Christo to headline Salida symposium (excerpt)

source: Copyright © 2007 The Pueblo Chieftain

By TRACY HARMON
THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN

SALIDA - The common silvery thread that ties the waters of the Arkansas River to art, writing, fishing and rafting will be explored May 26-27 during "A River Runs Through Us," a Colorado Art Ranch Artposium.

Internationally known artists Christo and Jeanne Claude will talk about their proposed grand-scale artwork "Over the River" when they headline the event with a 7 p.m. May 26 presentation at the Salida Steam Plant Theater, Sackett and G streets.

Bulgarian-born Christo and his partner-wife Jeanne-Claude, both 71, propose to hang about seven miles of translucent fabric panels over eight segments of the Arkansas River between Canon City and Salida. The artwork, if permitted, would hang for 14 days, sometime between mid-July and mid-August in 2011 at the earliest.

The Salida Artposium will explore how rivers, the Arkansas in particular, inspire the arts, and shape the region's history, culture and environment.

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Breakout sessions will be held at Bongo Billy's Salida Cafe, 300 W. Sackett St., and will explore a rich range of river-related topics. Presentations will focus on fly-fishing, nature journal writing, poetry, river-running, landscape photography, creating art with found objects from the river and Salida’s relationship with the river.

Colorado Art Ranch, a new nonprofit residency program for artists and writers, will host the Artposium event under the direction of Grant Pound, founder and executive director.

"The idea for Colorado Art Ranch was conceived in the Wet Mountain Valley in fall 2005," Pound said. "I thought that Colorado's unique beauty would be the perfect muse for artists and writers from around the world."

The Artposium is made possible by a seed grant of $50,000 from the Jeffrey David Talley Foundation.

The Artposium event will raise money for a residency program and encourage rural economic development through the arts and heritage tourism. The residency program is slated for May 24-June 21 and will provide artists and writers with four weeks of living and studio space to work uninterrupted.

Cost to attend the May 26-27 Artposium is $249 per person or $230 per person for two or more. Registration can be completed at www.coloradoartranch.org or by calling 303-279-5198.