The Blue Sage: Keeping the Spirit con't
The building is named after one of the three Curtis brothers who came to Paonia from New York around the time of the St. Louis World’s Fair.
Next door, in 1904, one of the other Curtis brothers built First State Bank of Colorado. According to archives at the Paonia Museum, they used sandstone from a local quarry and fixtures brought by train to Delta and by covered wagon to Paonia. The building’s big arched windows, high ceilings and detailed craftsmanship represent the flurry of activity and rich agricultural promise the valley offered. These two buildings brought together the community with their ideas for projects that the bank would support and needs for diverse products the hardware store offered.
In the 1930’s, Curtis Hardware became Howard’s Hardware and then, legend has it, the building was purchased by a stunt man from California whose “flashy’ wife made it into a mall. The old bank building had become the town hall and the ceiling was dropped to save on heating. After that, for a short time, it became the United Mine Workers Union Hall, and the arched window was boarded over to make way for a sign. In the 1980’s, the economic downturn was reflected in downtown Paonia. Even the mall in the Curtis Building was unable to survive, and these beautiful buildings became rarely used.
Just as the Curtis brothers brought new life to Paonia with these buildings and all they held, the Blue Sage has brought new life to the buildings as the town’s first center for the performing arts.
The Blue Sage started as an organization before it became identified with the Curtis Building. A group of teachers had been renting a building across the street and called it the Blue Sage Dance and Movement Center. In addition to offering classes, they provided a venue for the annual Paonia Holiday Arts Festival and other community needs.
By the time this group began to use the Curtis Building in 1996, the building had been unused for several years. Reportedly, it might have fallen down were it not for a grant for historic building preservation. While renting the building, the Blue Sage established itself as a nonprofit. By 1999, after a 13-month fundraising campaign there was enough money to purchase the building, and on January 1, 2000, the upstairs office and gallery also opened.
In 2002, the vacant bank building next door became available for purchase and the Blue Sage rose to the new challenge of purchasing it, making an interior door between the buildings, taking down the dropped ceilings and uncovering the arched window, bringing back the splendor of the original architecture. This space is now used as a gallery, classroom and reception area.
Collaboration has been central to the Blue Sage since its beginning. With the help of the Blue Sage, the Mountain Harvest Festival began in 2001 as a weekend of arts and music, readings, studio and garden tours and celebrations in many forms. Along with the Paradise Theatre and KVNF, the Blue Sage serves as a music venue for the Festival. They also host the Harvest of Voices, a literary event held during the festival that has become so popular that a live stream to the theatre accommodates the overflowing crowd.
Another collaboration is “Arts for All”, with Mountain Harvest Festival, The Learning Council and the schools participating. Classes in drama, circus arts, chorus, stop motion animation, film making and more are offered on a reciprocal-gift model to students at all area schools.
The Blue Sage has become known for its classical music series, programming that has been developed by Susan Ellinger, a graduate of The Julliard School, who officially joined the Blue Sage in January of 2012 after starting the series. Also popular is the World Music Series with lessons, classes, and workshops focusing on the concepts of the percussive arts. Performers from these series’ visit all of the area schools as a part of their programs.
Blue Sage events and collaborations are too numerous to mention all of them here! To find out more, go to www.bluesage.org. The mission of the Blue Sage has not changed since it began. It is to “provide education and expression in the arts and humanities in order to engage and enrich the North Fork community.” The Curtis brothers might be happy to see that their buildings are being put to good use in engaging and enriching the community in so many ways.
The building is named after one of the three Curtis brothers who came to Paonia from New York around the time of the St. Louis World’s Fair.
Next door, in 1904, one of the other Curtis brothers built First State Bank of Colorado. According to archives at the Paonia Museum, they used sandstone from a local quarry and fixtures brought by train to Delta and by covered wagon to Paonia. The building’s big arched windows, high ceilings and detailed craftsmanship represent the flurry of activity and rich agricultural promise the valley offered. These two buildings brought together the community with their ideas for projects that the bank would support and needs for diverse products the hardware store offered.
In the 1930’s, Curtis Hardware became Howard’s Hardware and then, legend has it, the building was purchased by a stunt man from California whose “flashy’ wife made it into a mall. The old bank building had become the town hall and the ceiling was dropped to save on heating. After that, for a short time, it became the United Mine Workers Union Hall, and the arched window was boarded over to make way for a sign. In the 1980’s, the economic downturn was reflected in downtown Paonia. Even the mall in the Curtis Building was unable to survive, and these beautiful buildings became rarely used.
Just as the Curtis brothers brought new life to Paonia with these buildings and all they held, the Blue Sage has brought new life to the buildings as the town’s first center for the performing arts.
The Blue Sage started as an organization before it became identified with the Curtis Building. A group of teachers had been renting a building across the street and called it the Blue Sage Dance and Movement Center. In addition to offering classes, they provided a venue for the annual Paonia Holiday Arts Festival and other community needs.
By the time this group began to use the Curtis Building in 1996, the building had been unused for several years. Reportedly, it might have fallen down were it not for a grant for historic building preservation. While renting the building, the Blue Sage established itself as a nonprofit. By 1999, after a 13-month fundraising campaign there was enough money to purchase the building, and on January 1, 2000, the upstairs office and gallery also opened.
In 2002, the vacant bank building next door became available for purchase and the Blue Sage rose to the new challenge of purchasing it, making an interior door between the buildings, taking down the dropped ceilings and uncovering the arched window, bringing back the splendor of the original architecture. This space is now used as a gallery, classroom and reception area.
Collaboration has been central to the Blue Sage since its beginning. With the help of the Blue Sage, the Mountain Harvest Festival began in 2001 as a weekend of arts and music, readings, studio and garden tours and celebrations in many forms. Along with the Paradise Theatre and KVNF, the Blue Sage serves as a music venue for the Festival. They also host the Harvest of Voices, a literary event held during the festival that has become so popular that a live stream to the theatre accommodates the overflowing crowd.
Another collaboration is “Arts for All”, with Mountain Harvest Festival, The Learning Council and the schools participating. Classes in drama, circus arts, chorus, stop motion animation, film making and more are offered on a reciprocal-gift model to students at all area schools.
The Blue Sage has become known for its classical music series, programming that has been developed by Susan Ellinger, a graduate of The Julliard School, who officially joined the Blue Sage in January of 2012 after starting the series. Also popular is the World Music Series with lessons, classes, and workshops focusing on the concepts of the percussive arts. Performers from these series’ visit all of the area schools as a part of their programs.
Blue Sage events and collaborations are too numerous to mention all of them here! To find out more, go to www.bluesage.org. The mission of the Blue Sage has not changed since it began. It is to “provide education and expression in the arts and humanities in order to engage and enrich the North Fork community.” The Curtis brothers might be happy to see that their buildings are being put to good use in engaging and enriching the community in so many ways.