Updates and Announcements
Evening Meetings: The next evening meeting will be Wednesday, March 8th at 5:30 PM at Our Lady of the Pines Catholic Church in Conifer.
- Remember to invite kids to complete the on-line application to Rotary Youth Leadership Awards RYLA & YRYLA camps. We are sponsoring four RYLA and two young RYLA, Kids in Fairplay are eligible. Visit the www.rmryla.org for details and applications.
- Elk Creek Elementary Blue Eagles STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art Math) team is trying to present at Global finals in Kansas City. It’s $1500 per child. They are looking for pledges. Lesley suggested having them perform their entry for us; Marlis will contact the team about getting a video they can share with the club and see what the timeline for pledges are.
- The Rotary Club of Denver Mile High Foundation is heading the Denver Climate Forest Project and the Conifer Rotary is sponsoring a tree for the tree-planting on April 30 the day after District Conference. Details for carpooling to follow.
- Foothills Home Garden and Lifestyle Show posters are available for us to hang-up. Non-profits are free. Conifer Rotary has a table at the front door.
- FUNdraiser - Evergreen Ice Melt Contest tickets on sale at the Mountain Foothills Rotary web site - https://mountainfoothillsrotary.org/
- Visit the Rotarty International web site to to see videos on what we are doing in Ukraine and Pakistan.
- In the March Rotary magazine, page 14 has a section on Rotary Wildfire Ready and a photo of our fire truck/education truck.
- Stan shared that it was a Great weekend learning about Non-Violent/Compassionate Communication. Lee shared: For me, it was like drinking from a fire hose. The classes contrasted talking like a giraffe, the biggest-hearted animal in the world, vs talking like a jackal The social the following Monday was a great addition to the training over the week-end.
- Club Service positions available:
- Sergeant-at-Arms for April, May and June are needed - Join the fun at the Tuesday morning meeting by welcome members!!
- If you have enjoy working on website, the Conifer club needs you! If you would like to be the new webmaster, please email Diana P. for information.
Upcoming Club Socials - All are welcome!
Our next club social will be a Fireside Chat on March 19th 4-6pm at Pat's place. This is a great way to learn about Rotary, our Areas of Focus, Conifer Activities, and hang out with a bunch of great people.
Upcoming Events:
Rotary District 5450 Conference - Saturday, April 29 @ The Cable Center. Visit the Rotary District 5450 web site to register. The Conifer Club will have a table at the ‘House of Friendship’ to showcase what the Conifer club has been up to this year.
Meeting Program: Gene Neiges, docent for the Denver Art Museum
Denver Art Museum is 130 years old, started as the Denver Artists Club. By the end of WWII, the museum was located in buildings all over the city, and even had a gallery in Pueblo.
People leave art to the museum so DAM has only a small percentage of the art on display.
Kress Foundation gave a huge gift. 60 classic paintings from 15th and 16th centuries if we held them in a climate-controlled environment, which we didn’t have. Eventually built the first DAM building, designed by architect Gio Ponti to look like a castle. It even has a moat and a bit of a drawbridge. It is covered in 1 million Corning glass tiles.
In 2006, DAM added the building to the south, designed by architect Daniel Liebeskind to look like the crystals in the Rocky Mountains. Lots of angles. Primarily for temporary exhibits.
Observation from the crowd: “Tough to hang art on that;” he replied, “Very.”
A few years ago, DAM renovated the first building at a cost of $150 million, including new glass reception center. Now the museum has three buildings, and a fourth on Bannock Street. The complex includes a restaurant and cafeteria, and event space.
Native American Art collection is our largest collection. We were the first museum to recognize it as art instead of an anthropological collection. DAM also has the best Latin American art collection in the U.S.
Past exhibits include one on Cartier. Diana said: “It was so cool. You were blinded by these diamonds when you walked in.”
Special exhibits have included: Remington, Winslow Homer, Frida Kahlo, Monet, Degas, Fashion, Rembrandt, Star Wars. Just opened American indigenous photography.
DAM has 900 staff and half are volunteers.
About 95% of the art is in storage, some is stored literally behind the walls. These pieces go into special exhibits, here and elsewhere. And we are constantly borrowing art for special exhibits. One exhibit took 8 years to arrange. It takes months of negotiation. Once borrowed a significant painting from Louvre and it came without a frame. Louvre said, “You didn’t ask for it.” It cost $65,000 for a frame. They make copies to hang in the meantime.
Jonathan: Any connection with airport collection? No.
Anschutz Collection is at the American Museum of Western Art. He owns the Broadmoor, so the art in his collection is at the Broadmoor and CU Medical Center.
Stanley: I read that the Denver Art Museum was the first one to return art. Gene: We have art in safekeeping now to go to Cambodia. It was ill-gotten booty.
Morti: Still have First Friday? Gene: Yes, the museum is open on First Friday and also on Tuesday nights. And one free day a month, usually a Tuesday. 10-9.