Review: The Arvada Center takes a leap outside with Unbound: Sculpture in the Field

Michael Paglia's review of the Unbound: Sculpture in the Field.

"The Arvada Center is hosting four strong exhibits right now, all part of the Unbound series. But I will focus on just one here: Unbound: Sculpture in the Field. (I'll discuss the others later this summer.) The show is highly visible -- you can even catch a glimpse from the car -- and it represents a genuine expansion of the center's available art space.

The facility sits on a very large site, something that allowed exhibitions director Collin Parson to imagine using a small part of it -- a seventeen-acre field just to the south of the complex -- as a xeric sculpture garden. Given all that empty space, it's an obvious thing to do, but he's the first to pull it off since the center opened, in 1976... Continue reading article here."

Unbound: Sculpture In the Field

Installation of Unbound: Sculpture In the Field begins. Emmett will have two scuplutes at this outdoor exhibition.

"The Arvada Center Gallery staff has been hard at work preparing for this summer’s outdoor exhibition
Unbound: Sculpture in the Field in partnership with the Museum of Outdoor Arts."

Read entire article here.

Emilio Lobato and Emmett Culligan get in shape at Havu

By Michael Paglia Thursday, Mar 13 2014

“Rubric #1,” by Emmett Culligan, stainless steel and rhyolite.

"Anyone visiting the William Havu Gallery right now will be thinking about constructivism — or at least the idea of making things through the assembly of rectilinear shapes — even before they get to the building and the exhibit inside. That's because of the construction site right across the street from the gallery. In recent months, half a block's worth of buildings have been cleared to provide space for a planned high-rise called EnV. The design of the building reveals a handsome neo-modernist tower with lots of geometric handling of both surfaces and details. From the drawings produced by the Denver office of Page Southerland Page, EnV promises to be an aesthetic antidote to the Prado, which is just down the block and is definitely one of the ugliest high-rises ever erected in Colorado..."

CONTINUE READING HERE

Sculpture takes center stage at the Botanic Gardens and MCA Denver (Denver Westward Publication)

By Michael Paglia Thursday, Sep 19 2013, Denver Westword

"For every artist doing three-dimensional pieces in Colorado, there are a hundred more working in two dimensions. That makes a pair of current shows featuring sculpture and installations something special.

First up is Catalyst, an enchanting outdoor exhibit at the Denver Botanic Gardens that is chock-full of impressive sculptures. Catalyst was ably organized by Lisa Eldred, the director of exhibitions at the DBG, who took a "snapshot" of a slice of Colorado's contemporary sculpture scene as exemplified by a dozen of the state's best three-dimensional artists.

The grounds of the DBG, perfectly accented by the Victor Hornbein-designed conservatory, are the ideal place to display outdoor sculptures. There's plenty of room to accommodate the artwork: 23 acres covered in meandering paths lined with flowers, bushes, trees and all manner of landscaping. With this labyrinthine maze, many areas are obscured by the plantings, so it makes sense to get a map of Catalyst before setting off...

...Resembling giant game pieces that have been casually tossed on the ground are the three simple truncated cones of stone and steel from Emmett Culligan's "Crew" series.

Most of the artists are represented by signature works, but a couple have created unexpected pieces, notably the organic abstraction by Andy Miller and the funky neo-pop Maker's Mark bottles by Terry Maker.

I've walked through Catalyst twice and loved it both times. With fall approaching and the leaves about to turn, it's the ideal time to check it out."

Read entire article here...

The West Colfax BID (with help from WeCAN) has selected a design for 6 new bus shelters on West Colfax by Denver artist Emmett Culligan.

 

"The West Colfax BID (with help from WeCAN) has selected a design for 6 new bus shelters on West Colfax by Denver artist Emmett Culligan.

For the design, Culligan has drawn on both West Colfax's transportation history and its diversity. In the inflated stainless steel corner columns, he seeks to call to mind the "essence of car culture", while each of six shelters features a different colored glass, evoking the ethnic and cultural diversity of the area. Culligan designed the shelter retrofits with functionality for riders as prime consideration, as reflected in the fully enclosed glass structures, capped by a translucent roof to allow for night-time ambient light. The simplicity of the design and the ability to create a strong sense of continuity through the district were also important considerations in the selection."

Published on WeCAN, Denver Facebook page.