Telluride Live

About

Telluride Arts is the town's nonprofit arts council, and its headquarters at 135 W Pacific Ave has a gallery with changing exhibitions by local and regional artists. Inside, the Local Shop sells work by the region's artists and makers, from hand-thrown ceramics and jewelry to prints and postcards.

Telluride Arts also runs the Telluride Art Walk, when galleries and venues around town open their doors in the evening with new shows and receptions. Its Art Walk guide points you to public art too, such as the Penny Bear, a 15-foot bear covered in 187,000 pennies at 635 E Colorado Ave, and Gaiascope, three kaleidoscope sculptures in Heritage Plaza in Mountain Village that are best seen after sunset.

History

Telluride Arts began in 1971 as the Telluride Council for the Arts and Humanities and became a nonprofit in 1974. It was the original fiscal sponsor for events including the Telluride Film Festival and the Bluegrass Festival. The Holiday Arts Bazaar dates to 1983 and the Art Walk to 2008. The group took the name Telluride Arts in 2011, and the Telluride Arts District became a Certified Colorado Creative District in 2013.

When to go

The gallery is open Monday to Friday, 10 am to 5 pm. Its winter group show, Precipitation, about water and snow in the San Juans, runs from November 19, 2026 to April 2, 2027. Winter Art Walks run 5 to 7 pm on December 9, 2026, and on January 7, February 4 and March 4, 2027, with a Mountainfilm edition on May 28, 2027. The 2026 Holiday Arts Bazaar is December 4 to 6 at Ah Haa School for the Arts, 155 W Pacific Ave.

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Good to know

Telluride Arts also puts small Satellite Spotlight shows in spaces around both towns, such as Citizens State Bank and the Palmyra Building in Mountain Village.

Price

The website doesn't list an admission price for the gallery or the Art Walk. Check before you go.

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