2025 List of Exhibitions at The Orphanage:
A Journey Within
Acrylic Abstracts by Otis Artist Mark Faulkner – Exhibition runs Fri., April 25 – Sun., May 25, 2025
Quilts
The Breakfast Club-Bev Gonzales, Deb Higgins, Sue Hill & Lori Thompson- Exhibition runs Fri., June 6 – Sun., July 6, 2025
Horizons
Alicia Blach presents her new series of acrylics and mixed media paintings-Exhibition runs Fri., August 1-Sun., September 7. Artist reception Fri., August 15, 4-8pm.
Acrylics & Alcohol Ink
Patti Bohall & Cindy Musgrave- Exhibition runs Fri., September 19 – Sun., October 19, 2025
Plains Photography – CANCELED
Photography by Matt Vincent- CANCELED
Windows of Winter Past
Acrylics by Monica King-Exhibition runs Tues., November 25-Sun., January 4, 2026
The Orphanage hours are Tuesday-Saturday, 10-4 – Sunday, 1-4, Closed Mondays
Windows of Winter Past
November 25, 2025-January 4, 2026
YUMA, COLO – Yuma resident, Monica King, will present her artwork at The Orphanage throughout the month of December. Her exhibition, Windows of Winter Past, showcases her proficiency across varied media and subject matter.
From a young age, Monica aspired to an artistic career, receiving encouragement and support from her parents and educators to pursue drawing, sculpting, and painting in oils, watercolors, and acrylics. She resided in Rangely, Colorado, for ten years before relocating to Yuma. During her time in Rangely, she refined her expertise in Tole painting by attending conventions and studying under numerous artists. Tole painting is traditionally the decorative painting of tin and wooden objects and furniture, with roots in 18th-century New England. Monica taught this discipline at Northwestern Community College for five years and engaged in further study in stained glass, oil painting, watercolor, quilting, candle wicking, cross stitch, sewing, and tailoring.
Monica’s graphic artistry is visible on several buildings in Yuma. She has painted Italian-themed murals at the former Westside Café and building murals inside the Yuma District Hospital, where she applied her Tole painting skills. Mural work, which reaches a broad audience, remains a particular interest of hers.
For two decades, Monica owned and managed Flowers Express in downtown Yuma, participating in floral classes and seminars to enhance her skills. She regards floral arrangement as a form of three-dimensional art. Compelled to retire from floristry, she continues to paint, craft, and create decorative works.
Committed to sharing her extensive experience, Monica offers art classes to both adults and children and maintains that collaboration is key to ongoing learning within the arts community.
The exhibition Windows of Winter Past will be held from Tuesday, November 25, through Sunday, January 4, 2026, at The Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Exhibition hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 am–4 pm, and Sunday, 1 pm–4 pm; the gallery is closed on Mondays. An opening reception will take place on Friday, November 28, from 5–8 pm, with refreshments provided.
Reflections of Light and Color
September 19, 2025-October 19, 2025
YUMA, COLO – Wray artists Cindy Musgrave and Patti Bohall will present their recent works at an exhibition titled Reflections of Color and Light at The Orphanage in Yuma. The show runs from September 19 to October 19, with an artist reception on opening night.
You may know Cindy Musgrave as the owner/proprietor of Artist’s Alley, 301 W. 4th Street in Wray. Cindy started drawing as a child and, in fifth grade, she was able to take an adult oil painting class. This led to some commissioned paintings when she was in seventh and eighth grades. At age 14 she took summer art courses in New York and continued her high school education in Illinois. Cindy furthered her education at Culver Stockton College in Canton, Missouri. “Art has always been the way for me to express myself,” she says.
You can find Cindy at Artist’s Alley Monday through Friday where she frames other artist’s work and sells art supplies. The perfect place for an artist who enjoys painting in various mediums. Her current interest is alcohol ink. Cindy says, about alcohol ink on glass, “the light is invited in, not just bouncing off the surface, but dancing inside creating unique reflections and brighter colors.”
Patti Bohall says, “Art is all around us” and she feels that there is a bit of the artist in all of us. She started early by drawing pictures from books she had read, crayons and pencil were her favorite tools back then. Photography was Patti’s first step in capturing the world around her and she still uses photos as references when creating a painting. Watercolor is her preferred medium, but she finds the brilliant colors of pastels less intimidating.
Patti is drawn to the works of nineteenth century Impressionists like Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, and Mary Cassatt and to the twentieth century artist Georgia O’Keeffe. Local artist Nancy Biesemeier Dee has been most influential to her learning.
The art show titled Reflections of Color and Light runs from September 19 through October 19 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday, 1pm-4pm on Sunday, closed Mondays. Meet the artists at a reception on Friday, September 19th, from 5-8pm.
Alicia Blach Introduces a New Series of paintings at The Orphanage in August
August 1, 2025-September 7, 2025
YUMA, COLO – Yuma artist Alicia Blach is introducing a new series of paintings, titled Horizons, which will be on display at The Orphanage in Yuma throughout August. This collection captures “…the stillness of farmland… themes of solitude, purpose, and the enduring rhythm of rural life.” The exhibition opens on Friday, August 1st, and Blach will greet visitors at an artist reception scheduled for Friday, August 15th, from 5-8 pm.
Growing up on the plains of Northeastern Colorado, Alicia Blach developed a deep appreciation for the vibrant energy of the world around her. As an art educator, she has been profoundly influenced by her students’ ability to play and create freely, inspiring her to embrace elegant lines, vibrant colors, and dynamic forms in her own work.
Much like sunflowers swaying in the breeze, the rhythmic motion of farm equipment, or the vast horizon on the plains, Blach’s art reflects energy and vitality. She focuses on the interplay of colors and shapes to evoke liveliness, inviting viewers to engage with the emotion in each piece.
Through her experiences, Blach has cultivated a love for organic shapes and flowing compositions. Her faith informs her artistic vision, guiding her to express joy, freedom, and a sense of connection to something greater. She aims to evoke feelings of wonder and transcendence, encouraging viewers to experience the beauty of movement, space, and the vibrancy of life. More information about her artwork can be found at AliciaBlach.com, https://www.instagram.com/aliciablach/, and https://www.facebook.com/AliciaBlach.
The Horizons exhibit will be on display from August 1st through September 7th at the Orphanage, located in downtown Yuma at 300 South Main Street. Gallery hours are 10am–4pm, Tuesday through Saturday, and 1pm–4pm on Sundays, with the gallery closed on Mondays. Mark your calendar for the artist reception on Friday, August 15th, from 5–8pm, visitors are encouraged to wander through the gallery and meet Alicia Blach in person. Why not make an evening of it? After immersing yourself in the art, enjoy dinner at one of Yuma’s fine local restaurants just steps away from The Orphanage.
Yuma Quilting Friends at the Orphanage
June 6, 2025-July 6, 2025
YUMA, COLO – It’s quilt month at The Orphanage and this year four friends from Yuma will share the gallery. The show is called The Breakfast Club. Bev Gonzalez, Deb Higgins, Sue Hill and Lori Thompson worked together at First National Bank and Colorado Community Bank. Even though they are no longer coworkers, their friendship has grown and every Friday morning, they meet for breakfast to stay in touch. The quilt exhibit will be on display from Friday, June 6 through Sunday, July 6.
Bev Gonzalez was introduced to quilting by her mother and several of her aunts. She made her first quilt just after high school, an ambitious king size one made from discarded fabric swatches. She sewed them together but didn’t know how to quilt, so her aunt showed her how to dye a bed sheet for the back and “tie” the quilt. It was used until it fell apart.
Deb Mekelburg Higgins learned to sew from her mom Doris Rutledge Mekelburg and started by making simple clothing projects. Her first love of quilting came when she inherited her great grandmother’s quilt, a Grand Mothers Flower Garden pattern made from flour sack fabrics. She has made many quilts that were gifts for loved ones, friends and charity auctions and has done some hand quilting but loves to hand a quilt top to Arlene Smith and let her do her quilting magic.
Sue Hill can’t remember anyone in the family quilting, although there were quilts on all the beds. She and her siblings were not allowed to sit on these because the stitches could break. Sue was more into garment making until Marlene Serl talked her into taking a quilting class from Carole Unger. Unlike the others in the coffee group, she is more of an occasional quilter and has found that she enjoys making small quilts instead of larger ones.
Lori Thompson’s first quilt was given to her by her grandmother, a yellow and turquoise basket pattern. She didn’t really start making quilts until she took a class at the Peachtree with Doris Mekelburg. Lori makes quilts for family weddings, graduations and births. She loves bold colors and retro prints. Lori attributes her continued interest and learning to Pat Davis, Carol Unger, Pleasant Valley Quilters, the Yuma Quilt Guild, and her close friends in The Breakfast Club. Lori and Bev rent a space for their projects and are learning to use their long-arm quilt machine.
Otis Artist displays work at the Orphanage
April 25, 2025-May 25, 2025
YUMA, COLO – Mark Faulkner, an artist from Otis, will display his abstract acrylic works at The Orphanage from April 25th through May 25th in an exhibit titled A Journey Within.
Mark studied at Metro State College in Denver and served in the U.S. Air Force. In 2022, he moved to Otis to retire after living around Denver and the foothills. Now, he looks forward to appreciating the beauty of Colorado’s eastern plains and becoming his more authentic self.
Mark says that he has been an artist all his life yet started to create works in summer 2018. Inspired by his daughter and her husband, they rented a studio in the downtown Denver art district on Santa Fe Drive. 910Arts is a collective of artists located in a converted industrial space. “A journey within” also describes a personal conversion process.
Although he is not formally trained in art, Mark’s life experiences with challenges and victories have influenced his artistic sources. “Art has become a means of self-exploration, enabling me to discover aspects of myself that were previously unknown or unacknowledged.”
Mark’s abstract art employs acrylics, water, and impasto technique. Each canvas is an exploration of emotions, ideas, or experiences through evolving techniques. Some pieces surface with difficulty, while others emerge effortlessly in a focused “flow state.” His style celebrates nature by evoking the discovery of ancient relics through color, tone, and shape.
Mark is part of GalleryOne962, a 3D virtual gallery, and had a 1st place win at the most recent Yuma Art Association Show. He co-wrote The Art of Vulnerability: Maqui Mack’s Journey Through Healing and Creation with Boky Atelier & Store, which is a retail space and online presence displaying luxury, creativity, and artistic expression through handmade items and original pieces for home or office decor. Mark shares his artwork and process on Instagram under the pseudonym MaquiMack.
The art show A Journey Within runs from April 25th to May 25th at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Exhibition hours are Tuesday-Saturday 10 am-4 pm, Sunday 1 pm-4 pm, closed Mondays. Join the opening reception on April 25th, from 5-8 pm, refreshments will be served.
