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CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF DENVER AT MARSICO CAMPUS UNVEILS EXPANSION By DJennifer Turner Visiting the Children’s Museum of Denver is about to get even more fun. On November 20, the museum celebrated it’s grand re-opening with a 14,000 sq. ft. expansion that nearly doubles the buildings exhibit space. The project is the culmination of seven years of work, and has also grown the Museum’s overall indoor and outdoor footprint to nine acres. It will likely put Denver on the map as one of the premier cities for children’s museums in the United States and set the bar higher on educational programming. The expansion capital campaign raised over $16.1 million. It was funded by a variety of sources including the Cydney and Tom Marsico Family Foundation,
Young artist paints the Museum’s buffalo.
NEIGHBORHOOD INVESTMENT PREVAILS AS LOCALS VOTE TO “KEEP RINO WILD”
the Colorado Health Foundation and corporate partners including Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc., United Launch Alliance, Delta Dental and Denver Water. The venture is unusual in that all the design and planningo was done in-house and identical exhibits are non-existent. The end result is truly spectacular, and is a collaboration of the museum’s senior leadership, employees, community partners, prominent early childhood education specialists and the kids themselves. Jonathan Goldstein, Director of Exhibits, said, “Designing and building the new Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus has truly been the experience of a lifetime for our entire museum team.
PHOTO BY JENNIFER TURNER
By Keith Lewis Denver’s River North Art District (RiNo) is among the city’s most popular neighborhoods and also among the grittiest – but we mean that as a compliment. Located in the boundary enclosed by I-70, I-25, Park Ave. West & Lawrence, RiNo is a state-certified Colorado Creative District. Since 2005, local artists have propelled the rise of this once-industrial center into a thriving art community where Denverites both create and reside. Part of charm and character of this trendy section of town includes an astounding concentration of creative entrepreneurs, generating value for the community in diversely creative fields ranging from architecture to beer brewing to film editing. That gritty, urban, independent character is likely to remain
The exhibits team, especially, has gotten to imagine a one-of-a-kind museum and then see it through to the finish. We are honored to be a part of the building a better Denver and a better future for our children.” One of the amazing new exhibits, and highly appropriate for Colorado, is “Altitude,” a indoor climbing experience like no other. Constructed of steel platforms, girders and beams, and covered with maple panels and a wire mesh net for safety, Altitude rises 3½ stories from the ground floor of the museum. As kids and parents maneuver vertically and laterally through the exhibit they encounter clouds, a swinging gondola and rope bridges. Those who make it to the glass-enclosed, ice-capped summit will be rewarded with amazing 360 degree views of downtown Denver and the Rocky Mountains to the west. Shoes suitable for climbing and comfortable clothes are recommended! The fun and importance of water is the theme of another expertly designed learning environment. Kids will delight in the multitude of ways to play with and learn about this essential substance necessary to sustain life. A few of the features are a rainstorm and thunder maker, waterfall, misting umbrellas, and a water tower and geyser. There are numerous opportunities to explore the properties and characteristics of water, investigate flow and learn about concepts such as buoyancy, density and displacement. The 2,300 sq. ft. Art Studio is a joy. Kids can use paint, clay and wood to create individual or team masterpieces. A unique aspect of this exhibit is the artist in residence program. Coloradans Jaime Molina, Nicole Banowetz, Wes Sam Bruce and Ajean Ryan were selected from a group of 30 artists who applied. For a different three month period, each will assist children in creating their own works, in addition to having a private studio location within the museum on their rotation. Another innovative exhibit is the 900 sq. ft. Teaching Kitchen, a fully equipped multi-use space continued on page 7
preserved in RiNo as its residents and business owners recently voted to approve a Business Improvement District (BID) and a General Improvement District (GID) fund. Today the nonprofit body governing RiNo has over 200 members, 250 studios, and 25 galleries. The infrastructure improvements slated to be funded by these newly created assessments will aim to maintain the authenticity of the neighborhood. “RiNo’s motivation to create the districts has been fueled by a desire to ensure that the tremendous investment pouring into the neighborhood does not significantly alter its urban, industrial character... and that the neighborhood remains continued on page 7