At the Frontier’s Edge: The Arts & Crafts Movement in Denver and Environs
September 21-25, 2011 |
Exploring the Arts & Crafts movement in Denver and environs, “At the Frontier’s Edge,” the 13th annual Arts and Crafts conference, challenges the notion advanced at the end of the 19th century that the American frontier was closed. While from the limited perspectives of map making and census taking, a geographic frontier of settlement perhaps no longer existed, the energizing quality of frontier life remained. The frontier, according to Frederick Jackson Turner in a lecture given at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, created freedom by “breaking the bonds of custom, offering new experiences, and calling out new institutions and activities”; the nascent Arts & Crafts movement in the Mountain States did just that. Employing a cross-disciplinary approach that rejects the notion of a single “Arts & Crafts style,” and looking instead at the repertoire of styles and sources upon which the Movement drew, we identify factors that shaped this regional expression, among them the rail lines. We challenge the generally accepted dates for the Movement (ca. 1876 – 1917) and explore ongoing manifestations of the Movement, such as the work of jeweler Todd Reed. Last, we consider whether the “frontier spirit” continues to affect the region’s art, and whether the reception accorded the work of architects like Daniel Liebeskind and Brad Cloepfil, positioned on the frontier of their discipline, has historic roots.
The conference is hosted by the Boettcher Mansion, Denver Art Museum, Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, and Todd Reed Studio, Boulder with the participation of the Colorado Arts and Crafts Society.
We gratefully acknowledge generous funding from Tom Bird and Joan Albin, Barbara N. Fuldner, James Dicke II, and The Felicia Fund, We are also deeply appreciative of support from Jim and Trudy Chiddix, Cynthia Shaw McLaughlin, The David Cook Galleries, Colorado College and Montague’s Parlour, both in Colorado Springs, Rockmount Ranch Wear, as well as Style 1900, The Exeter Group, and The Gamble House. Anonymous donors have also contributed to this effort (as of 8/04/2011).
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Denver, CO |
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| Contact Information |
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cshawmcl@co.jefferson.co.us |
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