Like New

I was in the Fine Arts Center parking lot today taking pictures of my friend Paula modeling a skirt that I sewed for her, and this was a test shot for the lighting. This is just a small section of a very long mural that I've featured on the blog before. I noticed today that the whole mural suddenly looks brand new and the paint seems much brighter than the last time I was here, even though it's been there since the eighties. It must have been restored recently. Or maybe it's just my imagination. Oh and if you check back on Sunday night, you'll get to see the skirt, too.

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It's only natural to want to snap a photo of our lovely mountain when it's covered in snow. This was taken from the parking lot of the Fine Arts Center.

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Looking west across Cascade Avenue and through the front sculpture garden of our lovely Fine Arts Center rewards you with a nicely framed view of our favorite hunk of granite.

Snow Maidens

This familiar work of art in front of the Fine Arts Center looks particularly striking in the snow.

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An interior shot of our lovely Fine Arts Center, taken on November 10, 2010.

Ancient Aztec Art (No, Not Really)

It's not ancient unless you consider the mid 1980s to be primordial. This is just a small section of the very long mural in the parking lot of the Fine Arts Center, photographed on January 15, 2020.

FAC

I went out with a camera today but couldn't find anything interesting to photograph. Ultimately I had to defer to my long list of stuff to do that couldn't wait, so I dug through my recent archives for today's post. Here's a snap I took on January 2nd of our beautiful Fine Arts Center. Tomorrow I may go up to Denver, so maybe I'll get something for the blog if I have time.

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Our beautiful Fine Arts Center, an Art Déco gem erected in 1936, looks especially heroic in strong winter light. When I drove past it a few days ago I was compelled to stop for a picture --its form reminded me of Ansel Adams' 1929 “Church at Ranchos de Taos”.

That's a Lot of Brown

Ah yes, this is definitely of an era! I thought I'd post one last shot of the long mural at the Fine Arts Center. This one reminds me of the movie "Man of La Mancha", primarily because the only thing I remember from that film is that everything in it is brown. And this mural sure is brown all right. Brown on brown on brown. Like the mural pictures that preceded it on the blog this week, it doesn't seem to be based on any well known work of art.

Mystery Woman

More mural awesomeness at the Fine Arts Center. All these years I've always thought that these were recreations of famous works, but I've been searching and finding nothing. This beautiful mystery woman is entirely up to your interpretation!

The Age of Aquarius-ish

Here's another section of the long mural in the parking lot of the Fine Arts Center. It's signed and dated "Emanuel '86". I assume this artist painted the whole lot of them, which must have taken forever. This particular section sure has an early 1970s vibe! Doesn't it look "Jesus Christ, Superstar"/"Age of Aquarius" to you? Not exactly my favorite trend in art or music, that's for sure. 😁 By the way I don't remember this wall ever not having been covered by murals, and I've lived here since 1979. I guess I wasn't paying attention pre-1986!

Faux Picasso

The parking lot at the Fine Arts Center has a very long, tall retaining wall, and the entire length of it is covered in murals depicting famous paintings. I can't identify this one. It looks like a Picasso but I don't have the time or energy right now to find out exactly what it is, so I'll leave it up to your imagination. More tomorrow!

The FAC

It was no day to be outside if you could avoid it (we had about 7-8" of snow in my neighborhood, and other parts of the city got even more), so today I'm serving up the Fine Arts Center on a much warmer day. I took this photo on November 13th, while out for a walk with my friend Joy.

Vegan Market

Pat and I stopped by the vegan market event at the Fine Arts Center a couple of weekends ago. It was quite crowded (although the photo above doesn't really illustrate that point very well), and there were tons of booths selling vegan foods, clothing and handmade goods. We were surprised at the huge turnout! Way to go, Colorado Springs!

This jewelry designer donated a portion of her profits to suicide prevention. I thought that was wonderful.

I got all excited when I came across the Sea Shepherd booth. Those guys are my heroes!

Sunday Style!

Last Sunday Pat and I stopped by the Vegan Market at the Fine Arts Center. It was quite crowded -- I was happy to see so many interested and interesting people! This lady was a standout with her great smile and positive message. I really like that shirt! We should all have such a shirt!

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Snow covered Pikes Peak with the Fine Arts Center in the foreground.

Snowy Sunday at the FAC

Lovely snow on Sunday put an exclamation point on last week's chilly weather. Pat and I decided to take a wander around the Fine Arts Center, something we haven't done in a few months. It was worth venturing out into the cold to check out the Virgil Ortiz and Jaune Quick-to-See Smith shows. I highly recommend both of them. Very insightful, imaginative and inspiring art. Here are a couple of photos I took before we went inside. The lawn of the Fine Arts Center was covered in several dozen hand painted yard signs, and  the sculptures were all cloaked in powder.

Hopi Basket Dancers

Hopi Basket Dancers by Doug Hyde, 1985. This is a personal favorite among the many great pieces in the permanent collection at our Fine Arts Center. It lives in one of the sculpture gardens there, near the main entrance off of Dale Street.