Art / Design

Design After Dark 2010

Denver Gets Down with 'Skin'

The Denver Art Museum’s annual fundraiser and party, Design After Dark, celebrated its sixth stellar year last Friday night at RedLine. The purpose of the event is to raise money for the museum’s Department of Architecture, Design & Graphics, creating resources for important acquisitions, such as the original posters that were purchased for last year’s Psychedelic Experience exhibit and thus enhancing the level of Denver art and culture.

One of the most notable aspects of the Design After Dark event is the way it brings together a cross section of people, from a range of age groups, all in devotion to the art of design, not to mention a good time. Megan Hudacky, one of the organizers on the Design Council Board says this is an intentional outcome. Ticket prices, for example, are varied according to age. Anyone under 35 was able to pre-purchase tickets for $35. This thoughtful adjustment creates access for the young and partially-established to engage in an urbane art experience, while contributing to the fresh and inspired tone of the event.

Design After Dark’s theme this year was ‘Skin.’ Each year specific artists, creative people and firms from the community are selected to submit a sculpture around the theme for auction. The centerpiece of the event then becomes a group showing of all these pieces. Each submission had to fit inside a three-square-foot vitrine. The show was juried by Christoph Heinrich (Director of Denver Art Museum), Ivar Zeile (Owner of Plus Gallery) and Dana Meacham (Publisher of Luxe Magazine). Winners were selected for three categories: Best In Show (Cataform + Semple Brown Design), Showing the Most Skin (Jon Strieby) and an ad hoc category, in which judges decided on “Best Sales Pitch” (Double Butter).

Considering the reach of the organizers, participants, judges and sponsors, Design After Dark is one of the largest design events of the year, bringing together, as the website indicates: movers, shakers, statement makers. Darrin Alfred, in his third year with the Denver Art Museum as Associate Curator for the Department of Architecture, Design & Graphics, says this year’s event raised Design After Dark to another level. He attributes its continued success and growth to an evolution process, keeping in place aspects that are effective (a small scale group format and off-site location for example) and then building on them each year with new and interesting features (such as the Benjamin Moore paint wall).

Highlights of Design After Dark 2010 were plenty, from the location, food, fashion, sponsors and especially the participants: AECOM, Anam Cara Living Arts, Beaton Design, Steve & Garen Chucovich, Cultivator Advertising, Cypher 13, Double Butter, fin art co., Harvey M. Hine Architects, Horsehead Crating Company, Humphries Poli Architects, Gary Landis, Layer Cake, Matter Studio, Heather Mourer, Spinneybeck, Maharam & Stryker, Michael & Katherine McCoy, MOA Architecture, Naka Designs, Charles Parson, John Kjos, Poppitt Design Studio, R Design, RNL, Semple Brown Design, Cataform, Jon Strieby, Think Make Do, Urban Fabrication and RDesign LLC. Scot Lefavor also donated a custom graphic-wrapped scooter to coincide with the event theme.

Other main highlights included tattoo art by Patrick King (a.k.a Fish) of Th’Ink Tank Tattoo and improvisation performances by Electric Koolaid (Jose Mercado, Artistic Advisor). Combining choreographed dance with performance painting, the improv artists kept guests curious, if not fully entertained throughout the evening. Perhaps the reigning highlight, however, occurred at the end of the night, when the making of spontaneous art took place. Canvasses left hanging and supplies lying about by the earlier performances, artist Jon Strieby stepped in to add his own personal touch, inspiring others to do the same. It was a scene of instinctive creativity, epitomizing not only the event itself, but also the brightness of Denver’s emerging and potent arts culture.

Best In Show Award: Cataform and Semple Brown.

Ad Hoc Award (Best Sales Pitch): Double Butter. With the purchase of their sculpture, the buyer also received a real-life version of this piece, the Armadillo coffee table.

Scooter donation wrapped with custom graphics by Scot Lefavor.

Left: Megan Hudacky (cky Designs) helped organize the event. Middle: Gayle Landis, Design Council Board Member. Far right: Darrin Alfred, Associate Curator Department of Architecture, Design and graphics.