Sunday, July 26, 2015

The Nature of Horses Exhibit at the Denver Botanic Garden



My husband and I took a stroll this past week, through the Denver Botanic Garden, to see the special Nature of Horses exhibit by sculptor Deborah Butterfield, which is running through October 18, 2015.

(All photos and photo collages will enlarge for easier viewing if clicked on)




Deborah Butterfield has spent most of her life around real horses and has been able to capture their essence in abstract design and powerful form through her minimalist sculptures. Using found materials, such as driftwood, sticks, twigs, and pieces of metal she was able to craft these sculptures into expressive works of art. The ephemeral quality of these natural materials led her to rework them in bronze casting. The sculptures seen in the Horses exhibit are all bronze cast sculptures from her original wood assemblages! 





The effect is very realistic and certainly a "fool the eye" technique!  Although this looks like wood, the bronze will last a lifetime and makes her sculptures very enduring for an outdoor display. 






The only exception to the cast bronze driftwood effect was this sculpture made of scrap metal. The repose posture of this horse by a garden pond looked so peaceful. 





It was pleasant, even on an overcast and drizzly day, to stroll through the different themed gardens within the Denver Botanic Garden and see the different horse sculptures on display.  They looked as if they had been there forever, each setting for them was so perfect!





I enjoyed looking at all their poses and details.





Look how well Butterfield captured the long eyelashes of this horse!






Of course, we also enjoyed seeing the garden in mid-summer bloom. The weather in spring was cool and rainy this year so many flowers had a late start. 







There are many places within the garden to sit and enjoy the scenery or catch a few cool breezes and escape the crowds.





There are also many gardening ideas for visitors to see.





I took many notes about flowers and shrubs that were thriving in our climate.





Just look at all these beautiful blooms!





One of my favorite walks of the day was through the profusely blooming Birds and Bee Walk. Click on the collage above to read how you can provide a house for bees and insects that help in the pollination of your garden.




 
I've been to the Denver Botanic Gardens many times in the past. You can read my post about the spectacular Chihuly Glass Exhibit that was there last summer at this link. This sculpture, entitled "Colorado" by the artist, and inspired by the colors of the Colorado sunset, was donated to the garden after the exhibit, by generous private donors, and is now on permanent display. 

You can also see a visit I made in autumn to the garden's large indoor conservatory to see the orchids and bromeliads in bloom on this link. All the seasons in the garden are lovely, and we buy a membership each year so we can visit often.




Before we left, my husband and I indulged in having one of the garden's delicious wood-fired pizzas for lunch. They offer a few different selections of pizza, besides the original Margarita-style pizza of tomatoes and cheese.  We chose a pizza made from a blend of roasted wild mushrooms, roasted garlic, arugula, and taleggio cheese.  It was heavenly!




If you are in the Denver area, make sure to enjoy a beautiful day in the Denver Botanic Gardens!





Before I end this post, I'd like to show you my son's beautiful front yard flower garden. It is full of native grasses and perennial flowers and shrubs. My two grandson's spotted a purple-painted collector's fire truck in front of a house in their neighborhood, so we all took a walk to see it. Enlarge this collage by clicking on it to see the truck in the lower right corner. It was really quite a sight to see! My little granddaughter "E" is now two months old, growing beautifully and now gives us some very sweet smiles. My grandchildren are all wonderful "flowers" in my life and I am enjoying watching them all grow!



It has been a wonderful summer and I have lots to show--come back soon to see a drive we took up   14,115 feet to the summit of Pikes Peak and many photos from our trip to New York City! I'm busy editing them all now.

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36 comments:

Lisa @ Grandmas Briefs said...

Amazing! Love this, Pat. My mom used to collect driftwood but it never ended up looking as fabulous as these incredible horses.

Your photos are fabulous. You continually amaze me with all the sightseeing and picture-taking you do...and still manage fabulous time with your grandkiddos! You're my idol! :-D (Imagine the ♪"I wanna be like you-hoo-hoo"♪ tune from the Jungle Book playing in your ears.)

Pamela Gordon said...

Pat, these horses are amazing to see. And the gardens are wonderful too. You have having a great summer there and in NYC this year. Enjoy!

Michelle said...

Such artistic renderings of horses in this exhibit. You captured it all so well!

Snap said...

Wonderful! I love botanical gardens. I always learn so much. I like the idea of "insect" houses. I have several houses for the toads. The MFA here has one of Butterfields horses ... amazing aren't they?!
xo

A Bit of the Blarney said...

Hoping to be in Colorado in about 10 days. Will add this to my bucket list along with our trip to Mt Evans!! These sculptures are just incredible!! Thank you!

Anonymous said...

