This museum is far better than we expected it to be. There is a well presentedcollection of sculptures, and the paintings of the West are extensive and include some notable artists. The gift shop is very good - lots of Leanin' Tree greeting cardsavailable. Combine this visit with the Celestial Tea factory tour almost adjacent.A nice prairie dog farm is also nearby.
Nice little tour to see how the Leanin' Tree greeting cards are made. There's a sculpture garden outside and a very nice art museum (2 floors) inside of mostly western and indian art. Check out the paintings by Bill Hughes...they are amazing! This was all free and there's a nice gift shop at the end. You get a free card for doing the tour. Took about an hour to hour and a half. Tours start on the hour. Just outside Boulder and very close to the Celestial Seasonings Tour. We did both in one day when the weather was too crummy to do stuff outside. It was perfect!
I was dragged here, kicking and screaming the whole way, in my head at least. It's not that I'm not a big fan of western "art." Rather, I loathe it and don't consider it to be art. I endured it in silence. Next time I'm staying home.
Don't leave Boulder without visiting this amazing collection of western art, absolutely beautiful pieces and so nicely displayed. They also offer a "unique" selection of cards at there boutique.
Ok, I used to own a Southwest Art gallery. I was looking forward to viewing the art. It was the largest known exhibit of second rate western art I have encountered. Check out the western art at the Denver Art Museum or American Museum of Western Art across from the Brown Palace (reservation required).
The art here is a mix of traditional and contemporary western, and is of a very high quality. Sculpture garden outdoors is a pleasant surprise. Take the tour, if you already know about the printing process, then it will be nothing new. Nice small printing operation...large card selection. End of the tour you get a free card!
So much more incredible than I was expecting. We did a day trip to celestial seasonings and came here after lunch. There are some wall sized landscapes that will literally take your breath away, they truly capture that up on a rocky mountain, oh my god how beautiful, feelings you get from say driving through rocky mountain national park! Quirky cowboy art and some very cool sculptures.
Whether you go on the tour or not, take some time to stroll through the outdoor bronzes and pieces of art inside on two floors. It is free and the gift shop has a card for any occasion and person. You could spend hours trying to find the perfect card.You'll want to take the tour. It is informative, a bit noisy(you are on the manufacturing floor), and you get to take a card of your choice with you at the end. The average tenure of employees is greater than 10 years. This attests to the type of business this is. Everyone loves greeting cards and the employees feel appreciated.The location is easy to find. It competes with the big league greeting card companies like Hallmark and yet all of the work is done out of this factory. I highly recommend a visit here to view Western Art and appreciate all that goes into making and distributing greeting cards plus I bet you can't leave without finding that perfect card for someone.
Lots of western themed bronzes and a bunch of paintings as well. It will take an hour or two to look at it all. Celestial Seasonings and a chocolate factory are in the same area.
This small, out-of-the-way museum is one of the area's best-kept secrets. There is a small, but impressive outdoor exhibit area with wonderful examples of western sculpture. Inside is an even wider variety of sculptures and paintings. The best new: it's FREE, although you will want to make a donation because you had so much FUN!