VOICES OF THE COMMUNITY
I see arts, culture and creativity as part of the civic fabric that helps us imagine who we want to be and what values we want to espouse as a city.
Aisha Ahmad-Post, Newman Center for the Performing Arts
We cannot operate on islands anymore. We have to be collaborative; we have to form strong partnerships.
donnie l.betts, Filmmaker, Theatre Director
I believe that art and culture is the glue that holds the community together.
Damon McLeese, Access Gallery
Art will always allow people to see the beauty of the human experience.
Quintin Gonzalez, University of Colorado Denver
Anybody who approaches art as problem solving, will always find creative solutions.
Stephen Brackett, Flobots
I've been thinking a lot more about impact and how what we do as artists and creatives and culture bearers can be less about the thing and more about the lasting impact. What kind of ancestor do you want to be? How can we cultivate our future ancestors?
Courtney Ozaki-Durgin, Japanese Arts Network
Arts and culture is a celebration. It adds a language that people are able to connect through, that maybe they don’t have the tools for otherwise.
Alexandria Jimenez, Artist
Arts must be at the table when civic conversations are happening. This is essential for demonstrating that The Arts are one of the many tools we have at our disposal for addressing and solving citywide problems.
Gary Steuer, Bonfils-Stanton Foundation
When artists feel supported, they collaborate. You see musicians and visual artists come together in different ways. The community bubbles up with energy, people feel excited and they become engaged in conversations and the collective process.
Ru Johnson, Roux Black Consulting
Everything rests on thoughtful, intentional partnership. The more you collaborate, the more you inspire collective change.
Louise Martorano, RedLine Contemporary Art Center
I see Denver now as a whole that it is a thriving community because we've intermingled, we've done so much, so many things together.
Grace “SwaHuux” Gillette, Denver March Powwow
Culture is supposed to expand and come back. It’s not something you're supposed to clutch to yourself; it's supposed to breathe and evolve. From an Indigenous knowledge perspective, it's not chasing your tail. It's a spiral where you grow.