Art Encounters Brings New Outdoor Art To Douglas County
HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. (CBS4) – Douglas County has more than two-dozen new outdoor art installations throughout the county. The public displays went up in June, and will be up through next year as part of the County's Art Encounters program.
"We feel that public art is so important for people. We want to make it so that people can see it and enjoy it. We work hard to make it interactive with the community," said Sara Walla, Senior Marking and Special Projects Manager for the Highlands Ranch Cultural Affairs Association.
There are a couple of different components to the program to make it interactive. Residents are encouraged to view all the pieces throughout Castle Rock, Lone Tree, Highlands Ranch, Parker, and Roxborough, and then vote online for their favorite piece. The People's Choice winner will get $1,000. There is also a Judge's Choice award of $1,000. Voting is open through October 31st.
LINK: For More Information & Voting For Art Encounters
"We're fortunate to have such a wide range of artists, from local artists to people who come from different states, who have never displayed their art in Colorado before, so you can see all kinds of different sculptures, and media, and colors, and just for all tastes," Walla explained.
Highlands Ranch and Parker have set up an app, called Otocast, which is a narrated audio guide of the outdoor art. Listeners can find out about the artists, and hear them talk about their individual pieces.
This is the 11th year for Art Encounters in Douglas County.
"Art Encounters is a Douglas-wide program to get public art out in the community. So all of the different communities in Douglas County, Highlands Ranch, Roxborough, Lone Tree, Castle Rock, and Parker, all have public art placed on a rotating basis. So each year we get new art and allow new artists to be seen in our community," Walla told CBS4.
All the pieces are for sale. Those works that are not sold will be returned to the artists at the end of the year.