Fabric Fixation – Tie Dye by Julie Jamison
September 27, 2024-November 3, 2024
Julie Jamison – Fabric Fixation
“Greetings everyone. My name is Julie Jamison. I was born and raised in Colorado and currently live in Yuma. I have no formal art training but have been a creative soul my whole life. I love creating things from watercolor paintings, jewelry making, to making pictures with rocks. My current love is tie dyeing.”
“I started creating tie dye in 2019, when I wanted to make a pair of colorful bib-overalls. I started out by watching how-to videos on YouTube and found a new world of tie dyeing. My first projects were t-shirts. I have tried many different techniques: liquid, ice, LWI (low water immersion), HWI (hot water irrigation), bleach, geodes and batik. My favorite technique is HWI.”
“I love to create tie dye designs that are perfectly imperfect. I love the colors and the abstract patterns that emerge. To inspire a smile is the best feeling I could ever imagine getting with my creations. I sell my work at local events and online.”
You probably saw Julie selling her work at this year’s Old Threshers weekend, she also sells through her personal Facebook account and her Aunt Jewelry’s and Friends Crafts Facebook page.
Sculpture Of Local Marlboro Man at the Orphanage
July 5, 2024-September 29, 2024
YUMA, COLO – On loan from Yuma resident, Cindy Stulp, is a bronze sculpture of National Rodeo Hall of Fame and Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame inductee, Wayne Dunafon. Wayne was a distant cousin of the late Tim Stulp and was born to Clarence and Jessie Wilson Dunafon at Yuma, Colorado in June 1919.
After working on several ranches in Colorado, Wayne began ranching for himself in 1940 in Westmoreland, Kansas. Like many young ranchers, he began traveling the country competing on the rodeo circuit. While most pro rodeo cowboys specialize in one or two events, Dunafon did them all, winning lots of saddles, buckles and the like.
It was during a month-long rodeo at Madison Square Garden in New York City that Dunafon, nineteen at the time, was approached by an ad agency to model for Lee Rider jeans. The handsome cowboy also landed acting jobs with Firestone Tires and Chevrolet pickups. His career in rodeo also led him to work for Phillip Morris, owners of the Marlboro cigarette brand. Dunafon was to become internationally famous as one of several genuine cowboys to portray the Marlboro Man in television and print ads. His stint as the Marlboro Man spanned 14 years between 1964 and 1978.
The large bronze sculpture, by Randy Rau, is a depiction of Dunafon riding Schoolboy Rowe, a hard to ride bronc which he rode to three first place wins. Randy Rau is a Colorado native who was first a cowboy and became a western and wildlife bronze sculptor. This sculpture was inspired by a 1949 photograph of Wayne on Schoolboy Rowe and was created in the early 2000’s. It is numbered 8 in a limited edition of 35.
About his career as the Marlboro Man, Dunafon said, “I don’t have to act or anything, I just do what I normally do as far as horses and cattle and ranch business is concerned.”
Yuma County Cattlewomen’s Brand Quilts
June 1, 2024-July 7, 2024
YUMA, COLO – June is always quilt month at The Orphanage. This year the gallery will be shared by Yuma quilter Donna McPheron and an array of cattle brand quilts made, over the years, by various members of the Yuma County Cowbelles. The quilt exhibit will be on display from Saturday, June 1 through Sunday, July 7.
Yuma County’s Cowbelles chapter was formed in 1971 and during that year gathered 64 charter members. There was a movement, in 1970, to change the name of American National Cowbelles to American National Cattle Women. The proposal was defeated several times but became reality in 1984. Education has always been a priority for the Yuma County Cattle Women (YCCW), along with promoting beef. The organization has hosted annual classroom seminars, tours for area students, and worked with home economics teachers and animal care educators.
The first YCCW brand quilt was made in 1972, Nettie Mae Welton, assisted by Crystal Zion, oversaw this project. While other chapters made quilts as fundraisers, the YCCW decided theirs would be a members only keepsake. The member’s brand block became her raffle ticket for the completed quilt. Early quilts had a waiting list for blocks and through the years, many of the members have had a hand at working on the committee. The most dedicated quiltmaker was LuJean Zion, who supervised the project for many years.
In 1981, the YCCW sponsored a logo contest. LuJean Zion designed the beautiful windmill logo which has been used for the past 40 years including on a block on the quilts. The Yuma County brand napkins have been a long-standing tradition, they have always featured a cattle and windmill scene drawn by Leta Smith.
Donna McPheron took up quilting after she was married, she pieced, and hand quilted her first quilt in the early seventies but wasn’t happy with the results. When she moved to Yuma, a neighbor invited Donna to join the ABC Quilters, and that is when she got serious about piecing and hand quilting.
Donna has continued her grandmother’s tradition of making graduation and marriage quilts for her children. Most of the quilts she has made have been given away to family and close friends. In 2014, Donna’s husband bought her a longarm quilting machine thinking it would be a good way to earn some extra money during retirement.
Still Stories – Photographs by Crook Artist
March 2, 2024-April 7, 2024
YUMA, COLO – Amber Mekelburg-Herz will be the first artist to exhibit at The Orphanage in 2024. She hails from the town of Crook in Logan County, just 14 miles north of Fleming and close to several reservoirs and the South Platte River. Amber’s photographic exhibit is titled Still Stories and runs from Saturday, March 2 through Sunday, April 7.
Amber graduated from Fleming High School and Northeastern Junior College. She grew up in the outdoors: fishing, camping, and spending time with her family. Amber has always been interested in capturing the outdoors in more than just her memory.
As long as Amber can remember, she has been snapping pictures of everything, always experimenting to get the shot just as she imagined. About four years ago she acquired her first DSLR camera. When they started their small cattle herd, Amber was at the local reservoir every day, spending all her time capturing candid moments in the pasture and at the water.
Amber has no formal training, but with the help of YouTube and a kind neighbor she was able to teach herself photography. While it is still just a hobby, many others seem to enjoy Amber’s photos as much as she does, thus Still Stories Art Co. was born. “Still Stories: Each picture, while still, has a story as vivid as a cinema,” she says. Amber enjoys both taking and sharing her photos, so visit Still Stories Art Co. on Facebook and Instagram.
1973 BMW “Toaster” Now in The Permanent Collection at the Orphanage
YUMA, COLO – While tending The Orphanage for the last five years, I have heard my fair share of regret stories. People will come in and say something like “I once had a [fill in the vehicle] which I sold because I needed the cash, or because [fill in the reason].” Predictably the next line is always “I sure wish I still had that vehicle.” While it is true that we rarely divest ourselves of anything transportation related (just look in the back room of Ron’s Car Care) there was a motorcycle that, regrettably, got away from us. What were we thinking? The Vehicle was a beautiful, Grenada red, 1973 BMW R75/5 motorcycle.
Move forward a decade or so and bringatrailer.com, an online auction site for classic and collector vehicles, offers an identical half century old BMW motorcycle. We snapped it up for the permanent collection at the Orphanage. It was the watershed /5 (“slash five”) series that brought BMW motorcycles up to date technologically.
The /5 models offered a brand new, air-cooled (the fabled “Airhead”), four-stroke, boxer engine with hemispherical combustion chambers. Displacement of the model on display is 750 cc developing 50 hp and a top speed of 110 mph. The flat twin motor uses a CV carburetor. The clutch is a single disc dry clutch and final drive is by shaft. This /5 model is equipped with electric starting (along with kick starter) and telescopic front forks. Curb weight is 463 lb.
A Fantasy on Strings
December 16, 2023-January 14, 2024
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage will host an exhibit of the work of Sarah Beth (SB) Parks. The exhibit is titled A Fantasy On Strings and will open with two performances of an original puppet show on Saturday, December 16, at 10am & 2pm. The exhibit will run through Sunday, January 14, 2024.
SB grew up in Yuma, Colorado and attended CU Boulder, where she earned a BA in Theatre, and University of Connecticut for an MFA in Dramatic Arts. SB’s career has taken her across the country working for puppet and theatre companies. Among these companies are Tears of Joy Theatre in Portland, Oregon, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, and Hartford Stage in Connecticut. At Hartford SB worked on many world premieres including the musicals A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder and Anastasia.
Most recently, SB’s puppet work has been seen in Colorado Springs at Theaterworks of UC Colorado Springs, the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, and Colorado College. She currently manages the costume department at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College.
The puppet show, titled Three Tales of Three, will be performed by SB on Saturday, December 16, at 10am and 2pm. SB calls her company The Enchanted Cardboard Forest and she has designed and built the stage, and puppets and written the script. Tickets for the performances are $10 each and include refreshments and live music afterwards.
Dwelling
November 4, 2023-December 10, 2023
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage, in downtown Yuma, will host a five week long exhibition of the work of Joes artist, Maureen Hearty. The exhibition is titled Dwelling and will open with an artist’s reception on Saturday, November 4, from 1-5 p.m. The show will run through Sunday, December 10.
As sculptress, gardener, musician, and community organizer, Maureen Hearty uses art, music, and horticulture as tools for community activation. She currently lives on the high plains in Joes, Colorado, plays music with her husband, builds creative community opportunities, and transforms metal waste into sculptures. She is inspired by the fluctuating social and physical geography of the Colorado eastern plains.
Hearty’s work is about transformation, taking discarded objects and changing their nature, function, and condition. Traditionally she has sculpted in old steel and iron but recently she has been exploring new domains; taking her found object obsession and experimenting with mixed media. The collection on display represents Maureen’s baby steps into a new world of creation, still dealing with transformation, but more focused on shifting habitats, and belonging.
The latest works of Hearty’s explore the natural behavior of humans, animals, and plants to migrate for distinct reasons. The world is in flux from war, famine, climate change, oppressive governments and it is causing migration patterns to shift. Her work urges us to embrace compassion and grace and …”recognize the need to protect biodiversity as a whole, and humanity as a society.” You can access Maureen’s website at mauxheart.com.
David Gustafson Photography
September 23, 2023-October 29, 2023
YUMA, COLO – David “Gus” Gustafson will display his photographs, at The Orphanage in Yuma, during the months of September and October. The name of the show is David Gustafson Photography and on display will be wildlife photos, landscape, and night sky images.
Now retired, Gus continues his sports photography but has expanded his interests to include landscape and astrophotography. Also known as astronomical imaging or night sky photography, astrophotography uses extended exposure times to capture celestial objects and events. This type of photography dates to the mid-19th century, but advances in digital technology now allow for wonderfully detailed astronomical images.
To learn and improve his skills as a photographer, Gus has taken several clinics with well-known professionals such as John Fielder, (Colorado landscape photographer, conservationist, and publisher of over 40 books), Glen Randall, (Colorado and Utah freelance photographer and photo instructor), and Mike Berenson, (Colorado landscape and night sky photographer). Gus continues to read, investigate, and experiment with his camera.
