In a vibrant display of community collaboration, the Steamboat Art Museum has partnered with the city to showcase its growing permanent collection in Steamboat’s new City Hall, which opened for business in mid-January.

Betse Grassby, who helped found Strings Musical Festival, has served as executive director of the Steamboat Art Museum for a decade. On Tuesday, she provided an insightful tour of the carefully curated artwork decorating the building’s lobby. 

“(The museum) is a city-owned building, so that’s what we love, how the city supports us,” said Grassby, adding that Steamboat Art Museum has quickly gained national recognition. “We’re recognized as a major … Western art museum in the country.”

The museum’s permanent collection, established in 2019, focuses on artists who have had retrospective shows or have been part of the museum’s exhibitions.

The City Hall exhibition was curated in conjunction with Grassby by Dancy Gould St. John, a Colorado native and longtime painter who served as one of the founding members of the Artists’ Gallery of Steamboat.

Grassby began the tour by presenting John Fawcett’s watercolor, “Catch of the Day” — a herd of horses and a cowboy saddling up — describing it as “just so appropriate for Steamboat.”

Fawcett, a nationally collected Western artist and museum board member who paints both watercolors and oils, helped establish the museum’s collections fund.

Fawcett also painted “Travis Bedell on Horseback,” a watercolor piece currently located in the Paachihpi Community Room of City Hall.

“Summer Sunshine,” a mixed-media piece on paper by Donna Howell-Sickles, depicts a cowgirl leaning over a fence surrounded by dogs, horses and sunflowers. Howell-Sickles has been painting Western art for over four decades and was inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame by the National Cowgirl Museum in 2007.

Grassby noted that the artist is best known for her “Happy Cowgirls” series and “has come up through the ranks as a woman in the Western art world.”

A standout piece is “Steamboat Museum” by Richie Vios, a watercolor painting that won awards from both Historic Routt County and Main Street Steamboat for its representation of local landmarks, including the iconic Howelsen Hill.

“We purchased that for our collection because it’s just too cool,” said Grassby.

Nancy Howe’s “After the Storm,” which portrays birds on a snow-covered tree, holds special significance for the artist personally.

Grassby explained that the oil piece particularly represents Howe’s time during the pandemic.

“She had broken her arm during COVID as an artist, and it was emblematic … of what happened during COVID and the artists, of how they did particular pieces,” she said.

“Morning Fog,” painted with oil by Clyde Aspevig, illustrates the Elk River.

“It means a lot because it’s not only a brilliant Clyde Aspevig piece, who has had a retrospective here, but also it’s a local shop, which means so much,” Grassby said.

Grassby views Aspevig, who has been painting since childhood, as one of the top living Western artists.

Mark Thompson’s painting, “Sanctuary,” which sits on a wall behind the front desk, was created using the egg tempera technique, and depicts a wooded area near the sanctuary neighborhood.

“Egg tempera was the medium that was really used during the Renaissance, and … the color is an egg yolk. It is done with a small brush. Very incredible detail,” Grassby said.

Grassby concluded the tour by presenting “Old Town Square,” a watercolor piece by Evie Yanish that Grassby said takes “a little artistic license.”

The current display is just the beginning, as it will be rotated in the summer, providing a fresh perspective for locals, tourists and employees alike.

“It’s a wonderful way for us to share our permanent collection,” Grassby said. 

Grassby emphasized the importance of making art accessible to the community.

“The Steamboat Art Museum exists. People drive by it every day,” she said, noting that by bringing their collection into City Hall, the museum hopes to raise awareness and appreciation for the local art scene.