Title: ARVADA CENTER FOR ARTS & HUMANITIES
Location Current Site: Arvada CO UNITED STATES
Creator Personal Name: Seracuse Lawler
Creator Assoc Person Name: Dulan,Peter
Creator Assoc Person Role: Photographer
Date.Creation: 1976-1976
Subject.Image Description: South stairs
Creator.Personal Name Label: Seracuse Lawler
Description.Image Comments: Donated by peter dulan.
Source.Acquisition Date: 1999-12-02 00:00:00
Style/Period: Moderne
Subject Image View Type: Exterior, general view
Description.Subject Report: In the 1970s the city of Arvada, Colorado was a growing town with around 51,000 residents. Most of the residents were new to the town and most had a college education, which meant these residents had to drive 8 miles south into Denver if they wanted any cultural recreation. This was a problem for both the city and for a new Arvada resident, Lois Lindstrom. Lindstrom worked as a school teacher by day and at night wrote plays and songs. After living in Arvada for some time, she began to push both the city and its residents to have a place to celebrate the arts. This was the beginning of what is today known as The Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities.
THE ARVADA CENTER is located 7.8 miles northwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver on the east corner of 69th and Wadsworth. Ground breaking ceremonies were held on March 8, 1975.The Dedication for the Arvada Center was held on July 4, 1976 to a large crowd from all over the Denver metro area. However, the grand opening of the Center was not held until September 22, 1976, which gave great pride to Arvada residents and all who attended. That same year the Arvada Center would receive an award from the Colorado Society of Architects for excellence in design.
The Arvada Center was built in the style of Modern architecture. The square footage of the building is about 30,000 sq ft. The materials used in the building range from cement, brick, steel, to glass. The architecture firm who built the performing arts expansion was Fentress Bradburn
When the Arvada Center first opened its doors in 1976 it was a place to see theater plays and musicals, as well as the Arvada Historical Museum. In 2008, the Arvada Center has grown in to the place to meet, be entertained, to learn, be inspired, and for enrichment in Arvada. With its world-class children's theater, a vast variety of concerts, classical and contemporary dance performances, nationally recognized gallery exhibitions, a history museum, and over 600 arts and humanities classes each year for students of all ages and a banquet and conference facility that serves thousands of people through business and personal events, the Arvada Center has really grown and become a place for people all over the state of Colorado to see.
One of the biggest attributes to the Arvada Center are the two theaters. The indoor theater has seating for 500 guests and is used in the colder winter months and for childrens plays and musicals. The second and larger theater is the outdoor theater which has seating for 600 guests. The outdoor theater is used more in the summer and warmer months for both outdoor plays and a variety of music performances ranging from bluegrass, country, jazz and even a rock and roll summer concert.
Thomas E. Gabbard said on October 1, 1992; The Arvada Center looks to a future which is full of promise. That promise is a result of its heritage of dedicated service and its commitment to excellence in the arts and education. So many wonderful things have taken place at the Arvada Center, and so many more are yet to come. In the first sixteen years of the Arvada Center so many great things have happened there in the Arts and Humanities culture. Over the past sixteen years since Thomas E. Gabbard said what he did about the Arvada Center so many more wonderful things have happened to enhance the Arts and Humanities world. In its short thirty two year history the Arvada center has played host too many inspiring moments and it will continue to do so for many years to come.
(Eric Lewin 2008)
ID Number.Former Image Accession VISC: 104562
Rights Description: Copyright owned by The Regents of the University of Colorado, a body corporate, and the photographer. All rights reserved.
Creator.Comments: Local architectural firm teamed with Perkins & Will for 1976 Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, Arvada, CO.
Collection Name: Architecture and Planning Collection
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