David Gustafson Photography runs from September 23rd through October 29th at the Orphanage. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday and 1pm-4pm, Sundays. The Orphanage is closed on Mondays. The artist reception for this exhibit will be Saturday, September 23rd from 1pm-5pm. Refreshments will be served.
Power In Motion
July 29, 2023-September 3, 2023
YUMA, COLO – Yuma artist Alicia Blach will display her latest work at The Orphanage in Yuma during the month of August. Her show is titled Power In Motion and it “captures the vibrancy of rural life.”
Alicia Blach’s art is anything but static. Details not required, but a love of fluid line, color, and energy is. Richly influenced by gestural drawing, her mixed media artwork vibrates – sometime with a gentle rhythm, but most often with an energetic staccato.
Painting from the Blach Family Farm and Ranch on the plains of eastern Colorado, Alicia captures the vibrancy of rural life. Like sunflowers that burst across the canvas in a riot of yellow. And, in her newest collection – including a 9-ft by 7-ft canvas that’s splashed in John Deere green – tractors and combines win the attention of the artist and the viewer.
The line, found so predominantly in her work, has long held Alicia’s attention. The human body, including the striations of muscle over muscle, captured her attention as an undergraduate at the Arizona State University where she studied to become a medical illustrator.
Later, as a K-12 art educator, she re-connected with the youthful freedom of creating. The 20-some years in the classroom and use of Teaching Artistic Behavior embedded the knowledge that artistic growth comes through exploration and discovery, questioning and ideation, development, and artmaking. Alicia now teaches and mentors young adults and adults in the arts.
Alicia and husband Ronald Blach reside north of Yuma, Colorado, where the family’s multi-generation stewardship of the homestead incorporates raising cattle and crops. The family includes son Conner and wife Jenna with grand-daughter Leighton; son Preston; daughter Shelby; and farm-dog Tucker.
Born in Vermillion, South Dakota, and raised across the mid-west, Alicia arrived in Yuma with her family when she was in middle school.
Alicia studied undergraduate liberal arts at Arizona State University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in arts education and a master’s degree in art and design from the University of Northern Colorado.
She has studied with advanced teaching artists including Bob Burridge, Donna Downey, Betty Franks, Tom Sarmo, Carla Sonheim, Beverly Todd, Lynn Whipple and Ann Obrien Gonzales.
Blach’s show, Power In Motion, runs from July 29 through September 3 at the Orphanage. Hours for the exhibition are 10-4, Tuesday through Saturday, 1-4, Sundays, closed Mondays. Meet the artist at the opening reception, First Friday Art Walk, August 4, 5-8 pm. Refreshments will be served. The Orphanage is in downtown Yuma at 300 South Main Street. For more information about this exhibit or future shows, please contact Richard Birnie at (970) 630-3360, or visit the Orphanage website at orphanageyuma.com.
Quilting A Friendship
June 2, 2023-July 9, 2023
YUMA, COLO – Quilting friends Doris Matson and Marilyn Van Norden both moved to Yuma in the 2000’s and joined the Yuma Quilt Guild shortly thereafter. These friends will display their quilts at The Orphanage from June 2 through July 9. The show will be called Quilting a Friendship.
Marilyn Van Norden made her first quilt in the late 1980’s. It was a Sampler quilt made in a class at the local fabric store. “There weren’t rotary cutters and rulers when I started. Quilters used templates made from the backs of cereal boxes. Each piece was traced onto the fabric, cut out and then sewn together by machine or hand sewn,” she says. Due to family and career responsibilities, she didn’t make another quilt for several years.
Picking the fabric and colors has become Marilyn’s favorite thing about quilting. She would rather pick her own fabric than buy a kit where someone else has already made those choices. She also enjoys going to quilt retreats where she makes new friends and gets new ideas.
Doris Matson’s quilting journey began in Pueblo, CO, in 1992 where she would take classes and workshops from the local quilt shop and instructions from friends. To learn as much as she could from other quilters, she would join a local quilt guild wherever she lived. When she lived in Smithville, MO, there was no a local quilt guild, so she started one with women in her church and the local area. The guild, called Town and Country Quilters, is still meeting today.
Doris retired in 2006 and enjoys making quilts full time. Her favorite quilt pattern is the Log Cabin block because “you can set the blocks together in several different arrangements to give you completely different looking quilts.” She loves to do embroidery, applique, and English paper-piecing. Doris’s other hobby is basket weaving, she enjoys creating baskets for family and friends.
This year’s quilt show, Quilting a Friendship, runs from Friday, June 2 through Sunday, July 9 at The Orphanage. Hours of the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, 10-4, Sundays, 1-4, closed Mondays. Meet the quilters at the artist reception during Yuma’s First Friday Art Walk, June 2, from 5-8 pm, refreshments will be served, live music.
Kirk Photographer at The Orphanage
April 22, 2023 – May 28, 2023
YUMA, COLO – Kirk photographer Christi Herrick is the next artist to display at The Orphanage in Yuma. Her show is titled Unexpected Wonders and will feature photographs of eastern Colorado landscapes.
Christi grew up in eastern Colorado where the farmland and pastures were just beyond the end of her sidewalk and has lived here for most of her life. She remembers finding inspiration in color, texture, and pattern and enjoying art classes at Kit Carson and Liberty Schools, drawing classes at Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kansas and, later, art training through correspondence courses. She was inspired by teachers along the way, by those who shared their creativity and art, and she continues to be inspired by the world around her, capturing moments of unexpected wonder.
Christi’s passion for photography exploded when she realized that she could use her iPhone to take pictures as she wandered around her rural community. She feels fortunate to have an innate appreciation for the subtle beauty of the eastern plains where the wide-open skies, cloud formations, sunrises and sunsets are the perfect backdrop for the fences, windmills and old houses found there.
“The plains of Colorado offer so many things that catch the eye, from weathered fenceposts and old buildings with rusted hardware to the shapes and textures of the trees. And, of course, the white dog who has proven to be both photogenic and patient,” says Christi. Although ready at any given moment for a trip down the road or around the world, the photos of eastern Colorado plains have become some of her favorites.
Christi shares her photographs with friends and family who encourage her to continue expressing creativity through photography. “It is a joy to share the unassuming beauty I find with those who might not otherwise notice it in this busy world.”
Morgan County Photographer at the Orphanage
March 4, 2023 – April 8, 2023
YUMA, COLO – Cathy Shull, Morgan County photographer, is the featured artist at The Orphanage during the month of March. The show, titled Rural Vibrancy, will highlight fifty of Shull’s photographs and runs from Saturday, March 4th through Saturday, April 8th.
Although Cathy Shull has lived all over the United States, her roots are in Morgan County where she was born. She is a passionate rural advocate as evidenced by her consulting business which works with nonprofits, small business and government in rural Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, and Nebraska. Shull also owns an online rural event guide, promoting events in Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. You have probably heard of Discover Rural.
As she traveled the territory, Shull was struck by the beauty of the plains landscape and started taking photos with her iPhone. Sometimes she would pull over and stop, sometimes not, sometimes she just stopped in the middle of the road. But always, she would share the photos with her friends who started asking her for prints.
Never one to let an entrepreneurial opportunity pass her by, Shull started a small business which she called “Rural Drive by Photos from the Road” and signed up with a website that allowed her to sell her photos online. Next came a better camera and computer software to help her manipulate her photographic files. She started experimenting with what she saw in the landscape and what she saw in her mind and combining those two ideas on the computer. She views the product as “photo art.” Shull says, “Not all my photos are manipulated, some beauty stands on its own.”
Her photography started as a personal hobby as she traveled rural roads for her clients. “Rural is all over the world and some of my greatest landscapes are along coast lines” says Shull. “I do mostly landscapes, plants, trees, flowers and for some reason I want my animals to be colorful. I rarely do people, but barns and bridges do fascinate me.”
Shull’s show runs from Saturday, March 4th through Saturday, April 8th at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, from 10am-4pm, Sunday, from 1pm-4pm, closed Mondays. The opening reception for Rural Vibrancy will be on Saturday, March 4th, 2023, from 1pm-5pm, refreshments will be served.
One Shot:
January 7, 2023 – February 5, 2023
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage will be exhibiting the photographs of former Yuma resident Jesse Goeglein during the month of January 2023. The exhibit is titled One Shot.
Jesse grew up in Yuma, CO and went on to graduate from the University of Denver in 2009 with degrees in Computer Science and Molecular Biology. He spent 8 years working in Utah before moving back to Colorado Springs where he now resides.
While in Utah, Jesse started taking photography seriously when he realized that his camera gets him into places (and motivates him to get to places) that he didn’t expect. He’s been into the pits at speed week where world land speed records were being set, spent a few days rafting through the Grand Canyon and gets up at obscene hours of the night searching for images that will help us remember to celebrate and appreciate the world that we’ve been given. You can find more and follow along at jesseutahphoto.com.
All images in the One Shot show are minimally processed single exposures that faithfully recreate the scenes as they were through the eyes of the artist.
Goeglein’s show runs from Saturday, January 7 through Sunday, February 5 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, from 10am-4pm, Sunday, from 1pm-4pm, closed Mondays. The opening of One Shot will be on Saturday, January 7, 2023, from 1-5 pm, refreshments will be served.
BOOK SIGNING:
New Book Uncovers the Local Custer Trail
Celebrating local culture and western history with their words and illustrations, Matt Vincent and Brigitte Shafer have teamed up once more for yet another book project. And to launch their project locally, a book-signing event has been scheduled at The Orphanage on Saturday, Nov. 12, from 2-5 p.m.
Their latest book is called The Chronicles of Custer: First Stand of a Failed Campaign, an ambitious 354-page book that represents more than four years of research and exploration of the High Plains of Kansas, Nebraska and northeastern Colorado.
The Chronicles follows the trials and tribulations of Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and the newly formed 7th Cavalry during the ill-fated Hancock Campaign of 1867 and their collective efforts to intimidate and remove the Oglala Sioux, Cheyenne Dog Soldiers and other indigenous tribes from a large part of the central Great Plains.
Like his last command at the Little Bighorn in Montana nine years later, Custer’s first field western command was an unmitigated disaster marked by mass desertions, deadly Indian attacks, the attempted execution of his own men, and Custer’s own desertion.
What should make this new book compelling for local history buffs is that a significant portion of the story unfolds on the once-wild plains of Yuma and Logan counties in northeastern Colorado.
Vincent grew up in Yuma immersed in western history and lore. He graduated from Yuma High School in 1975 and from the University of Colorado School of Journalism in 1980 and spent the next 40 years in the publishing industry, becoming an award-winning newspaper and magazine writer, a photographer, and editor of several national fishing publications.
He retired from the outdoor sports business in 2008 to begin freelance writing and photography projects, most of which focused on the Colorado Plains. Vincent was the first featured artist at The Orphanage.
Opened in 2019 on Main Street in downtown Yuma, The Orphanage quickly became a unique event venue whose mission is to promote local and regional arts and artists.
