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December 2009

[click to listen to Sally Strand on her art]

Strand_Awake200808_CC_LG Sally Strand is one of a number of high profile pastel artists in the Telluride Gallery of Fine Art's stable, which also includes Bruce Gomez, Doug Dawson, Carole Katchen, Deborah Bays, Albert Handell, and Ramon Kelly.


Brandishing her colored sticks, Strand teases the magic out of everyday objects and ordinary places/situations – train stations, restaurants, pears, a bowl of flowers, eggs, an unmade bed. The quotidian then becomes a placeholder for Strand's real subject: catching the light as it changes from moment to moment. Although her work is representational, Strand is anything but a strict realist. Look closely at her color choices: her palette is there to create a mood rather than depict what is actually in front of our eyes. In a very real sense, Strand helps her viewer see rather than simply look. Strand once told Telluride Inside...and Out: "Success to me is when you can take an ordinary head of lettuce and cause someone to give it a second glance.”
08 December, 2009 /

In Telluride we can get high speed internet. We can get home delivery of the New York Times. We can experience the most current movies and music (eg: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros last week). It's easy to think of this place...

07 December, 2009 /
Photo_all7 For two years running, the man who is arguably America's greatest living composer of classical music was artist-in-residence for the Telluride Musicfest. During that time Philip Glass was pretty busy doing what he does. He performed all over the world, wrote two new operas and several more film scores. One of the classical pieces Glass agreed to write at the time was commissioned through the Meet the Composer program by Martin Murray as a special birthday gift for his wife, Lucy Miller Murray. Mrs. Murray was celebrating her 70th birthday and 27 years as the founding director of Market Square Concerts. Glass's "Sonata for Violin and Piano," premiered in Harrisburg, PA, in February and got raves. Maria Bachmann of the Trio Solisti, artistic director of the Telluride Musicfest, was the violinist.
07 December, 2009 /
[click "Play" to hear Susan's conversation with Dr. Scott Ortman]

Ja_Scott On Tuesday, December 8, 6 - 8 p.m., the lecture series, Telluride Unearthed, continues at the Telluride Historical Museum. The speaker is Dr. Scott Ortman on the subject of "Archaeology, Oral Tradition, and the Mesa Verde Migration." Ortman is currently Director of Research and Education at Crow Canyon Archaeological Center.

Ortman picks up where his Crow Canyon colleague, Dr. Mark Varian, left off on December 1. Varian's overview,  "Life is Movement: Pueblo Indians of the Mesa Verde Region," began about 2,000 B.C. Ortman focuses on two of the longest-running debates in North American archaeology: the famous abandonment of the Mesa Verde region in the 13th century, and the relationship between ancient Mesa Verde peoples and the present-day Pueblo peoples of New Mexico.

06 December, 2009 /

The devil is definitely in the details. Monday, December 7, 6 p.m., The Telluride Advocacy Coalition in collaboration with The Wilkinson Public LIbrary presents an epic documentary by filmmaker James Kleinert: "Horses of Disappointment Valley." Join Kleinert to explore the plight of America’s wild...

06 December, 2009 /

by Art Goodtimes

IMG_5178  Archaeologist Dr. Mark Varien spoke recently in Telluride at the Telluride Historical Museum. If you missed it, you missed a wonderful talk. I know that to be true, even if I was out of town and wasn’t able to attend myself.


I’ve heard Mark talk in Cortez and at Grand Junction. His lectures are riveting – not because of any verbal histrionics. He has a quiet voice and demeanor. But because he has a brilliant mind and speaks with authority and knowledge.
05 December, 2009 /

December 3 to 10, 2009

Visible Planets: Morning: Mars and Saturn  Evening: Mercury and Jupiter

Good thoughts, good vibes, good food, good deeds...

BlueSanta As the Sun moves through the middle degrees of Sagittarius, see if you can feel the optimistic, philanthropic energy of the Archer taking hold. The holiday season is quintessentially Sagittarius and we can’t help but be affected by the ho-ho-hos and merry-merrys. A distinct generosity of spirit permeates the ethers and we are called to open our hearts and let the joy in.

Ruled by magnanimous planet Jupiter, Sagittarius energy tends toward grandiosity and largesse. It’s the classic golden touch, the benevolent ruler, the guardian angel and the lucky charm. It’s good luck; good fortune and all things that are and make us feel “good.”  Enthusiastic optimism fuels the Sagittarian fire and the flexible, adaptable quality of its modality keep the flames of hope, faith and truth flickering in the eternal hearth of Spirit.

Giving to others – especially those less fortunate – sharing the wealth and focusing on the goodness of the world rather than its darkness are characteristics of this very magnanimous sign. Holiday spirit, holiday cheer and holiday hustle are all classically Sag. And, of course, on the flip side of all this grandeur, we have over-indulgence, never-say-no and devil-may-care attitudes that can put us over the top or off the cliff.

04 December, 2009 /


Follow the Yellow Brick Road to the historic Sheridan Opera House, where the Sheridan Arts Foundation's Young People's Theater presents "The Wizard of Oz," this weekend, December 4 – December 6, 6 p.m. nightly.

Director Jen Julia's Telluride production is based on the classic MGM musical "The Wizard of Oz," and features 33 locals, grades 6 – 8.

04 December, 2009 /


Everything old is new again. Turns out the Telluride Artisans Guild (TAG) is right in step with the times. According to The New York Times, (Home section, 11/26): "The human touch rules this year."  TAG, under the auspices of the Telluride Council for the Arts and Humanities, hosts its annual holiday bazaar featuring homegrown work by popular regional artists. Over 30 booths are set up for irritainment-free shopping in the Telluride High School cafeteria. The event takes place Friday, December 4, 5 –8 p.m., Saturday, December 5, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., and Sunday, December 6,11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

The TAG bazaar, now close to 40 years old, offers one of the best places around to find gifts more from the heart than from the wallet. Clint's iMovie offers a sneak peak at the wide variety of items for sale.

The following is a list of participating artists and craftspeople.

03 December, 2009 /