An Iconic Denver Sculpture Returns
The whimsical design combines geometric shapes with vivid orange and blue colors
Photo Bear Gutierrez
Eliza Cross and Catherine Bauers, daughters of Oklahoma-born artist, Gerald Cross, worried that their father’s 1975 award-winning sculpture might never be displayed again. The geometric painted steel and plexiglass piece was initially installed in Five Points. After the sculpture was vandalized, it was moved to Speer Boulevard. Eliza Cross remembers that whenever the plexiglass panels needed repair, her dad would drive downtown on the weekends to replace them.
Cross was a longtime resident of Colorado. Using his architectural training and interest in mathematics, he developed his unique artistic style. He taught at the University of Colorado for over 30 years, and his artwork has been featured in more than 20 exhibitions including those at the Brooklyn Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Denver Art Museum.
Photo Bear Gutierrez
Originally sponsored by The Park People and endorsed by Mayor William McNichols as a part of the “Art in the City” initiative, the sculpture was placed through the program to beautify the city’s traffic islands using art.
In 1988, Denver’s Public Art Program was officially established as an executive order of Mayor Federico Peña and directed that one percent of any capital improvement project over $1 million undertaken by the city be set aside for the inclusion of art. Over the years, installation of public art has expanded the opportunity for Denver residents and visitors to experience art in public places.
Photo Bear Gutierrez
As time and the elements took their toll, the sculpture deteriorated and its colors began to fade. It was dismantled and moved for restoration scheduled in 2020. That plan was interrupted by the Covid pandemic, and the Cross family began to fear it might be gone for good.
The restoration was finally completed in August 2023. The angular, imposing blue and orange piece has been re-installed at its new location on Speer Boulevard between Larimer and Market. Says Bauers, “The sculpture is now surrounded by the messy, real-life truth we live of traffic, pedestrians, bicyclists, traffic lights, trees, grass, and sunshine.” Its order contrasts with the realities of life as Cross intended.
Photo Bear Gutierrez
“Having this sculpture restored and relocated to serve as a gateway to downtown means that others will get to share in what our father saw and taught,” Bauers explains. “It means his vision of ‘geometry as an art form’ will welcome a new generation of thinkers and visionaries to our fair Queen City.”
Photo Tamara Montes de Oca, photographer for Denver Arts & Venues
