Public Art Exhibits

The Town of Parker believes that the permanent placement of art in public places serves to enrich, stimulate, and enhance the aesthetic experience in the Town. Public art also contributes to the Town's economic draw and is an ongoing educational tool for the community.

PERMANENT ART PIECES

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Jacks

The first public art installation in Discovery Park is the larger than life, iconic “Jacks” by Christopher Weed, which will act as a beacon and a gateway to downtown Parker. This sculpture, like the park itself, speak to a simpler time of connections to friends, family and community.


ManEater

Following suit with the trend of combining utility with beauty, “ManEater” by
Jim Choate, is a welded steel shark that doubles as a bike rack. Man Eater was intended to give the viewer an up close and personal idea of the average size of a young adult Great White Shark. Please feel free to park and lock up your bike in the belly of this predator before exploring Discovery Park.

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Harmony Park instrument

Harmony Park

Harmony Park Musical Classroom is an interactive public art exhibit installed on the PACE Center’s East Patio. Harmony Park was created by the Freenotes Company of Hesperus, Colorado. These outdoor wind and percussion instruments are weatherproof and designed to be played together easily because they are tuned to the pentatonic scale. There are no wrong notes, all of the sounds are harmonious and knowledge of music, keys or scales is not necessary. The sounds are mellow and ethereal so as not to disturb others. All instruments are wheelchair accessible, and they can even be a tool for music therapy to improve cognitive ability, communication and motor skills.

Nucleus

“Nucleus” by Tim Upham of Fort Collins was installed in front of the PACE Center in May 2012. The 24-foot tall multi-colored spiral fuses art with science and is lit by halogen and LED lights. Upham makes site-specific public art and he has incorporated some of the leftover building materials from the PACE Center construction into the sculpture.

nucleus
Affinity Photography - Parker Creative District art -13

The Dance

This sculpture by Lee Proctor is inspired by the spring time dance of the Sandhill Crane. It is also a celebration of the incredible displays and rituals of all bird life. And beyond that it symbolizes the art of dance in all it’s myriad of forms, from ancient indigenous cultures dancing by the fire to modern day ballet. The sculpture was a public favorite of the 2014-15 Art Encounters exhibit and Town Council purchased it in May 2015. Its permanent home is now the plaza on the west side of The Schoolhouse.

Freedom Through Safety

In June 2010, artist Adam Schultz was commissioned to produce an innovative public art sculpture for the Town of Parker’s new Police Station. Schultz’s creation, “Freedom through Safety,” features a life-sized bronze eagle in flight, held aloft 14 feet in the air on two vertical stainless steel pillars. One pillar represents safety and the other symbolizes strength. The base of the sculpture includes a “circle of hands” -- tiles pressed with hand prints of local community members from young children to senior citizens, metaphorically representing the support and involvement of the community.

Freedom through Safety



Freedom through Safety


Freedom through Safety


Dr. Heath


Dr. Heath

 A bronze statue of Dr. Walter Heath, an integral character in Parker history, is displayed on the northeast corner of Mainstreet and Pikes Peak Place. Created by local artist Don Budy, this project was made possible by Parker Adventist Hospital, Dr. Heath’s grandchildren, Edward V. Heath and Clair Heath Fink, David A. Van Landschoot and Stevan Strain.

Somewhere Down The Lazy River

In 2015, artist Mario Miguel Echevarria won the commission to create a piece of public art for the Parker Recreation Center's new indoor Leisure Pool. Inspired by kids' love of animals and a desire to celebrate Colorado's native aquatic species, he created a three-part piece in which kid power is amplified by the uniquely amazing skills of Colorado's river and lake inhabitants. You'll find a boy flying with a Painted Turtle, a girl surfing with a Cutthroat Trout, and a girl riding on a Clark's Grebe. The works are crafted from ceramic tile and aluminum sheet. As the artist says "When people see a kid surfing on a fish the size of a VW Bug, they will never look at a trout the same way again!"  

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Emmett Culligan piece_thumb.jpg




Emmett Culligan piece_thumb.jpg


Emmett Culligan piece_thumb.jpg


Emmett Culligan piece_thumb.jpg


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Emmett Culligan piece_thumb.jpg

Colid #7

Denver artist Emmett Culligan donated his piece titled “Colid #7” to the PACE Center in 2013. The sculpture is placed on Pine Drive at the western entrance to PACE.
 Culligan's art often focuses on the manipulation of metal, wood, stone and glass, and references common forms found in everyday life. He says, “Within my work, an emphasis is placed on the natural inherent qualities of material interacting formally to access human emotion and spirituality.”



Amber Eye

By Glenn Zweygardt
20000 E Mainstreet
In front of the PACE Center
Created by Glenn Zweygardt and located in front of the PACE Center, Amber Eye is a stone sculpture made from Vermont Granite: marble from Vermont and a dark granite base from Pennsylvania. The amber eye is made cast glass inside of a bronze cast ring. Please feel free to touch the various surfaces!

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ART ENCOUNTERS - ROTATING PUBLIC ART

Art Encounters is a year-long outdoor sculpture exhibit that showcases a number of sculptures, in various media and styles, displayed in highly visible areas in Castle Rock, Highlands Ranch, Lone Tree, Roxborough, and Parker. The project is designed to promote public interest in art, develop community pride and draw visitors to the retail or civic areas where they are displayed. The public is invited to view the art in the program and vote for their favorite piece by visiting www.douglas.co.us/artencounters. Artists are encouraged to submit entries in January of each year via www.callforentry.org.

From June 2018 through May 2019, the Town of Parker is exhibiting eight sculptures at various locations along Mainstreet to highlight Parker’s growing Creative District in Downtown.

Dandelion Puffballs



Dandelion Puffballs


By Joe Malesky
Mainstreet and Victorian Way 
O’Brien Park 



Sunrise/Sunset 


By Mathew Duffy
20120 E. Mainstreet 
Town Hall Campus

Sunrise.Sunset
The Gift



The Gift 


By Kim Kaminski 
19650 E. Mainstreet
The Schoolhouse



Trail 413 


By Kyle Ocean 
19553 E. Mainstreet
Trail 413 b
Warning Life Changes Directions



Warning: Life Changes Directions


By Sandy Friedman 
10795 Victorian Dr.
O’Brien Park



Desert God's Eye


By Kim Kaminski 
18396 Plaza Dr.
HIGHLANDS RANCH
The Parker Racquet Club

Desert Gods Eye

To learn more about the Douglas County Art Encounters Program click here or watch this video.