. A major renovation and expansion completed in 2007, designed by David Owen Tryba of Tryba Architects, respectfully added modern gallery and theater space while preserving the integrity of Meem's original historic landmark structure.

Collections

The permanent collection holds over 20,000 objects, with foundational strength in the art of the American Southwest. It possesses one of the nation's most comprehensive collections of Santos and Spanish Colonial art, stemming from the founding gift of Alice Bemis Taylor. The museum's holdings in Modernist art from the region are exceptional, featuring major works by the Taos Society of Artists and later figures like Fritz Scholder and T.C. Cannon. Other strengths include a significant collection of Mexican art from the 19th and 20th centuries, WPA Federal Art Project works, and contemporary art by figures such as Deborah Butterfield, Andy Warhol, and Michele Oka Doner.

Exhibitions and programs

The center presents a dynamic schedule of temporary exhibitions that often explore themes of regional identity, social history, and contemporary practice, such as retrospectives for artists like María Martínez and Violeta Parra. Its Bemis School of Art provides community education across a wide range of visual arts disciplines. The institution also hosts lectures, film series, and family programs, and its research library, the Charles B. Wood Library of the Southwest, supports scholarly work. Many exhibitions and programs are developed in collaboration with academic departments at Colorado College and other regional institutions like the Denver Art Museum.

Taylor Museum for Southwestern Studies

This dedicated wing, named for benefactor Alice Bemis Taylor, is the heart of the center's scholarly focus on the Southwestern United States. Its collection is particularly rich in Hispanic devotional art, including rare retablos and bultos, as well as Native American art such as Pueblo pottery, Navajo textiles, and Hopi kachina dolls. The Taylor Museum also oversees an important archive of photographs and documents related to the Broadmoor Art Academy and the region's artistic development, serving as a vital resource for researchers studying the cultural intersections of the American West.

FAC Theatre Company

The center's professional theater arm, founded in 1986, produces a season of classic and contemporary plays, musical theatre, and new works in its two performance spaces. It has premiered plays by notable playwrights including Tony Kushner and has hosted performances by artists like John Lithgow. The company is known for engaging with socially relevant themes and for educational outreach programs. Its productions often feature collaborations with the Colorado Springs Philharmonic and draw upon the talent pool from the local community and the theater department of Colorado College.

Category:Art museums in Colorado Category:Art schools in the United States Category:Theatre companies in Colorado Category:Buildings and structures in Colorado Springs, Colorado Category:1936 establishments in Colorado