Professional artists emphasize joy, creative process at Golden Fine Arts Fest

Art is for everyone, but the artist’s life is not.

Whether it’s packing up hundreds of pieces and driving across the country to attend art shows every weekend, or quitting a full-time job to make a living off the creations they spent hours perfecting, an artist’s life has unique challenges not everyone is equipped to handle.

Still, Golden Fine Arts Festival participants said all the ups and downs are worth it because they love their craft and the community of fellow artists and art enthusiasts they’ve met along the way.

On Aug. 10-11, the Golden Chamber of Commerce hosted the 34th annual festival along 11th Street. Last year’s event drew approximately 9,000 attendees, according to city crowd-collection data, and organizers were expecting similar numbers this year.

Around 100 artists participated, showcasing their jewelry, paintings, photographs, sculptures, fibers and more. About 55 artists were Colorado-based, including several from the Denver metro area like kinetic sculpture artist Ryan Kvande.

The Thornton resident recalled quitting his job to become a professional artist.

He said he started about a decade ago when he was trying to fill an empty wall in his new house. He came up with a design and made it out of cardboard, which he said wasn’t ideal. He later tried it with wood, which worked much better. He then spent two years learning everything he could about how to make wooden sculptures, and now he’s adding kinetic acrylic sculptures to his repertoire.

Kvande said he enjoys working for himself and on his own time. He doesn’t have to commute to an office every day or fill out a timecard.

However, he continued, the artist’s life isn’t for everyone. It requires a lot of work and travel, and he acknowledged that some artists prefer having studio spaces, so they can separate their work from their home life.

To anyone who’s considering becoming a professional artist, he said, “Just do it. Go for it. Don’t wait.”

Trial & error

Farther down 11th Street, Arvada painter Jessica Mahan’s booth featured dozens of acrylic and oil paintings, with Mahan describing how she loves depicting natural scenes like flowers, lily pads and aspen trees. She said she particularly loves painting patterns and “pushing color to its limit without doing too much.”

Mahan, who’s been an artist for almost 20 years, recalled how she was always sketching when she was in school but was afraid to add color. When she was in college, she learned how to add color to her works, particularly what colors to put next to each other to help the paintings pop.

While she previously taught art in public schools, Mahan now teaches part-time for art centers in Evergreen and Arvada. She loves being able to share what she’s learned over the years, she described.

“I want people to have joy when they’re painting at home,” she said.

Denver’s William Mantor, a ceramics artist for 14 years, said he dabbled in other media and art forms, but “ceramics just stuck.”

He added that he liked how tactile it is as an artform, saying that he hand-throws all his pieces. Mantor, who’s part of the Arvada Ceramics Art Guild, said makes mostly functional pieces — cups, jars, plates and vases.

While some artists prefer to showcase their pieces in galleries, Mantor said he prefers to participate in art shows. He enjoys traveling and meeting other artists, explaining how everyone in the community looks out. They give each other advice about other shows, destinations, audiences and so on.

Ultimately, Mantor said, showcasing at art shows is like making the art itself: “There’s a lot of trial and error.”

Depending on the region and/or show, audiences may prefer one type of media over another, or one style of ceramics over another, he said.

“It’s interesting to see how different styles are popular in different places,” Mantor continued.

‘What it can add to your life’

Mahan encouraged anyone, regardless of whether they’re an artist, to “practice creativity every day.” She hoped people would find an outlet to help them through their frustrations, joys, lulls and highlights, whether that was writing, movement or something else.

“I’ve learned so much about myself through the creation of my work,” Mahan continued. “When I’m painting a piece, I see how it can apply to my life. … Art is important for everyone to participate in  … because you don’t know what it can add to your life until you practice (it).”

And for those who are artists, Mahan and Mantor encouraged them to keep going.

“People often get discouraged and burnt out,” Mantor said. “You should try different things. There’s something for everybody, but you have to keep at it.”

Mantor said something that benefited him was first working for other professional artists, whether individuals and/or studios. He explained how it was a great way to practice his art while also learning about how to run a business.

Still, whether people are creative as a hobby or as a career, Kvande said they shouldn’t forget that artistic spark that first inspired them.

“Sometimes you have (a piece) in your mind, and you just want to see it,” he said of his creative process. “I want to see what’s in my mind and show it to other people.”

Click through additional photos from the Aug. 10-11 event: