Artist-in-Residence Programs Continue At Rocky Mountain National Park With Storyteller and Writer

Courtesy John Stansfield

News Release Date: July 11, 2014

Contact: Kyle Patterson, [phone]

Storyteller and writer John Stansfield of Monument, Colorado, will continue to highlight this year's Art in the Park Program at Rocky Mountain National Park with presentations held July 16 and July 23 at 7:30 p.m. at the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center.  

Stansfield's residency project is to develop a new first-person Enos Mills reenactment, focused on Mills' intense seven-year campaign for the establishment of Rocky Mountain National Park. He will also create a written work on the same subject. 

Stansfield has been a professional storyteller since 1979 and is the author of several books, including Enos Mills: Rocky Mountain Naturalist. He is the recipient of numerous awards including the National Storytelling Network Oracle Award, Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival Master Storyteller Award, storytelling fellowships, Colorado Author's League Award and Colorado Book Award Finalist. He has presented workshops at national and regional conferences and for staff at various national parks; has performed at countless museums, festivals, schools, and other institutions; and is part of the Colorado Humanities Chautauqua Speakers Bureau.

Six artists were selected for the summer 2014 Artist-in-Residence Program at Rocky Mountain National Park. Artists are provided with a creative, contemplative environment in which to generate artistic works and share their works with the public. During their stay at the park, artists share their vision in two public presentations. Artistic diversity, new ideas and creative uses of media were encouraged in the application process.  

Artists are given two-week residencies at the William Allen White cabin from June through September. For a specific schedule and to learn more about these artists go to: www.nps.gov/romo/supportyourpark/meet-our-2014-artists-in-residence.htm 

Artists have had a long-standing impact on the formation, expansion and direction of our country's national parks. Musicians, composers, painters, writers, sculptors and other performing artists also draw upon the multifaceted quality of parks for inspiration. All of these artists translate the national park's purpose, as a place of pleasure and preservation, into images which bring others enjoyment and a deeper understanding of the parks some may never visit.     

For more information about Rocky Mountain National Park please contact the park's Information Office at [phone].