True to that objective, Brigitte Shafer became another featured artist there in 2021 with her month-long show of “Wild West Art.”
Copies of The Chronicles of Custer: First Stand of a Failed Campaign will be available at The Orphanage while books last.
Vincent and Shafer’s first collaborative effort, Wild Times & True Tales from the High Plains, was published in early 2021 and quickly sold out after selling more than 1,600 copies. Vincent said they plan to launch a Fourth Printing of Wild Times sometime next year due to popular demand.
Feelin’ Strange
November 4, 2022 – December 11, 2022
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage will be exhibiting the multi-media paintings of former Wray resident Mellissa McCafferty and the “nature find” collages of Golden, CO resident Tim Costin during the month of November. The exhibit is titled Feelin’ Strange.
Mellissa McCafferty (born Mellissa Newton) grew up in Wray, CO, and graduated from Wray High School in 2008. She lived in the Wray area primarily until 2016 when she moved to Sebastian, Florida. Later, she moved back to Colorado to live in Lyons. Mellissa now lives in Golden, CO and spends her free time studying holistic nutrition & mental health. She spends a lot of time in nature and going wherever the wind takes her.
When she was a child, Mellissa was inspired by Eric Carle’s use of texture and tissue paper and soon after began creating multi-media works. Carle was an illustrator and author of over seventy children’s books. His artwork was created in collage technique, using hand-painted papers, which he cut and layered to form bright and cheerful images. Mellissa uses tissue paper, bubble wrap, plaster, string, acrylic paint, enamel, foil, packaging materials, fruit bags, and just about anything else that sparks her interest (not to mention a lot of mod podge).
Tim Costin grew up in upstate New York and joined the Army in 2006. He was assigned to the 1st Special Warfare training group Airborne until 2010 when he was honorably discharged and moved to Denver, CO. Tim now resides in Golden, CO and spends his free-time flying paragliders, rock climbing, and chasing adventure. His art is inspired by life and is created using “nature finds” he has collected on his hikes and travels in Colorado and the United States.
Costin and McCafferty’s show, titled Feelin’ Strange, runs from Friday, November 4 through Sunday, December 11 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, from 10am-4pm, Sunday, from 1pm-4pm, closed Mondays. The opening of Feelin’ Strange will be on Friday, November 4, from 5-8 pm, refreshments will be served.
Diverse Body of Work
October 7, 2022 – October 30, 2022
YUMA, COLO – Yuma resident Monica King will display her artwork at The Orphanage during the month of October. Her show is titled Diverse Body of Work and highlights her talent with disparate mediums and subject matter.
Monica King knew at an early age that she wanted to be an artist. Her parents and teachers encouraged her to pursue drawing and sculpting, and painting with oils, watercolor, and acrylics.
Monica lived in Rangely, Colorado for ten years prior to moving to Yuma. While in Rangely, she mastered the art of Tole painting by attending conventions and learning techniques from various artists. Tole painting is the art of decorative painting on tin and wooden utensils, objects, and furniture. The practice began, in America, in 18th century New England. Monica taught this art form at Northwestern Community College for five years. While teaching in Rangely she also took classes in stained glass, oil painting, watercolor, quilting, candle wicking, cross stitch, sewing and tailoring.
The Yuma Community has come to know Monica’s graphic artwork on both the inside and outside of several local buildings. One of her first projects was the Italian themed paintings on the walls inside the old Westside Café. Also, using her Tole painting skills, she painted the building murals inside the Yuma District Hospital. Monica enjoys mural painting because murals are accessible to a wider audience.
For twenty years, Monica owned and operated Flowers Express in downtown Yuma. She attended floral classes and seminars to learn the tricks of the trade and looks upon floral arranging as a form of 3D art. Allergies forced Monica to hang up her florist hat and even though semi-retired, she is still painting, crafting, and creating decorative pieces.
Monica loves to share her diverse background in art by teaching classes to adults and kids and feels that she can always learn something new from other artists.
Special Exhibit
Custom “Hot Wheels” Exhibit at the Orphanage
October 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022
YUMA, COLO – Flagler resident Larry Romkee is exhibiting his customized Hot Wheels creations at The Orphanage from now through the end of the year. Customizing Hot Wheels, and occasionally other brands of die-cast models, is a passion that took over Larry’s life about six years ago. Since then, he has been successfully selling his creations on eBay and is a member of several Facebook custom Hot Wheels groups.
Originally from Idalia, Larry grew up on the family farm and attended grade school and junior high school there. After a move to Wray, he graduated from Wray High School and attended Northeastern Junior College (NJC) in Sterling. Larry took an auto body and painting course at NJC, which resulted in a 25-year career in that business. Eight of those years were spent operating his own business in but he has also worked at auto body shops in Wray, Yuma, Flagler, and Burlington.
Larry says the 1/64 scale die-cast models he works with are made of a zinc type metal that resembles pot metal. He splices different models together such as a T-bucket and a stagecoach, or a cab over and a Ford panel truck. Sometimes there are up to four different models spliced into one. He will interchange wheels and then splice a 4X4 base onto a car body. Perhaps his most stunning custom creation is a metallic fuchsia colored bullet nose Studebaker stretch limo. It was created by splicing two “McDonalds Happy Meals” bullet nose Studebakers together and finished off with his signature colorful flames.
When it comes to painting his creations, Larry uses a combination of rattle can paint, model paints applied by airbrush, and nail polish. Each paint job is sealed with a urethane clear coat which makes the colors more vibrant.
Larry has lived in Flagler for 30 years and considers himself semi-retired. His hobbies are working on and riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle and customizing 1/64 scale die-cast toys.
Signed and Numbered
September 2, 2022 – October 2, 2022 – Opening Cancelled – New Date TBD
YUMA, COLO – Signed and numbered is a term used in printmaking. When a printmaker signs and numbers a series of prints, they are guaranteeing that each print made is exactly like the rest in quality and that the number that appears on the print is the only one in existence. Denver printmakers Gail Boyd and Grant R. Williams have shared a Denver studio they call Flour Mill Press for almost fifteen years and they will be sharing an art show, called Signed and Numbered, at the Orphanage for the month of September.
Gail Boyd has been an artist all of her life, but she discovered printmaking while studying at CSU in 1973. She still uses the first press she purchased in 1979. Gail is primarily a printmaker and collage artist, but she is also a second-generation frame maker. Her inspiration comes from all aspects of life but, as an avid gardener, much of her work is filled with “the joy and energy of the natural world.” She can usually be found in her garden when she is not in the studio.
In 1991, Grant Russell Williams graduated from the University of Denver with a BFA in printmaking. His images have appeared in several literary and arts & culture magazines. Grant has held many different jobs including illustrator, art instructor, musician, thespian, carpenter, and bartender. Grant says, “I continue to try to prepare myself to become a better artist, and to demonstrate my gratitude by sharing, teaching, and enabling in any way that I can.”
They describe their studio in Denver as organized chaos, and it is filled with vintage things like Grants old vinyl records, Gail’s first printing press, and old-school tools of their craft. The studio window is west facing; therefore, the best light is in the afternoon. Gail and Grant don’t always work during the same time of day so they may not see each other for weeks, but you can often hear the faint strains of jazz music emanating from Studio #201 late at night, from the old vinyl collection.
Signed and Numbered runs from September 2nd through October 2nd at The Orphanage. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, 10am-4pm and Sundays, 1pm-4pm. The Orphanage is closed on Mondays. The artist reception for this exhibit will be Friday, September 2nd from 5pm-8pm to coincide with September’s First Friday Art Walk. Refreshments will be served.
A Quiet Life
June 3, 2022 – July 3, 2022
YUMA, COLO – The title of June’s quilt show, “A Quiet Life,” is taken from 1 Thess. 4:11 and describes this year’s quilt artist to a t. Yuma’s Arlene Smith will be displaying over thirty quilts at The Orphanage during the month of June.
Inspired by her Aunts Hilda and Shirley, Arlene started quilting by making two embroidered cross stitch quilts when she was in high school. After college she moved to Bozeman, MT where she took a twelve week quilting class. Since then, her quilting skills have been largely self-taught. She moved to Yuma County after marrying Darrell Smith, taught a few classes and further honed her skills in a quilting group that met once a month.
Arlene says her husband, Darrell, “has been the best quilters husband, listening and learning…He even made two quilts himself…” One of Darrell’s quilts was displayed in a “Quilts Made by Men” show at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum in Golden. Both of Darrell’s works will be displayed alongside Arlene’s quilts at The Orphanage.
Arlene’s family: mom, sisters, aunt, cousins, and their children, have enjoyed quilting together over the years. They meet monthly and work on individual and group projects alike, encouraging each other and keeping their relationships alive. For over 25 years, they held an annual four day family retreat where they worked on a project and drew a name for the winner. Over the years they have made quilts for graduations, new babies, weddings, special anniversaries, etc. For Arlene, “Quilts convey love to others, wrap them in warmth and a hug.”
A hand quilter for 35 years, six years ago Arlene purchased a longarm machine. The machine allows her to not only quilt her own but other people’s quilts. Arlene says “My best time for quilting is early morning while the house is quiet. I like piecing best and a trademark is pieced borders.” She likes hand applique too, and still enjoys some hand quilting. Arlene loves color and the creative process of planning a project Her quilts are mostly traditional but occasionally lean toward modern.
When not quilting, Arlene enjoys life on their ranch south of Yuma. She loves working with the cows, “and time spent in nature, quiet places, or reading together with Darrell.”
“A Quiet Life” quilt exhibit runs from Friday, June 3 through Sunday, July 3 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, from 10am-4pm, Sunday, from 1pm-4pm, closed Mondays. The exhibit opening will be during Yuma’s First Friday Art Walk, June 3, from 5-8 pm, refreshments served.
MAYhem
May 6, 2022 – May 29, 2022
YUMA, COLO – The month of May at the Orphanage will feature a mixed bag of artist. Opening night is May 6, during Yuma’s First Friday Art Walk, and will include Author, Jeff Rice, for a book signing from 5-8 pm. Jeff will also give a reading from his book at 6 pm that same night. Artists on display at the Orphanage for the month of May will be Maureen Hearty’s Prairie Past and Futures exhibit which features high school art students. Las Estrellas will display a body of work called “We are Yumans.” Finally, Denver artist Nicole Cherie Bleau will exhibit pen & ink and graphite drawings and wood block prints.
Jeff Rice is a working journalist who has spent most of his adult life in small and medium size newspapers and has won numerous awards for his features, columns, and editorials. A fourth-generation native of Colorado, he grew up in Yuma during the 1950s and 1960s. He and his wife of 50 years live on three acres in eastern Colorado with their dogs and several chickens.
Jeff’s book, The Snake Patch, is a coming-of-age story that begins on a summer night in 1963. Four pre-teen boys witness a horrific crime in their small Colorado town, and along the way, childhood concepts of ethics, heroism and justice are challenged and, eventually, redefined.
