Colorado is a global leader in creative industries. According to Colorado Creative Industries, Colorado ranks sixth in the nation with 35.9% of the workforce employed in creative occupations.
The state is home to eleven Creative Districts (a program launched in 2011 to attract artists and creative entrepreneurs to the state and build an innovative workforce), including Pueblo and Colorado Springs.
As a magnet for creative companies and workers, Colorado fosters creative thinking and innovation that brings far-reaching benefits to our communities.
Much of the impact is due to the growing community spirit of the state’s arts creators. Colorado Creative Industries (CCI), Colorado Business Committee for the Arts (CBCA), the Creative District network, and informal networks for arts creators, public art, and more are developing ideas, resources, and strength. These leaders gathered in Pueblo in May for the CCI Summit and experienced firsthand how Pueblo’s creatives are shaping the city’s future with authenticity and culture.
The more our artists and creators share between communities, the stronger Colorado’s creative economy will be. And that’s happening more and more!
Here at the Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region (COPPR), the local arts agency for El Paso and Teller counties, we work to ensure the creative sector gains economic vitality and impact, that creative workers can thrive in our community, and that the arts are used to positively impact regional economic development, education, cultural tourism, and quality of life. We are seeing more and more creative collaboration and synergies along the Front Range.
“We artists all seem to be filling in the gaps and creating a closer community in art. The whole Front Range seems to have gotten smaller,” says artist Shannon Mello.
There are new intersections everywhere between Pueblo and Colorado Springs.
The Colorado Springs-based Palmer Land Conservancy, an advocate for land and water conservation in Colorado, premiered its film MIRASOL, a documentary about the agricultural community of Pueblo, at venues in both communities this spring.
Pueblo artist Eric McCue of Iron E Art Studio recently dedicated a metal butterfly sculpture at Safe Passage in Colorado Springs, a nationally recognized child welfare center.
Last fall’s production of Avenue Q at the Sangre de Cristo Arts Center was electrifying, bringing together the talents of actors and production artists from both cities and seeing theater artists auditioning and performing in Front Range markets more than ever before.
The Sangre de Cristo Arts Center regularly hosts solo and group exhibitions by visual artists from both communities, building a community between artists and supporters.
Here in the Pikes Peak region, we believe that building a cultural destination means more than just getting tourists into theater seats. It also means attracting artists and creative workers who want to create new things on our landscape with our ecosystem of support and collaboration. And we know that we are stronger together on the Front Range because importing and exporting talent fuels a creative economy.
Let us continue to support artist exchange and creative industries between our cities and welcome local, regional, national and global audiences to Southern Colorado’s great arts and culture scene.
Want to learn more about the Pikes Peak region’s cultural scene? Visit PeakRadar.com.
I look forward to seeing you at a gallery, festival or concert in Pueblo soon!
Angela Seals is the executive director of the Pikes Peak Region Cultural Office, a nonprofit arts agency serving the city of Colorado Springs and the greater Pikes Peak region..
