Review: Parallel Lines at Havu Gallery Is an Unseasonably Hot Show
The Metiers on the walls wrap around works by Culligan, a noted Denver sculptor. I first saw his work in the back room at Pirate in the 1990s. At the time, Culligan was still a young, emerging artist, but it was already obvious that he would rise to the top of the heap — and he has, with a number of major commissions for public art now under his belt."
Emmett Culligan's Sculpture at Cherry Hills Village
"Artist Emmett Culligan has earned a name for himself as one of Colorado’s leading contemporary sculptors. When one looks at the body of his work, this comes as no surprise. Perhaps what is more unusual is that he is not only an artist. he is a craftsman and businessman as well. Many of today’s sculptors—perhaps most—are primarily conceptual artists. They conceive of their idea, the design and materials, and then turn the concept over to an artisan who will actually fabricate the physical artwork itself. This is not true of Emmett. When it comes to the process of realizing the piece of art itself, he is hands-on. Emmett will point out that for him, art is just as much about craftsmanship and the integrity of the piece as it is about the original concept. Emmett maintains that an important aspect of the art process is lost when the sculptor is absent from the actual execution of the work of art. It is in the physical creation where the artist’s intellect and emotion meet. And, it is the artist who knows when and whether the original concept has been realized. The artist’s involvement gives the artwork its essence....
Colorado Abstract +10: A Survey
The Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities and Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art are proud to partner to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the 2009 book Colorado Abstract: Paintings and Sculpture, by Michael Paglia and Mary Voelz Chandler, with a foreword by Hugh Grant. This landmark publication highlighted the history and continuing tradition of abstraction by artists in the state.
The Arvada Center, in their Main Gallery, will exhibit a contemporary survey of works by artists originally included in the publication. In their Upper and Theatre Galleries, additional artists working in abstraction that have also made an impact on Colorado's art scene will be featured.
Kirkland Museum will present an exhibition of two and three-dimensional artworks created by the artists featured in the historical section of the book, tracing the history and development of this artistic style in Colorado.
Exhibition underwritten by Jodie Steeves and Nancy Terry
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EMMETT CULLIGAN + WILLIAM T. CARSON + EMILIO LOBATO
"Nüart Gallery presents “Out of Fire," a group exhibition featuring new work by Emmett Culligan, William T. Carson, and Emilio Lobato.
The show features work of powerful materiality in which the artists use steel, coal, and rubber to create pieces of unconventional and singular artistry. Whether in Emmett Culligan’s sculptures made of inflated stainless steel, or William T. Carson’s wall pieces built primarily of coal, or Emilio Lobato’s 2-D sculptural pieces composed of rubber– in each case the artist has pushed his material beyond its conventional applications– and in the process created work that is both innovative and riveting."
5 Colorado Artists To Watch
It would be easy, says art adviser Ann Benson Reidy, to merely place pretty pictures in her clients’ homes and offices, but this industry veteran is after something more: “If I can make people weak in the knees and educate them about different genres of art—and help them move away from what their parents had to realize their own vision—well, that’s just awesome,” she says. Whether she’s hunting for early-edition photographs for private collectors or works that convey a brand’s unique ethos—her Denver-based firm just placed more than 200 pieces by Hawaii artists at the ‘A‘ali‘i tower at Honolulu’s new Ward Village community—Benson Reidy is game for a global search. “I don’t have a stable of artists,” she says. “I get to use every gallery in the world.” That said, Colorado has proven a wellspring of top talent—including these artists catching her eye now...
PHOTO COURTESY WILLIAM HAVU GALLERY
EMMETT CULLIGAN
At William Havu Gallery, Denver
“Emmett studied painting at the Art Students League of New York before pursuing his fine art degree in sculpture at the University of Colorado Denver. The magic of his abstract contemporary sculptures in steel is in his manipulation of the material. In the ‘Rubric’ series, it appears as though he has inflated this hard, unapproachable, almost mean material, giving it a curvature, softness and femininity that is very kind, forgiving and almost sensual. You just want to touch it.”