Prairie Past and Futures is a multi-media exhibit featuring oral histories and birdhouses (that can talk) from Arickaree, Liberty and Idalia high school art students. The project is the brainchild of Maureen Hearty, an artist who lives in Joes. Hearty says “…this show consists of twenty-one whimsical birdhouses as designed and built by some very creative kids…Every birdhouse tells a story about the past present and future of the high plains.” Colorado Creative Industries and Think 360 Arts have funded the project.
Exhibited alongside the birdhouses will be art by members of Las Estrellas, a leadership development program at Yuma’s Rural Communities Resources Center. Estrellas collaborated with teachers from the Prairie Cultural commons to create self-portraits using image transfer and collage to create a body of work called “We are Yumans.”
Nicole Cherie Bleau is a friend and artist from the Denver area. Originally from Connecticut, she most recently worked as the Manager of the collection at the Forney Museum of Transportation. On display will be her pen & ink and graphite drawings and wood block prints. To view more of her art, Nicole’s Instagram page is Nicole_Cherie_Bleau.
The MAYhem exhibit runs from Friday, May 6 through Monday, May 30 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, from 10am-4pm, Sunday, from 1pm-4pm, closed Mondays. The exhibit opening will be during the First Friday Art Walk, May 6, from 5-8 pm, refreshments served.
High Plains Spinners & Weavers
Fiber Art at the Orphanage
April 1, 2022 – May 1, 2022
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage will be featuring the fiber art of High Plains Spinners & Weavers during the month of April. In the exhibit will be seven participants from Northeastern Colorado, and Wyoming. Those participants are Lynea Beauregard, Carol Dowell, Pat Noah, Joan Pierce, Diane Sprague, Janet Thorin and Pam Veto.
High Plains Spinners and Weavers was established in March of 2003 as a group of fiber enthusiasts located in Northeastern Colorado. They welcome anyone who is interested in the production of fibers and/or using fiber for spinning, weaving, or needlework. Their membership represents a wide variety of talents and interests, and their goal is to encourage and teach the fiber arts.
In 2010, Lynea Beauregard started weaving and it has become a daily practice ever since. She loves experimenting with different fibers and learning new techniques. Her weaving interests include upcycled items, making rugs, bags, baskets, wind spinners, jewelry, wall hangings, etc.
Carol Dowell comes from a family of fiber people. Great Grandma Rosie made quilts from feed sacks, Grandma Calvert shared her love of knitting and critiqued Carol’s work. Grandma Bender made quilts recycled from men’s suit pants, and aunt Julia did consignment sewing for Singer Sewing Company. Carol’s claim to fame is having a shawl she knitted featured in Spin Off Magazine.
Taught how to knit and crochet by her grandmother, Pat Noah began at the age of seven. Later she learned how to spin from Maggie Casey, Boulder fiber arts shop owner and author on the subject. Pat has taught classes in Estes Park and judged skeins there and in Boulder. She took Grand Champion overall at Taos Wool Festival. Pat has also been published in Spin Off, and Hand-Woven Magazines.
Before she started first grade, Joan Pierce was taught how to crochet by her grandmother. Over the years she has learned to knit, tat, weave, and spin. Most of these skills were acquired with the help of High Plains Spinners and Weavers. The fiber project she is showing at the Orphanage won a purple ribbon at the Morgan County Fair several years ago.
The Recycled Lamb in Lakewood, CO, was where Diane Sprague took her first weaving lesson in 1993. One of the founders of High Plains Spinners and Weavers, she is also a member of Northern Colorado Weavers Guild in Loveland. Diane wants you to know that the East Morgan County Library in Brush has three types of looms that can be checked out with a library card by anyone whether you live in Morgan County or not.
Janet Thorin, Registered Nurse, first learned to crochet from her grandmother and mother. She has crocheted and knitted countless baby blankets, toys, sweaters, Christmas stockings, hats, stuffed animals, etc. After learning how to spin yarn while in college, spinning became her preference.
Who did not create macrame wall hangings back in their college days? Pam Veto started this way and was encouraged to take classes in the Denver area. It was at a fiber art store that she first learned about Navajo tapestry weaving. A move to Toas, NM solidified her love of tapestry, and she enjoys Navajo textile restoration to this day.
MASCOTS: Radiator Caps & Hood Ornaments – 1900’s-1990’s
February 4, 2022 – March 6, 2022 – Extended Indefinitely
YUMA, COLO – It was an Englishman who had the distinction of being the first person to put a mascot on a vehicle. That mascot was a bronze statuette of St Christopher, patron saint of travelers. The vehicle, which exists today in a museum in Hampshire, England, is an 1896 Daimler. Almost from the beginning of self-propelled transportation, the exposed radiator cap and subsequent hood ornament was a means of personalization. Early on, sculptor designed mascots could be purchased at accessory stores and fine jewelry shops on both sides of the Atlantic.
Mascots, those diminutive sculptures at the front end of a car, are now considered collectable small works of art. In the 1900’s and 1910’s only a few auto manufacturers offered mascots with the sale of their cars, Vulcan (a brass era American automobile manufacturer) was one and Rolls-Royce another. But starting in the 1920’s most manufacturers offered approved mascots either as standard equipment or deluxe accessories.
Metals used over the years have been cast brass, zinc, bronze, and chrome while non-metallic materials, such as plastic, plexiglass, Bakelite, clear, opaque, and colored glass, have been used for extra pizzazz. Some marques and aftermarket manufacturers incorporated, into their mascots, a small light bulb that would illuminate when the headlights were turned on. France, England, and the USA had a handful of sellers/producers of glass mascots, the best known of which is Rene Lalique. Lalique mascots adorned the hoods of such upscale marques as Bentley, Bugatti, Hispano-Suiza, Isotta-Fraschini, and Mercedes Benz.
Initially, radiator caps tended to be plain and utilitarian. The Ford Model T had a domed radiator cap that was slightly sculpted to help screw the cap on and off. Patented in 1912, the Boyce MotoMeter took utility a step further by incorporating a thermometer in a radiator cap so the driver could keep track of the water temperature in the radiator. Boyce would also customize their product with corporate logos. The idea took off and in the mid-twenties they had over 1,800 employees in six countries.
Over the decades, the theme of hood ornaments reflected modern technology. Streamlined locomotives in the 1930’s; airplanes, torpedoes and gunsights in the 1940’s; and jet aircraft and rockets in the 1950’s. Of course the female form and stylized women were always in vogue as evidenced by Cadillac’s ‘Winged Goddess,’ Rolls Royce’s ‘Spirit of Ecstasy,’ and the George Petty (American pin-up artist) Petty girl series hood ornaments for Nash Motors. Animals were always trendy (Chevrolet’s eagles, Ford’s quail), especially animals that indicated speed like Chevrolet’s impala, Lincoln’s greyhound, and Jaguar’s…Jaguar. Plymouth showed creative thinking by using stylized sailing ships for two decades and Pontiac used Chief Pontiac on their hood ornaments for almost twenty-five years.
Regulations in the USA in 1968 and Europe in 1974 banned the use of fixed exterior protrusions on automobiles. This produced solutions like spring loaded stand-up hood ornaments that fold flat on impact or, on luxury marques, hood ornaments that retract into the radiator shell upon impact, and when the car is turned off.
The exhibit called Mascots: Radiator Caps & Hood Ornaments – 1900’s-1990’s will be at the Orphanage from March 4th through June 5th. More than 160 radiator caps and hood ornaments will be on display from the collections of: the Orphanage, The Forney Museum of Transportation, and the Brian English collection. Join us for light refreshments at the opening of this exhibit on Friday, March 4th (Yuma’s First Friday) from 5-8pm. Hours are Tuesday–Saturday, 10-4, Sundays, 1-4, closed Mondays.
First Show of 2022:
Acrylics & Metal
February 4, 2022 – March 6, 2022
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage will be exhibiting the artwork of two lifelong Yuma residents during the month of February. This first art exhibit of 2022, titled Acrylics & Metal, will feature the abstract acrylics of Cheryl Mekelburg and the metal art of Gaylord Mekelburg. The gallery, at 300 S. Main St., will be filled with over 50 of Cheryl’s canvasses and 15 of Gaylord’s metal pieces.
Cheryl was encouraged to join the Yuma Art Association, around 1994, by some of its original members, Margi Chance, Leta Smith, Audrey Lechuga and Lu Lillich. At that point, and for years after, Cheryl painted naturalistic watercolor pieces. She mostly painted flowers and figures and at one point was inspired by the distinctive figural paintings of Italian sculptor and painter Amedeo Modigliani. About three years ago she started experimenting with abstract acrylics and has never looked back. Cheryl and Gaylord recently created an art studio in the basement of their country home where she now paints “to my heart’s content.”
About ten years ago, Gaylord Mekelburg bought a plasma cutter to try his hand at metal art. He has experimented with cutting patterns and designs into everything from discs to 4’x8’ sheets of black steel. He sketches out designs in his workspace in the basement of their home, then cuts them into the steel or discs in the shop building on their property.
The Mekelburg’s art show is titled Acrylics & Metal and it runs from February 4 through March 6 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, from 10am-4pm, Sunday, from 1pm-4pm, closed Mondays. The opening of Acrylics & Metal will be on Friday, February 4, from 5-8 pm, light refreshments served.
Last Show of 2021:
Anti-Photography
November 5, 2021 – December 5, 2021
YUMA, COLO – During a brief stint in public relations, Yuma’s Tanya Flemister fell in love with the process of making images. She moved to Los Angeles to attend Art Center College of Design, where she was exposed to not only leading artists but great designers from all disciplines. Upon graduation, she started a successful career in the world of commercial product photography after which she gravitated to documentary and fine art photography.
The world’s first photograph was taken by a French scientist in 1826. As a new way of viewing the world, photography could capture fleeting images, light and movement with speed. When you talk photography with Tanya, she raises intriguing ideas about the interface of photography and painting in the mid 1800’s. Did the invention of photography free up the artist to paint mere impressions of subjects rather than depicting the world in great detail? Tanya points to Impressionist painters to reinforce the idea. After the introduction of photography, painters allowed themselves to experiment with diverse ways of creating images with as little detail as possible. Eventually, painting became more about the paint and canvas, here she points to the works of Jackson Pollock.
Inspired by painters of the 20th century, Flemister created her anti-photography series. Abstract expressionist Mark Rothko was a great influence. He is best known for his large scale color field paintings which are distinguished by pure properties such as color, surface, proportion, and scale. In these paintings Rothko explores the potential of color contrasts and modulations.