Wow! Your son's garden is amazing! The horse exhibit seems like a very interesting exhibit to see!

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous gardens and such amazing sculptures!

eileeninmd said...

Hello Pat, the Butterfield horse exhibit looks wonderful. amazing sculptures. What a nice visit, walking around the lovely gardens and blooms. I love the Chihuly sunset piece. And the pizza looks delicious. Your son's garden looks beautiful too. Wonderful post and images. Have a happy new week ahead!

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

Oh my, you have had a wonderful summer Pat. From gorgeous exhibits & gardens such as these to fun with grand-babies. The horse sculptures are beyond amazing and very graceful. Deborah has really captured their form in the abstract. She is absolutely amazing.
Sam

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

It has been years since we have been to the Denver Botannical gardens. It looks like it is time to go back.

SmilingSally said...

Hi Pat,

I love that you share your adventures. That lady is a true artist; the only sad thing is that she probably doesn't sell enough to support herself. Thanks for sharing.

Happy Blue Monday!

Vee said...

Incredible work! That sculptor has indeed created horses from a true understsnding of their natures and frames. Wonderful photography, too, Pat.

Maria said...

I would very much love to have a nice garden stroll right now! Thanks for sharing your wonderful photos.

Catherine said...

Lovely,beautiful. Spectacular art and flowers. Thanks for the great photos.

Daniela said...

What gorgeous works of art, made by the nature and by men, you have in the Botanic Garden in Denver, I'm sure you and your husband have spent such a lovely day there !
Thanks for sharing all these wonderful pictures with us, my dearest Pat.

Sending much love to you and your dears,
your friend
Dany

Sylvia K said...

Ah, being a horse lover, these are particularly delightful!! Terrific post for the day!! Hope you have a wonderful new week! Enjoy!!

Photo Cache said...

Incredible sculptures.

Worth a Thousand Words

The Glamorous Gourmet said...

One of the things I miss most about Denver is the beautiful Botanical Gardens and this artist is so very talented! She captures the movement and posture of horses in her sculptures so beautifully. Thanks for sharing your visit!

Deanies Stash said...

What fun to see the horse exhibit and the other beautiful photos.

Fun60 said...

Those sculptures are beautiful. What a talent to be able to do that.

Black Jack's Carol said...

I've never seen anything remotely like those wonderful horse sculptures. What a pleasure to scroll through the photos. Both the Botanic Gardens and your son's garden yielded delightful captures. I am happy that you have had such a joy-filled summer with your grandkids.

diane b said...

Those horses are amazing. Such natural poses and they do look like wood and not bronze. There is one like that in the grounds of UCLA where Sonya works I wonder if it is the same artist.
Love your son's garden, so natural looking and your grand daughter is so cute.

Magnus said...

Great shots!

NCSue said...

I'm loving these horse sculptures!
Thanks for linking up at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2015/07/variations.html

Billy Blue Eyes said...

Very nice looking gardens but the sculptures a class of their own

Rhonda Albom said...

This is really cool. I have never seen anything like these horse sculptures.

Ciao Chow Linda said...

Wow, what a talented artist. I loved all those sculptures and the flowers in the botanic garden were spectacular too. So many beautiful places to visit near you.

Unknown said...

WOW! Awesome photos AND awesome sculptures. Thank you for the delightful virtual visit via the Grand Social.

Kaye Swain
SandwichINKrealestateinfo.com/water

Claudia said...

Those sculptures are indeed amazing. They seem to move (and they do look like they're made out of wood). Never get tired of blooms. Never! Love your son's garden - it is so smart to go "native." Less maintenance, less water and the plants just thrive.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

just read a books about a driftwood artist, you showed the pictures.

SavoringTime in the Kitchen said...

What a wonderful exhibit! I love how, even the wood laying flat on the ground on not connected creates the illusion of being the horse. Wish I loved closer but I'm glad I saw your terrific photos.

Karen (Back Road Journal) said...

If you hadn't said the horses were cast bronze, I would certainly have never guessed. Just amazing. What a lovely day and how nice that you got to end your tour with a delicious pizza.

Coloring Outside the Lines said...

What an amazing exhibit! I thought wood and I still can't tell how it could be bronze- awesome! The pizza looks yummy, I'm hungry right now so that's what I noticed most!
LOL! Have a blessed day!

The Gathering Place said...

A talented artist can certainly make art out of anything. I love the many varieties of flowers-good idea to note what grows well. Hope you are enjoying your summer.

Ann said...

At our summer cabin as a child we always had driftwood. I could have never imagined something as exquisite as these horses.
Ann

Ann said...

At our summer cabin as a child we always had driftwood. I could have never imagined something as exquisite as these horses.
Ann