{"id":138077,"date":"2026-07-08T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/new-signs-at-mancos-state-park-feature-local-art\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T15:42:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T21:42:17","slug":"new-signs-at-mancos-state-park-feature-local-art","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/new-signs-at-mancos-state-park-feature-local-art\/","title":{"rendered":"New signs at Mancos State Park feature local art"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Local
Local artist Jeffree Matthews and other attendees gather to view the final product for his work featured in Mancos State Park sign installation at the ribbon-cutting ceremony June 23. As part of a Colorado Parks and Wildlife project updating interpretive signs statewide, the outcome intends providing educational signage to connect visitors to the landscape and the wildlife relying on it. (Anna Watson\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Visitors in Mancos State Park taking a cool dip in Jackson Gulch Reservoir are now greeted by a new installation blending local art and park education.<\/p>\n

The installation is part of a Colorado Parks and Wildlife project aiming to address decades-old interpretive signs \u2013 some from the 1970s-era \u2013 across statewide parks.<\/p>\n

The project\u2019s first attempt was unveiled last month at the outdoor destination and camping hub about five miles north of Mancos. The state park provides recreationists plenty of mountain biking range, swimming or fishing opportunities plus sweeping views of Mesa Verde National Park to the south.<\/p>\n

What was unveiled is a little more than a sign. It\u2019s an outdoor exhibit rotating large-format artwork and artist statements in three panels, sheltered under a timber-framed pavilion adjacent to the Visitor\u2019s Center.<\/p>\n

Jeffree Matthews\u2019 art piece draws the eye toward a giant blue heron taking flight amid a backdrop of a lake brightly colored blue.<\/p>\n

\"\u201cWeb
\u201cWeb of Life\u201d is one of three art pieces featured in an interpretive sign update at Mancos State Park. The painting depicts a great blue heron soaring above Jackson Gulch Reservoir and highlights various wildlife found in the park. (Anna Watson\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

His work \u201cWeb of Life\u201d stages the iconic state flower, the Rocky Mountain Columbine, and other wildflowers, which Matthews said in the artist statement serves \u201cas a welcoming mat\u201d to remind visitors of nature\u2019s wonders and adventures right at their feet.<\/p>\n

The project, led by CPW\u2019s sign coordinator, Brittany Frederick, who was hired last year, partnered with Tess Lynston at Mancos Creative District for the selection of three works.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just in a state of gratitude to be part of this project and to work with Brittany and park staff to be able to take my artistic expression and work it into your larger vision,\u201d Matthews said during a ribbon-cutting ceremony June 23.<\/p>\n

The installation intends to connect visitors with nature and the wildlife one might glimpse in the park \u2013 the same animals those living in Southwest Colorado are accustomed to seeing.<\/p>\n

Black bears are featured in Matthews\u2019 work along with mule deer. The piece by Sophia Borchers and Nick Arbogast, titled \u201cShared Wilderness,\u201d has a great blue heron, rainbow trout and smaller trout near a mountain summit.<\/p>\n

\"Original
Original artwork inspired by the Mancos State Park\u2019s wildlife and scenery is displayed in watercolor and ink in \u201cShared Wilderness.\u201d According to the artists, the piece evokes moments of quiet observation and coexistence, emphasizing how landscape is layered. (Anna Watson\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

In the third piece, crows drift in the corner of Dai Salwen\u2019s \u201cLooking East\u201d while a fox leaves snowy tracks along the gulch\u2019s empty berm.<\/p>\n

Salwen\u2019s artistic statement noted inspiration came during a winter run with a friend. \u201cLooking East\u201d highlights how darkness can sometimes be quiet and peaceful. Salwen concocts a moving sky though shades of blue awhile letting the La Plata Mountains snow peaks \u2013 also widely viewable from the park \u2013 bask in sunlight.<\/p>\n

Lynston told attendees at the June 23 ceremony the prompt provided to artists consisted of several questions: How do they feel connected with the park\u2019s environment, how would they represent that visually?<\/p>\n

\u201cI kept thinking about the art submissions and different creative expressions the artists portrayed in their storytelling,\u201d Lynston said.<\/p>\n

She told attendees at the ribbon cutting the selection process was guided by one overarching question: \u201cIs it inspiring, thought-provoking, leaving the viewer with warm, fuzzy feelings?\u201d The \u201cfuzzy\u201d part of the comment garnered a laugh from the crowd.<\/p>\n

\"Nathan
Nathan Bolton, Mancos State Park ranger, cuts the red ribbon on one side June 23 as people gather for the unveiling. (Anna Watson\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Lynston, who specializes in curating Indigenous artwork, also serves as a board member.<\/p>\n

Park Ranger Nathan Bolton said about 50,000 people visit the park each year. The campgrounds are typically booked out in its 32 sites during summertime, and he said there\u2019s about five miles of trails wrapping around the park.<\/p>\n

On the far side, a trail head connects to the Chicken Creek Trail System and national forest that connects to the Colorado Trail, extending all the way to Denver.<\/p>\n

awatson@the-journal.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Colorado Parks and Wildlife project revamps interpretive signs for park goers in three distinct panels <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":138078,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5736,5735],"tags":[363,1060,1031,28,83,4474,29,6419],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-138077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news","category-news","tag-arts","tag-arts-entertainment","tag-colorado-parks-and-wildlife","tag-headlines","tag-mancos","tag-mancos-state-park","tag-newsletter","tag-tj-trueanthem"],"acf":[],"author_name":"Website Administrator","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138077"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138077\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":138183,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138077\/revisions\/138183"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/138078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138077"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=138077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}