Flemister says “The creation of…” the body of work in this exhibition “… is a response to the constant inundation of imagery and mental noise that people are subjected to daily. Peace can be found in the world, and in oneself, but only if it is sought out. There is a stillness in nature that is rarely experienced when one can hear snowflakes falling around them or feel the cool mist of fog dampening one’s skin. I have stripped down imagery to a minimum, freeing the viewer’s mind of nearly all detail, in a sense anti-photography. I strive to consume the viewer and give them a moment of peace.”
Tanya Flemister’s art show, titled Anti-Photography, runs from November 5 through December 5 at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday, 1pm-4pm on Sunday, closed Mondays. The opening of Anti-Photography coincides with Yuma’s First Friday Art Walk, November 5, from 5-8 pm, light refreshments served.
A Wray Palette at the Orphanage
October 1, 2021 – October 31, 2021
YUMA, COLO – Three artists from the Wray area will be displayed at The Orphanage during the month of October. Those artists are Patti Bohall, Jody Buck, and Cindy Musgrave. The exhibition runs from October 1 through October 31. Join us for a demonstration of the alcohol ink technique on Friday October 1st and an artist reception on Sunday, October 3rd.
You may know Cindy Musgrave as the owner/proprietor of Artist’s Alley, 301 W. 4th Street in Wray. Cindy started drawing as a child and, in fifth grade, she was able to take an adult oil painting class. This led to some commissioned paintings when she was in seventh and eighth grades. At age 14 she took summer art courses in New York and continued her high school education in Illinois. Cindy furthered her education at Culver Stockton College in Canton, Missouri. “Art has always been the way for me to express myself,” she says.
You can find Cindy at Artist’s Alley Monday through Friday where she frames other artist’s work and sells art supplies. The perfect place for an artist who enjoys painting in various mediums. Her current interest is in alcohol ink. Cindy says, about alcohol ink on glass, “the light is invited in, not just bouncing off the surface, but dancing inside creating unique reflections and brighter colors.” Cindy will perform a demonstration of this medium at 6:30pm on the evening of October 1st, during Yuma’s First Friday Art Walk.
Jody Buck grew up on her family’s ranch near Kit Carson and she professes to having no formal art theory education. She says her art education “…comes from doing, creating, and letting her intrinsic senses take over while making a piece.” Yet, all her life, she has created art inspired by family, teachers, and mentors. Jody began, at a young age, with oil painting lessons from a great aunt who was an artist, and she continued with all manner of crafts.
After Jody graduated from CSU, taught English, and raised four children on their ranch outside of Wray, she made the decision to dive headlong into a creative path. Taking online classes from Tam Laporte, Carla Sonheim and several others, she began developing her own style using bright colors, happy art, and fun themes. The mediums Jody enjoys working with are acrylics, ink, pencil, soft pastels, pens, and charcoal.
Patti Bohall says, “Art is all around us” and she feels that there is a bit of the artist in all of us. She started early by drawing pictures from books she had read, crayons and pencil were her favorite tools back then. Photography was Patti’s first step in capturing the world around her and she still uses photos as references when creating a painting. Watercolor is her preferred medium, but she finds the brilliant colors of pastels less intimidating.
Patti is drawn to the works of nineteenth century Impressionists like Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, and Mary Cassatt and to the twentieth century artist Georgia O’Keeffe. Local artist Nancy Biesemeier Dee has been most influential to her learning.
This art show is titled A Wray Palette and runs from October 1st through October 31st at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday, 1pm-4pm on Sunday, closed Mondays. Meet the artists at a reception on Sunday, October 3rd, from 2-5pm.
An impromptu art show:
Yuma Art Association Sampler at the Orphanage
September 3, 2021 – September 26, 2021
YUMA, COLO – The Orphanage will host the works of four local artists and one Loveland artist during the month of September. The dates of the show are September 3 through September 26. The five artists are Yuma residents Linda Chabot, Lu Lillich, Margie Chance and June Andrews. The Loveland artist is Ron Becker. The artists will display works ranging from portraits to landscapes to eclectic lamp sculptures.
Linda Chabot has enjoyed drawing, painting, and other arts, and crafts since childhood. Growing up on a farm in Morgan County, she started to hone her artistic abilities on her own when she was in high school. Linda moved to Yuma with her young family in the late 1960’s, where she continued to dabble with her artwork.
It wasn’t until the mid-1970’s that Linda took her first formal art class. Through the 70’s and 80’s she became an active member and officer in the Yuma Art Association (YAA). The YAA hosted many professional talents that helped build her skills with different media and techniques. Linda also took numerous art classes thru local colleges. She entered and excelled in many art shows throughout northeast Colorado and has sold several pieces over the years.
Luella Lillich did not develop an interested in art until after she finished high school. Her very first art study was from a drawing book by Jon Gnagy, America’s original TV art instructor. Lu has experimented with several different media and is accomplished in oil, watercolor, and pastel. She has exhibited, along with her good friends Leta Smith and Jan Jenzel, at the Yuma County Fair and other venues in Yuma, Wray, Brush, and Sterling.
Lillich has taken art lessons from Jan Jenzel of Yuma, Darrel “Skip” Elliot, a traveling artist from Taos, New Mexico, and Larry Prestwich of Sterling, among others. Lu now owns Lu’s Gallery, 701 South Buffalo Street, Yuma, CO.
Margie has been accepted in several juried shows in Sterling & Greeley, Colorado. She taught for several years through the Community Education program that is held in Yuma. Margie is a member of the Yuma Art Association and has entered many shows in & around the Yuma area.
Margie also studied under Darrel “Skip” Elliot, from Taos, New Mexico, Rose Edin of Minnesota, Leslie Mayer of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Walt and Olive Green of Greeley.
Having a degree in art, June Andrews taught at the old North School. She has also taught classes in pastels at “Lu’s Art Coop”. June works mostly in pastels and has exhibited her work in Yuma, Wray, and Sterling.
Also on display, during the month of September, will be a selection of automotive inspired lamps by Ron Becker, Loveland resident. Ron has long been a collector with interests that range from cameras to model airplanes to John Deere toys. Two years ago he decided to start producing lamps using some of his car parts and pieces. Some of Ron’s lamps remind you of steampunk art, an art and culture movement inspired by the industrial revolution.
Becker is a member of the Vintage Motor Car Club of America (VMCCA) and has donated several of his lamps to the VMCCA to use as fundraisers. Ron figures he has created over 125 lamps since 2019 and has donated or gifted a little over 50 of those to family and friends and the VMCCA.
This impromptu art show is titled Yuma Art Association Sampler and runs from September 3rd through September 26th at the Orphanage, 300 S. Main Street, Yuma. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday, 1pm-4pm on Sunday, closed Mondays. Meet the artists at a reception on Friday, September 3rd, from 5-8pm.
Plastic, Paint & Putty: The Art of Model Cars – Joel Klassen
July 31, 2021 – August 29, 2021
Front Range graphic designer and model builder Joel Klassen will display a lifetime of work at the Orphanage between July 31 and August 29. Opening reception, with refreshments, will be Saturday, July 31 from 1-5pm. The title of Joel’s show is Plastic, Paint & Putty: The Art of Model Cars, on display will be over 60 finished models and many unpainted models.
Joel Klassen grew up during the 1960s in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. It was an era when Americans loved their cars and manufacturers lured buyers with products that were upgraded annually to be faster, sleeker and still more beautiful.
From a young age, Joel was fascinated with cars. He was drawing cars with crayons and making crude models from Play-Doh by the age of five. He found himself more interested in the designs and aesthetics of cars, rather than the “under the hood” mechanical aspect many others seemed to enjoy.
Joel’s dad introduced him to the world of model cars and helped with painting and assembling a few simple car kits. It wasn’t long before Joel was saving paper-route money to buy kits he could build on his own. Building models was a rite of passage for many young men at the time and a few developed the discipline to do it well. It was the golden age for model car manufacturers. Dozens of new kits were introduced each year, depicting not only cars, but planes, ships, and other subjects.
By the end of high school, Joel was still immersed in the model-building hobby. Interest in real cars and other subjects proved to be a distraction. Upon earning a fine arts degree from Hastings College, he returned to the Denver area and began a decades-long career in graphic design while continuing to indulge his passion for model cars.
In the ensuing years, Joel hooked up with some like-minded model builders at a popular hobby shop in Denver. They shared tips, tricks, and tools for making better builds. Before long, a model car club was born.
Joel followed the lead of some of the more experienced builders in the club and began attending model car-building championships at the national level. Running with the “big boys” exposed him to the “best of the best” and he became acquainted with some of the national players. It was an honor to be recognized with a trophy or two at the big shows, but the real reward came when photos of his creations started showing up in national model car magazines. In the early 2000s the model club collaborated on a couple of large car-related dioramas. Both were featured in articles and on the cover of Model Cars Magazine.
Twenty years later Joel is still passionate about his model cars. His years of graphic design experience have come in handy for designing and producing custom decals, among other things. Many of the car kits readily available during his youth are now prized collectibles and sell for big money. New technology, including 3-D printing, continues to inspire Joel and his buddies.
The tight-knit model car club still gathers in Joel’s basement on a regular schedule. Several members also attend and compete in national shows. In 2017, Joel’s 1959 Oldsmobile Luna Vista was awarded trophies for “Best Creative Concept” and “People’s Choice” at the Heartland National Championship in Kansas City.
Pedal Car Show
July 2, 2021 – September 26, 2021
Over twenty pedal cars will be on display at The Orphanage from July 2nd through September 26th. They are on loan from several local collectors and The Forney Museum of Transportation in Denver.
Soon after automobiles appeared on the scene, the toy pedal car followed. Pedal cars date back to the 1890’s and the cost, early on, insured that only the wealthy could afford them. Pedal cars reached a peak of popularity in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s, with a resurgence in the 1950’s and 60’s. Many pedal cars incorporated working lights and horns, moveable windshields and convertible tops, chrome details, hood ornaments, white wall tires and custom paint jobs.
Later, toy manufacturers produced pedal toys such as planes, trains, trucks, fire engines, tractors, and even pedal spaceships. By the 1970’s, steel pedal toys gave way to plastic. These were lightweight and less expensive but infrequently captured the aesthetic of actual automobiles.
Represented in the display at The Orphanage are Pedal cars made in Italy, England, the Soviet Union, and the United States. One Italian car is a Giordani pedal car from the 1950’s, a replica of the famous bullet nose Studebaker. The other Italian car is a 1999 TT Toys Toys “new” VW beetle. The English pedal car was made by a company called Tri-Ang. When new, it had working headlights and taillights, an opening boot, and a dummy gear shift lever. The Soviet pedal car is a Moskvich, built in the factory which produced the real Moskvich car.
Many of the American pedal toys are tractor designs with John Deere, Case IH and White represented, some of the tractors will be displayed with their original carts. Equally well represented are fire trucks and fire chief cars. The American manufacturers represented are the Garton Toy Company, J.W. Murray Manufacturing Company, Steelcraft, ESKA Company, Ertl Company and Hill-Standard Company. A few of the pedal cars remain unidentified as to manufacturer.
