Welcoming our New Artist-in-Residence!
We are thrilled to announce our new Artist-in-Residence (AiR), Andrea Stolarczyk! Andrea will be dedicating the next year to creating art in Colorado’s beautiful National Conservation Areas. Read more about the journey!
Artwork by Andrea Stolarczyk
What is an Artist-In-residence?
The artist-in-residence (AiR) program offers artists a chance to connect intimately with public lands through the lens or art - and to share the art they create with the community to foster a deeper understanding of the landscape. Whether it is painting, music, sculpture, or poetry, the AiR program provides the opportunity for locals and visitors alike to gain a unique connection to the land. The BLM, National Park Service, and US Forest Service all have AiR programs; hundreds of artists participate every year. In partnership with the Bureau of Land Management, CCA is hosting a year-long artist-in-residence, Andrea Stolarczyk.
What will Andrea be working on over the next year?
Colorado has three National Conservation Areas - McInnis Canyons, Dominguez-Escalante, and Gunnison Gorge. All three of these landscapes are permanently protected for their amazing recreational opportunities, as well as for the natural, historical, and cultural wonders each one holds.
Andrea will be focusing on exploring and creating artwork in all three of our NCAs over the next year. Starting on the Summer Solstice, Andrea will be using various forms of art to showcase the beauty of the NCAs throughout each season; art will be showcased after summer, fall, winter, and spring. Throughout the year, you can expect wonderful paintings, drawings, and so much more from Andrea! We will be hosting events periodically, so make sure to keep an eye out on how you can get involved.
Learn more about Andrea!
Colorado native Andrea Stolarczyk is an artist and art teacher happily headquartered in Fruita, Colorado with her husband and two children. She has an everlasting affection for America's great public lands, and especially those of the West.
She employs various techniques and media to her work, including painting, printmaking, and photography, and she is endlessly fascinated by both the process and outcome of artmaking in earnest.
In addition to her personal artwork being collected by patrons across the United States, she has shown at the Colorado Springs Fine Art Center, the Cottonwood Center for the Arts, Commonwheel Artists' Co-op, and The Mountain Arts Festival. Her pedagogical training has occurred under MoMa, The Smithsonian Institute, The National Gallery of Art, Colorado Parks and Wildflife, and the John Muir Laws WIld Wonder Conference, among others.
Andrea is an appointed member of the Fruita Arts and Culture Board and believes strongly in the ennobling power of art, especially as expressed locally and collaboratively.
She is thrilled and honored to spend a year in our National Conservation Areas, observing, contemplating, and responding. Please feel free to follow along on the journey!
CCA is thrilled to begin this partnership with Andrea! We cannot wait to see the creativity the NCAs inspire. We send a HUGE thank you to Andrea for dedicating her time and energy to CCA’s mission. Make sure to follow along the journey through Andrea’s social channels - @ayearinthecanyons on Facebook and Instagram.