The Colorado Creative Industries (CCI) Division of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) announced today that 25 artists and arts organizations across Colorado have been awarded Folk and Traditional Arts Project Grants. From Archuleta to Larimer counties and Huerfano to Denver counties, these grants will help preserve, celebrate and document the local artistic traditions and heritage of unique Colorado communities.
“We are thrilled to celebrate the culture and heritage of communities across our state and help ensure these traditions continue into the future,” said OEDIT Director, Eve Lieberman. “The recipients announced today embrace the values and traditions from past generations through their preservation of folk and traditional arts, offering all of us the opportunity to realize the rich history our state holds.”
The Folk and Traditional Arts Project Grants seek to enhance community well being, cultural identity, economic vitality, and sense of place, especially in areas that are often underrepresented in the contemporary art space. Funds will support the creation, presentation, or teaching of folk and traditional arts, and/or the documentation of folk or traditional arts and cultural heritage through community archiving, oral histories, photojournalism, video or other creative works.
Among the recipients, the Grand Lake Creative District will film a documentary about the craftsmanship behind Cowboy Artisans’ traditional cowboy gear, which includes leatherworking and silversmithing. Another project from Banda La Patrona will introduce Mexican Banda music to Colorado State University (CSU) and the Fort Collins community to increase visibility of the genre in academic and cultural institutions. In Bent County, artist Douglas Crow Wolf will lead Native American moccasin making workshops for residents of the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless Fort Lyon Supportive Residential Community and will share completed projects with the local community. As part of the grant’s preservation efforts, all funded projects will be archived in the State Archives and made accessible to the public through History Colorado.
“Folk and traditional art holds a deep connection to the cultural identity and history of a community. We are grateful to these artists and organizations for serving as a living record of their community’s traditions, and sharing their talents to celebrate Colorado’s unique background.” said CCI Director, Josh Blanchard.
To help make the Folk and Traditional Arts Project Grant more accessible and equitable for individual artists and organizations with limited grant-writing capacity, CCI developed a Grant Navigator program to assist applicants. Prospective applicants are able to meet one-on-one with consultants to get their questions answered, receive feedback on their draft application materials, and get assistance in navigating the application process. This does not guarantee the applicant will receive funding through the grant they are applying for.
The Folk and Traditional Arts Project Grant was developed in response to a two year planning process with a stakeholder group engaged in Colorado’s folk arts. A total of $75,000 is being awarded to 25 artists and art organizations, funded in part by a partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Today’s recipients include:
Adams County
Downtown Aurora Visual Arts – Various – $3,000 – For a 2025 Film program in which students create documentaries capturing their own cultural folk art, family traditions and heritage.
Colorado Youth Mariachi Program – Mariachi – $3,000 – La Herencia del Mariachi will present an end of year showcase and exhibition.
Alamosa County
Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area – Las Posadas – $3,000 – To create a film vignette showcasing the history of Las Posadas procession within the villages of San Luis.
Archuleta County
Town of Pagosa Springs – Arborglyphs – $3,000 – Preserving and highlighting the rich tradition of sheepherding in Pagosa Springs, with a particular focus on the unique cultural practice of creating arborglyphs—carvings made by sheepherders on aspen trees.
Bent County
Colorado Coalition For The Homeless – Moccasin Making Workshop – $3,000 – Artist Douglas Crow Wolf will teach Native American moccasin making workshops to residents of the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless Fort Lyon Supportive Residential Community and will share completed projects with the local community.
Boulder County
Dairy Arts Center – Native American Traditional Arts – $3,000 – Bringing Native individuals and families together for traditional arts classes led by Native knowledge-keepers in specific traditional artistic disciplines.
eight16 creative, llc – Native American Dance – $3,000 – To film a documentary focusing on the Rocky Mountain Indigenous Dancers, an intertribal Native American dance group dedicated to sharing their cultural heritage through dance.