While several of the pedal toys on display have been restored, most are in original, or unrestored condition.
Rocking the Needle
a lifetime of quilting by:
Shirley Goeglein
June 4, 2021 – July 3, 2021
June is always quilt month at The Orphanage. The upcoming display is called Rocking the Needle…a lifetime of quilting by Shirley Goeglein. Yuma quilter, Shirley Goeglein, was inspired by a quilt made for her mother by her great Aunt. It is a flower garden quilt that her mother allowed Shirley to use on her bed as she grew up. Although a bit worn, she treasures that inspirational quilt to this day.
Shirley made her first quilt when she was in high school. It was a basic nine patch quilt made with scraps of fabric her mother had around the house. The final product was tied, not quilted. Tying is the simplest form of quilting in which the layers are joined together by means of yarn or thread pulled through at regular intervals and then knotted. The tufts of yarn are frequently left as decoration.
As an active member of the Yuma County Quilt Guild Shirley has displayed her quilts at the Yuma County Fair, the Haxtun Corn Festival and Wray’s Quilts of the Plains. Her quilts have won several awards at those venues. With an estimated 100 quilts finished, Shirley is most proud of the one she is standing in front of in the photo. The pattern is called hexagon wreath and it won Best in Show at the Haxtun Corn Festival.
A favorite quilt pattern for Shirley is the basket pattern and several of her finished quilts reflect this preference. Other techniques she has used on her quilts are embroidery and applique, and the use of buttons and lace. This writer recalls a quilt Shirley made to display at Pletcher family reunions, it is an assembly of vintage family photos transferred onto cloth. The photo patches were of varying sizes, making it a challenge to assemble.
Although Shirley has a sewing room in the basement of her house, she only stores her fabric there. She finds the kitchen the best place to sew. That way she can keep an eye on whatever she is cooking or baking.
Rocking the Needle runs from June 4th through July 3rd at The Orphanage. Hours for the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday, 10am-4pm and Sundays, 1pm-4pm. The Orphanage is closed on Mondays. The artist reception for this exhibit will be Friday, June 4th from 5pm-8pm to coincide with June’s First Friday Art Walk, sponsored by the Yuma Chamber of Commerce. Refreshments will be served.
Wild West Art
May 30, 2021 – May 30, 2021
Brigitte Shafer is a self-taught artist, writer and photographer living on the plains of northeastern Colorado. Her artwork is inspired by the scenes and countryside around her: Ranching, farming, landscapes, and wildlife.
The common thread that runs through her portfolio is the American West.
“I am a storyteller whether in my writing, photography or drawings. I like capturing things that others might miss.”
She attributes her interest in art and her incredible artistic talent to her adoring grandmother who kept her well supplied with paints, markers, and pens as a child. Brigitte said her grandmother gave her the most important thing an artist can ever receive: Encouragement.
“She would frame everything I produced on that kitchen table and would then write ‘masterpiece’ at the top of each one. Looking back now, I know that inspired me to improve my craft and to always try to do better, whatever it might be that I’m working on. And that’s something I’ve carried into my adult life.”
David Gustafson Photography
April 2, 2021 – May 2, 2021
About the artist:
Photographer David Gustafson is a retired teacher and coach, having moved to Yuma, Colorado, in 1975. To promote and support kids, he began photographing countless athletes and sharing his photos with the families and the local newspaper. He continues his photography of area athletes and has expanded his interests to landscape and astrophotography. He has taken several clinics with well-known professionals such as John Fielder, Glen Randall and Mike Berenson, to learn and improve his skills as a photographer. He continues to read, investigate, and experiment with his camera. He believes he can always learn and improve his skills.
This presentation is a collection of his photos that he has taken over the years. The frames are the fantastic work of Yuma’s Simply Frames and Such, located on Main Street in Yuma. We hope you enjoy the photography presented here.
POP-UP SHOW – Saturday, February 6, 2021 &
Sunday, February 7, 2021
Join our FRENCH REVOLUTION weekend mon amie. Come see our 1965 Simca 1000, 1967 Citroën Ami 6 (recent addition to the Orphanage permanent collection), and the 1961 Renault Dauphine on loan from the Forney Museum, Denver.
Saturday, February 6, 10-4 & Sunday, February 7, 1-4. French music, French flags, and the largest collection of French cars in Yuma County.
Masks and distancing required, Berets not required, but ooh-la-la…
Liberté † Égalité † Fraternité
American Art Pottery Exhibit:
January 30, 2021 – March 7, 2021
Beginning Saturday 30 January 2021, the Orphanage will open an exhibit of American art pottery from two local collections. Represented are two Colorado potteries, Van Briggle Pottery Company & Coors Porcelain Company.
Other American potteries on display are Shawnee Pottery, RumRill Pottery Company, Weller Pottery, Roseville Pottery, The Trenton Potteries Company, California potteries and a few others.
The exhibit runs from 1/30-3/7. Hours are Tue-Sat, 10-4, Sun, 1-4, closed Mondays. Mask and distancing required.
Last show of 2020:
Abstract + FORM Will Be Extended to November 29th
Abstract and Form
Denver Artists Exhibit at The Orphanage
October 10 through November 15
Kathleen Umemoto began her journey in art as a potter, learning from a master the craft of throwing, glazing, and firing useful objects “…whose intimate beauty is based on simplicity, proportion, and the careful details of lip, foot, and handle,” says Umemoto. She learned, then taught this kind of clarity in pottery. She moved from the craft of pottery to the art of clay objects, “still infused with the feeling of craft but with the depth of something that transcends the object.” From clay she has extended her art to painting, still carrying the sensitivity of material.
Umemoto works with natural materials such as coffee or tea and common castaway objects to imprint, stain, and texture, “…creating directed chaos then making order from it.” Kathleen has exhibited in Parker, Denver, and Walsenburg, CO; Los Angeles, CA; Nagasaki, Japan; and the Philippines.
Throughout his long career as an urban designer and architect, Richard Farley has maintained a passion for the visual arts, having been accepted and won awards in Art by Architects exhibits using various media including acrylic, watercolor, pen and ink, colored pencil, collage and ink wash. In his work as an architect / urban designer, he is known for his sketching ability using pencil, pastels, markers, acrylic wash, and watercolors.
Richard is an accomplished printmaker working with etching, dry point, mezzotint, monoprint, and wood cut. His work ranges from representational to abstract. Farley’s work has been shown at the James Walker Studio Gallery, Denver CO; Double Daughters Salotto, Denver CO; Museum of Friends, Walsenburg CO; and the RiNO District Art Gallery.
Flower Power
Sept. 5 through Oct. 4, 2020
Virtual Opening – Sept. 5, 10am
Artist Reception – October 4
About the Artist
Yuma Artist, Alicia Blach, has always had a love for art, how is it created, who creates it and why they created it.
Blach experimented with different mediums, techniques and subject matter while attending Arizona State University and received her Art Education degree, with a minor in Art History, from the University of Northern Colorado. She began her teaching career at Liberty K-12 School in Joes, CO followed by teaching art at Morris Elementary School here in Yuma. While teaching in Yuma, Blach pursued a master’s degree at the University of Northern Colorado, School of Art & Design. Introducing children to art, techniques and ideas became one of her passions.
Her love of studio work inspired Blach to introduce TAB (Teaching for Artistic Behavior) to her students. TAB is a community of educators advancing the creative confidence of all learners through choice and self-confidence. With this form of instruction, children are encouraged to become independent artists and not just reproduce art.
Needing more time with family, farm, and her own creativity, Blach began to dive into her own artistic pursuits. Traveling the world has allowed her to learn different techniques and create her own, unique artwork. Blach’s rural background, faith and family have become her inspiration as she continues to grow as an artist. You can see Blach’s artwork at AliciaBlachArt.com, https://www.instagram.com/aliciablach/ or https://www.facebook.com/AliciaBlach/.
Feeling that the act of creating art is as important as the result, Alicia Blach states, “Art can touch all the senses. Such as, the smell of a new crayon, the touch of yummy rich paint in a gallon tub, the sound of lines as they vibrate on the canvas, and bright colors that jump to life as you look at them. I love to try new ideas and create big happiness!”
“…a light from within”:
Regional Glass Artists Exhibit Stained Glass at the Orphanage in August
August 1 – August 30, 2020
YUMA, COLO – Eleven local and regional glass artists will exhibit their work at the Orphanage, in Yuma, from Saturday, August 1 through Sunday, August 30. Because stained glass needs to be lit from behind, the 34 pieces of glass art will be displayed in the windows along S. Main Street and 3rd Ave.
The local artists represented are Jane Buchanan from Wray, Jay Flaming from Yuma and Glenda “Pete” Sutlief from Otis. The regional artists are all from Sterling: Peter L. Youngers (adjunct art instructor at NJC), Tammy Adlesperger, Vicki Adney, Dalaina Alsup, Ruth Bera, Wendy Dudley, Martha Gareis and Trevor Rinaldo (all students of Youngers). Some of the pieces will be for sale.
The name of the exhibition, “…a light from within,” comes from a quote by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross (1926-2004), American-Swiss psychiatrist, pioneer in near-death studies and author of the best-selling book, On Death and Dying. ”People are like stained glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”
Stained glass has been an art form, for over a thousand years, mostly associated with religious buildings and can be representational or abstract. Small pieces of colored glass are held together by strips of lead came or copper foil and supported by a rigid frame. Also represented in this exhibition is a form of glass art called glass mosaic or glass applique. Glass mosaic art involves bonding pieces of colored glass to a clear base glass with grout filling the gaps.
The Orphanage is in downtown Yuma at 300 South Main Street. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday and 1pm-4pm, Sundays. The Orphanage is closed on Mondays. Due to COVID-19, there will be no opening reception. For more information about this exhibit or future shows, please contact Richard Birnie at (970) 630-3360, or visit the Orphanage website at orphanageyuma.com.
Quilts: Vintage to Modern Designs:
June 6 – July 5, 2020
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10-4, Sunday, 1-4,
Closed Mondays
Due to an out of town appointment, the Orphanage will be closed Thursday afternoon (6/18/2020), from noon on. Sorry for any inconvenience.
Hazel Chapman and Bonnie Frihauf Exhibit Quilts at the Orphanage in June
Long-time friends and Yuma County quilters, Bonnie Frihauf and Hazel Chapman, will share the spotlight this June at the Orphanage in Yuma.
Influenced by her grandmother’s hand quilted work, Bonnie Frihauf has been quilting since 1975 when she and her family moved to Yuma. Here she met others who shared, and fueled, her growing passion. To quote Bonnie, “I joined a quilt group that was made up of mostly older quilters that just hand quilted. In this quilt group we did urge a few younger quilters to join which was a perfect marriage, as the younger quilters learned so much from the beautiful, older quilters and they said they learned new techniques from the younger quilters!!”
