Mancos Creative District Projects

The Mancos Valley has a long history of inspiring and attracting creativity. Creativity is part of the fabric of our community that enlivens our spirits, helps us connect, and strengthens our economy. The Mancos Creative District is here to support our creative culture to thrive and continue thriving for many generations through three dynamic programs.

PUBLIC ART & SPACES


We serve as a convener and stimulator of public art in the Mancos.  We work to approach public art as a community engaged process and usher in projects that celebrate the diverse peoples and beautiful natural landscapes of the Mancos Valley.

Current Public Art Projects in Mancos: 


Public Art Stakeholder Round Table

The Mancos Creative District is working to convene a group of community members to support and inform several public art projects over the years to come.  If you would like to offer your perspective, please contact us at [email protected].


Mancos Valley Mancos Brand Project

Through a partnership between the Mancos Creative District and the Town of Mancos, the Mancos Valley Brand Project was selected to receive civic funding to create a public art installation celebrating Mancos Valley cattle brands. Marilyn Kroeker, owner of Raven House Gallery, and Steve William from the Cowboy Forge have teamed up to use their metalworking skills to create this exhibit that will break ground in the summer of 2023.  Follow the Brand Project on Facebook


HerStory

Herstory, a printmaking collective from Albuquerque, NM will be at the Mancos Common Press on June 2-4 for a collaborative print project that will bring together community, local history and printmaking.  Herstory focuses on highlighting women in history by creating life-size printed portraits of these community heroes.  This project will engage community members in creating large prints of local women from our region’s history and will take place over a two-day weekend at MCP’s historic press.  Onward Foundation and the Mancos Creative District have generously funded this project and are partnering with the Press to bring this opportunity to Mancos. The prints and process will be displayed and shared with the community through an open house and mural.  


Mancos Visitor Center Mural

The Mancos Creative District is partnering up with the Mancos Valley Chamber of Commerce to commission a Mancos based artist to create a mural expressing the vibrancy, creativity, livelihood of the Mancos Community and providing a photo opportunity for visitors.  To submit a proposal email us at [email protected].

FUNDING & SUPPORT


APPLICATIONS CLOSED AT THIS TIME
Please check back later in 2024

We believe that creative endeavors are vital to a thriving local economy.  We also believe that creative experiences can inspire connection, collaboration, and shared understandings that lift every single member of our community.

We recognize the great need for support in launching new creative ideas, building on what has been created, and taking the kinds of creative risks that catalyze the vibrancy and connection that we know our community has to offer.

For this reason, we are offering funding to members of the Mancos Valley who are interested in leading creative projects of all kinds.  If you live in the 81328 zip code you can apply for up to $1000.  Some examples of the costs that we can help cover for your project include:

  • Supplies – art supplies and other types of supplies
  • Training or workshops to prepare you to create something
  • Space rental or studio time
  • Covering your time or the time of another artist to offer a creative experience to the community
  • Marketing costs to promote a creative business or individual
  • This is not an exhaustive list – if you have other costs you want to get covered, tell us about it 

We also offer an annual scholarship to one graduating Mancos student interested in pursuing a creative career.  For more information about our 81328 Create Student Scholarship, contact Lisa Taylor [email protected]

LEARNING & CREATING


Mancos School of the West

The Mancos School of the West is a teaching community of artists and makers committed to sharing the spirit and culture of the American West by providing opportunities to learn, connect, and create to residents and visitors in the beautiful Mancos Valley.

We offer opportunities for local artists and makers to share their unique creative skills with the community by assisting in the development of classes and workshops, connecting teaching artists and makers with spaces in which to offer their classes, marketing their offerings, and getting classes filled.

To learn about current offerings or how to become an instructor with the Mancos School of the West.

Previous Events

Opera Comes to Mancos

Presented in partnership with Mancos Creative District, Opera Lafayette presented Le Maréchal ferrant (The Blacksmith) in front of a live audience at the Reddert Ranch outside Mancos, Colorado. Originally scheduled for Mancos Opera House, due to COVID-19 the performances were moved outdoors at the ranch, in front of the historic Menefee Barn and Blacksmith Shop on Echo Basin Road.

Bales of hay in the meadow in front of the barn designated the areas where each group could sit safely distanced from other audience members and at least 25 feet from the performers. Opera Lafayette established safety guidelines in-line with CDC recommendations for everyone to follow during the entirety of the production period.

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