The Museum of Outdoor Arts, which has operated an indoor exhibit and programming space in Englewood’s Civic Center since 2000, as well as an exhibit of outdoor sculptural artworks, has announced a renewed focus on its outdoor spaces and discontinued operation of the indoor space in Englewood.
In a news release from the city of Englewood, MOA stated that it “has submitted a proposal for the outdoor collection to remain on display in Englewood.”
There are about 40 artworks on public display within the downtown Englewood area, many near the light rail station and Civic Center — stated to be about half of the MOA’s outdoor collection.
The remainder of the collection is primarily located in Marjorie Park and around the Greenwood Plaza business area. The new MOA headquarters address is 6331 Fiddler’s Green Circle, close to MOA’s primary asset, Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre.
Marjorie Park, which was recently renovated by MOA, reopened in 2021 and will be an outdoor museum and events venue, where more than 40 artworks are featured. It is named for the late Marjorie Madden, who co-founded the MOA in 1981 with her husband, commercial real estate developer John W. Madden Jr., and their daughter, Cynthia Madden Leitner,
More than 150 pieces are included in the MOA collection, 85 of them installed outdoors.
The MOA has provided a number of indoor exhibits and programs, including its Design and Build, which provides opportunities for young artists to work with arts professionals and in keeping with the objective of “Making Art a Part of Everyday Life.”
Indoor exhibits have featured local and national professional artists whose work is contemporary, as well as annual exhibits by Design and Build students in earlier years.
There have been more than 200 indoor art exhibits and installations, multimedia performances, as well as hundreds of youth art classes in the Englewood facility, as well as artst-in-residence arrangements.
It has also provided studio space and exhibit attention for prominent area arts professionals.
Funding for collaborative exhibits and programs came from Colorado Creative Industries, National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Englewood and the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD).
Englewood Mayor Othoniel Sierra is quoted as “excited at the possibility of a continued relationship with the MOA through the display of their publicly accessible artwork and art outreach support and community placemaking projects.”
We will watch for notice of mission-related changes as this unique organization enters a new phase in its remarkable existence.