In her home quilting room, Bonnie has a 12 ft. long arm, hand guided quilting machine. For many years she used her machine to quilt over 300 quilts for others, so that she could afford her quilting hobby. Bonnie has completed approximately 275 quilts of her own, and many more as gifts for family and friends. At the Orphanage she is displaying her older, hand quilted baby quilts in her collection of vintage baby buggies and a few of her more recent quilts, made and quilted on her long arm quilting machine.
Hazel Chapman has lived her entire life in Yuma County, she and her husband are retired and live on their farm near Vernon. Hazel didn’t start quilting until middle age, “My first was a crazy patch quilt, so technically it was a tied comforter. The quilt was a fascinating personal journey. Reading many books, visiting numerous museums and my family memories went into the crazy quilt.” said Hazel. In addition to flat quilts and wall hangings made for fun and family, Hazel enjoys experimenting with her quilts, sometimes using fabric printed photos, hand embroidery, applique and vintage buttons and laces.
Chapman inherited her love of competition from her grandmother. Her quilts and quilted clothing have received blue ribbons from shows as close as the Yuma County Fair, Wray Art Guild and Quilts of the Plains, and as far away as the Colorado State Fair, the National Quilt Festival in Houston and at Silver Dollar City , MO. Hazel’s quilted clothing will also be on display at the Orphanage. These fashions were displayed and modeled on the runway at a juried show called Art to Wear, at Arapahoe Community College in Littleton, CO.
Quilts: Vintage to Modern Designs runs from June 6th through July 5th at the Orphanage. Hours for the exhibition are 10am-4pm, Tuesday through Saturday and 1pm-4pm, Sundays. Due to state and local COVID-19 regulations concerning group meetings, there will be no opening reception for this show. We ask that you bring a face mask and practice social distancing when visiting this show.
The Orphanage is in downtown Yuma at 300 South Main Street. For more information about this exhibit or future shows, please contact Richard Birnie at (970) 630-3360, or visit the Orphanage website at orphanageyuma.com.
THE FIRST ART EXHIBIT OF 2020
February 1 – March 1, 2020
the photography of Zach Chapman
A Journey Through My Lens, about the photographer
Zach Chapman’s journey into photography started in 2007 when he received his first camera, a basic Fujifilm 12-megapixel digital camera. Not having taken any photography classes through high school or beyond, he went out and took photographs of anything that caught his eye. That all changed in 2013 when Zach purchased a Canon T5i camera and was asked to take family photos for an acquaintance. After that photo session, he knew he could do something with photography. Subsequently, Zach’s inspiration soared when he started teaching at The Yuma Children’s Academy.
“The main source of inspiration in my photography comes from God’s beautiful creation and watching my preschool children enjoy the simple things in everyday life,” Zach states. “Each day while teaching, I get to watch my students enjoy every little thing they discover in and outside of the classroom. If you sit back and view the world through the lens of a child, you notice the world is amazing. The best part of my photography is the adventure of everyday life that catches my eye and lens. The goal of my photography is to teach and inspire others, young and old, to 
go out and find the beauty this world has to offer. In capturing these moments, I leave a story and legacy behind that will touch and inspire others to enjoy the beauty and journey all around us.”
Zach’s passion is photography. He enjoys showing the world around us from different perspectives and through his own eyes. Zach wants his photography to inspire adults and children alike to find connections to the beautiful things in our world and to evoke memory or emotion. To see examples of Zach Chapman’s work, go to zachchapmanphotography.zenfolio.com.
October 19 – December 1, 2019
Audrey Lechuga: Retrospective Exhibition
About the Artist:
Audrey Lechuga was born and raised in her beloved Colorado and never lived anywhere else. Living her childhood on a farm near Merino, close to the Prewitt Reservoir and the South Platte River, Audrey explored and appreciated Mother Nature from an early age. She spent many days riding her horses across the pastures to admire and observe the beautiful Eastern Colorado wildlife. Having grown up in a very artistic family, Audrey had a strong desire to capture, on paper, the beauty surrounding her.
Her mother’s encouragement and love of art helped boost Audrey’s desire to recreate and express her love of the beautiful things in nature. She devoted all her life exploring new media and learning new ways to express her love of aesthetics, texture, composition and light.
Having won many awards and “Best of Show” honors all around Northeastern Colorado’s art exhibits, Audrey expanded her talents into portraits, signs, airbrushed T-shirts and numerous other artistic media and commissioned works, continually challenging and forcing new growth in her skills. However, her favorite media remained watercolors and acrylics on paper and canvas.
Audrey was a leader and active member of the Yuma Arts Association where she taught fellow members and guests many worthwhile workshops and artistic techniques, inspiring young local artists to grow and display their talents, also.
Audrey captured rural American life with her paintings of barns and rustic artifacts. Her impressions of nature and detailed portraits show the beauty in our surroundings and in us. Audrey’s “fantasy works” also take us to whimsical and colorful worlds.
August 31 – September 30, 2019
Land and Place – a sculpture show by Maureen Hearty
Plus, at the opening reception, a book reading by Gregory Hill and live music featuring Gregory Hill and Daniel Ray
About the Artist:
Maureen Hearty is a sculptress, gardener, musician, and community organizer who uses art, music, and horticulture as tools for community activation.
Maureen sprouted in Littleton, Colorado, grew up in Denver and is currently blossoming in Joes, Colorado.
Transforming metal waste into sculptures, and inspired by the fluctuating social and physical geography, Maureen explores themes of invention, movement, metamorphosis, and decomposition in her sculpture.
Maureen’s primary inspiration for Land and Place has been life on the High Plains: the horizon line, majestic open space, things that grow, things that decay, and, not coincidentally, her husband, Gregory Hill’s, three novels set in northeastern Colorado.
About the Author:
My name is Gregory Hill. I have no sense of smell.
I was raised in Joes, Colorado, which happens to be my favorite place in the whole world.
I live in Joes (mostly) with my wife, Maureen (entirely).
Since 1995, I’ve performed (guitar, tenor saxophone, vocals) in various bands, including Six Months to Live and The Orangu-tones. I currently play in The Super Phoenixes, Manotaur, and The Ad Hoc Rural Roots County Ensemble.
I record records in my garage.
I write books because I love writing books.
I’ve written three novels about northeastern Colorado, East of Denver, The Lonesome Trials of Johnny Riles and most recently, Zebra Skin Shirt, all part of the Strattford County Trilogy.
I am working on a new novel which will be about a group of old timey country musicians who channel their dead patriarch for song lyrics.
August 2 – August 7, 2019
Yuma County Fair Week Art Show
The Orphanage is hosting a Yuma County Fair Week Art Show. Five local artists will be participating in this show: Lisa Blach, Zach Chapman, Jay Flaming, Matt Vincent and Tosha Wise. Take some time out from the heat of the fair to visit downtown Yuma and shop for local art in air conditioned comfort. Open Aug. 2-5 & Aug. 7, 9-5pm, open Aug. 6 (parade day) after parade-5pm. Meet the artists at a reception on Saturday, August 3, 2-5pm.
June 1 – June 30, 2019
“Fabric Fueled”
the supercharged quilts of Brian Clements
Opening reception – June 1, 2019 – 3-7pm
Music, Wine, Beer, Hors d’oeuvres, meet Brian
Exhibition runs June 1 through June 30
About the Artist:
The title of this exhibition, “Fabric Fueled”, is a play on words. With this title the artist is both referring to his state of mind when he is absorbed by an idea for a quilt and how his quilts relate to the color and design of the vintage cars on permanent display at the Orphanage.
Quilt artist Brian Clements, known online as Fellow Quilter, has been designing and creating quilts for thirty years. He grew up in Juniata, Nebraska, did a limited amount of sewing in 4-H as a kid and, although he participated in music and drama, never took a typical art class in high school or college. Since 1997, Brian has lived with Joe Foltmer in Wray, where he opened a clothing store and RadioShack franchise as part of Foltmer Drug.
In December 1988, Brian graduated from Kearney State College and took a computer programing job in Lincoln. A part-time job in retail convinced him that he loved retail much more than the office cubicle. It was while living in Lincoln that Brian made his first quilt. Soon after that, Brian and his mom took their first class at a quilt store and both were hooked.
Brian quickly became a manager and then an area manager of his retail store. He opened stores throughout the Midwest which led to a move to Utah and, finally, Colorado. While traveling for work he did some quilting here and there and always made time to visit quilt shops. He fell in love with fabrics and design and it was at this time that he started to build up a diverse stash of fabric.
After moving to Wray, Brian designed and executed his Millennium Quilt which catapulted him to a different level in the quilt world. He sold patterns and taught classes at Patchwork County Frame & Fabric Co. in Wray. He has exhibited quilts, almost yearly, at the Yuma County fair and participated in “Quilts of the Plains”, the nationally acclaimed outdoor quilt show in Wray. Quilts of the Plains began in 2000, and in 2003 Brian took over the chairmanship of the show for the next fifteen years. He now works with the Wray Chamber of Commerce Director to make sure the show goes on.
“I’ve exhibited at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum, in Golden, CO, eight times and I have exhibited at the International Machine Quilting Show, in Houston, TX, once. The quilt, titled 3D-3 Designers-3 Dimensions, was juried into the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY, and continued to travel for two years to quilt and fine art museums across the nation. All the above were exhibitions in which the quilts were juried. I’ve also exhibited at the Sisters Quilt Show in Sisters, OR, and the Pacific Quilt Festival in Tacoma, WA.”
In 2007, Brian added a long arm quilting machine to his dedicated quilting studio. “Artie” is a Gammill Optimum with Statler Stitcher robotics. Together they have conceived and executed several hundred quilts. Although he still spends much of his time working at Foltmer Drug (RadioShack closed a few years back), Brian quilts both personally and for hire (www.fellowquilter.com)
“The fabric still fuels my creativity. Many of the quilts that you see here today, are a result of the fabric. I truly enjoy touching and seeing the fabric. I love mixing the fabrics together to create a color recipe that jumps out. I’ve honed my skill at fabric matching, and it now is second nature. I can stack up a set of fabrics, and say, “this will be my next quilt!” Sometimes, people question the notion, but in the end, it always works out.”
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The opening reception was a big success. Ann Foltmer Ware tickled the ivories and Matt Witt serenaded the crowd on the saxophone. The cookies came from LaLa’s Bakery in Wray and the cold beer came Tumbleweed Brewing and Wine Company in Yuma. Thanks to everyone who helped make Brian’s exhibit a big success.
Join us at the Orphanage for our first art exhibition:
Capturing Rural Colorado…
The Photography of Matt Vincent
Opening reception – March 30, 2019 – 3-7pm
Wine, Beer, Hors d’oeuvres, meet the Photographer
Exhibition runs March 31 through April 30
The Orphanage 