Gathering Place marks the first major reinstallation of the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College in nearly a decade.
Gathering Place: Permanent Collection Reinstallation
September 6, 2025–Spring 2028
Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College
Gathering Place marks the first comprehensive reinstallation of the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College’s first-floor galleries in nearly a decade. This landmark exhibition invites the community to experience the breadth and depth of the FAC’s permanent collection through a fresh lens, foregrounding diverse histories, cultures, and artistic voices of the Southwest—and beyond. Featuring both beloved highlights and rarely seen works, Gathering Place creates an immersive journey that sparks reflection, encourages dialogue, and poses a central question: How do you experience place?
The exhibition is organized into four thematic galleries, each offering a distinct yet interconnected perspective. Where Am I When I Am Here? examines representations of landscape, questioning whose voices and perspectives are amplified in these depictions. Sacred Expressions Across Cultures highlights the rich cross-cultural aesthetics that emerged from the blending of Indigenous Pueblo and Hispanic traditions. Cultural Ecotone reflects on the FAC’s own role as a cultural meeting ground, tracing its history as a site where avant-garde movements and Southwestern art have intersected since the early 20th century. Finally, Movement brings together the work of contemporary artists who explore themes of migration, exchange, and continuity, building upon layered legacies.
Connecting these galleries, the Strait Corridor serves as a place of rest and reflection. Visitors will find seating, curated reading materials provided by Colorado College’s Tutt Library, and video introductions from each curator, deepening the interpretive experience and inviting personal engagement with the exhibition’s themes.
Gathering Place was shaped by the perspectives of four guest curators: Cassandra Atencio, artist, elder, and member of the Southern Ute Tribe; James M. Córdova, santero and associate professor of art history at the University of Colorado Boulder; Josh T Franco, artist and art historian; and Pat Musick, artist and educator. Together, they reframe the museum’s holdings not as static objects but as part of a living dialogue—artworks as carriers of cultural memory, continuously evolving alongside the communities that engage with them.
Through this ambitious reinstallation, the Fine Arts Center underscores its role as a dynamic cultural hub and gathering place, affirming that the story of art is always in motion and enriched by the voices of many.
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