Costilla County
Dana Maestas – Documentary project – $3,000 – Continues “The Heritage Project – Recuerdos: Remembrances of Indo-Hispano Elders of the Rio Culebra Villages,” an oral history project documenting interviews of ancianos (elders) living in the San Luis de la Culebra villages of southern Colorado.
Denver County
Askkanwii Filmmaking Hub Incubator – Documentary project – $3,000 – To create a documentary exploring the traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony and focusing on Mickias (Micki) and Merci Alamirew—Ethiopian immigrants living in Colorado.
University of Denver ORSP – Culinary Arts – $3,000 – Latinx chefs who are part of Cocina Libre, a social enterprise dedicated to empowering immigrant chefs, will host cooking demonstrations to raise awareness about immigrant issues and promote social justice.
Colorado Black Arts Movement – Sculpture – $3,000 – “Sitting in Power” workshops will explore issues of power, equality and equity by engaging participants in “found materials sculpture”, an old African American tradition.
Josie Angel – Photography – $3,000 – To capture through photography the daily lives and traditions of Palestinian families living in Denver and exhibit them to the public.
Chicano Humanities and Arts Council – Chicano Arts – $3,000 – To offer the 40 West Arts District and the Arts District on Santa Fe exhibitions and educational workshops rooted in the art and cultural traditions of Chicano/Hispanic cultures.
Re:Vision – Chicano Mural Arts – $3,000 – Celebrate and raise awareness of the critical roles street vendors, like paleteros, play in Denver through the creation of oral histories and artwork.
Grand County
Grand Lake Creative District – Cowboy Artisan Trades – $3,000 – Capturing Cowboy Artisans—leatherworkers, silversmiths, and makers of traditional cowboy gear—in a documentary film focused on their craftsmanship.
Huerfano County
Spanish Peaks Community Foundation – Folklorico Dance – $3,000 – Performances showcasing dance that is traditional to the cultural identity of Huerfano County, including performances by El Fandango and Los Vecinos Bailadores at the Fox Theater in Walsenburg, CO.
Jefferson County
Golden History Museum – Native American garments – $3,000 – Exhibition at the Golden History Museum examining the use of Native “jewels,” (specifically elk teeth and dentalium shells) in traditional and contemporary Native American adornment.
Larimer County
Banda La Patrona – Mexican Banda Music – $3,000 – Introducing Mexican Banda music to Colorado State University (CSU) and the Fort Collins community to increase visibility to the genre in academic and cultural institutions.
Foco Flava – Breakdancing – $3,000 – To preserve and promote the cultural heritage of Northern Colorado through the art of breaking, a fundamental pillar of hip-hop culture.
Inception Flow – Amate painting – $3,000 – To engage the Fort Collins community in the creation of Amate painting through workshops where participants can learn about the traditional art form’s history and create their own pieces.
Montezuma County
Southwest Colorado Canyons Alliance – Traditional Native American Arts – $3,000 – Supporting Four Corners Indigenous Art Market, a vibrant celebration of Native artistry and cultural heritage that brings together talented artisans from many of the 26 Tribes and Pueblos traditionally associated with Canyons of the Ancients National Monument.
Willowtail Springs Nature Preserve and Education Center – Native American Storytelling Installation – $3,000 – Celebrating and documenting the stories of Native storytellers in an installation at the Willowtail Springs Nature Preserve and Education Center TreeHouse Gallery.
Mancos Creative District – Folk and Traditional Art Classes – $3,000 – Hosting classes at the Mancos Public Library where the community can learn about folk and traditional art from four artists of different cultural backgrounds.
Pueblo County
Grupo Folklorico Del Pueblo – Dance Folklorico – $3,000 – Grupo Folklorico del Pueblo’s “Dance Exchange Conference” will allow folklorico dance students to learn from other dance instructors and directors from around the state.
Saguache County
HEART of Saguache – Colcha Embroidery – $3,000 – The San Luis Valley Colcha Embroidery Project supports exhibitions, workshops, and scholarship focused on traditional colcha embroidery in the San Luis Valley.