Adams County Fairgrounds Gateway Mural

The Adams County Fairgrounds at Riverdale Regional Park are the gateway to adventure, connecting residents from all over the county to the region’s rich farming and agricultural heritage. The Fairgrounds host more than 1800 events annually, from local community and family gatherings to trade and livestock shows to concerts, festivals, rodeos, and cultural events year-round.

We seek an artist who is excited to capture the energy and heart of this very special place through design, installation, and community engagement for an exterior mural at the primary entryway to the entire Fairgrounds.

This highly visible mural will greet over a million people yearly and set the visual tone for the expanse of the Adams County Fairgrounds. The vision for this gateway piece will be inspired by a contemporary western aesthetic.

Project Number: 2026.040

Open to: Professional artists or artist teams, local to Colorado.

Budget: $80,000

Amount inclusive of all costs associated with the execution of this scope described in this call-for-entry: project management, design, community engagement, and installation. This includes but is not limited to, artist fees, meetings, site visits, site surveys, site prep, community engagement, design, engineering, permits, materials, material tests, fabrication, installation, site access and equipment (scaffolding, lift, etc.), insurance conforming to Adams County requirements, travel, transportation and expenses, maintenance plan; consultants’, and subcontractors' fees, and all other costs associated with this project.

 Note: This budget does not include application of top-coat. Option for artist to bid on application of anti-graffiti and UV protectant at a later date; additional budget provided for separate scope of work.

 * Finalists (3 - 5) will be awarded a $750 honorarium to complete a project-specific proposal.

Project Description & Artistic Vision

The Adams County Fairgrounds at Riverdale Regional Park are the gateway to adventure, connecting residents from all over the county to the region’s rich farming and agricultural heritage. The Fairgrounds host more than 1800 events annually, from local community and family gatherings to trade and livestock shows to concerts, festivals, rodeos, and cultural events year-round.

We seek an artist who is excited to capture the energy and heart of this very special place through design, installation, and community engagement for an exterior mural at the primary entryway to the entire Fairgrounds. 

This highly visible mural will greet over a million people yearly and set the visual tone for the expanse of the Adams County Fairgrounds. The vision for this gateway piece will be inspired by a contemporary western aesthetic. 

The rich history of the fairgrounds, the variety of activities that take place here, and the diverse communities who spend time here offer many avenues for artistic exploration. The selected artist will not be asked to create a design that represents everything and everyone connected to the project site. Instead, they will explore themes and imagery that are both at home within their art practice and the Fairgrounds – past, present, and future.

Mural Location

This 3,000 square foot mural exterior mural will be painted on the south side of the Al Lesser Building at the Adams County Fairgrounds. The mural design will cover seven (7) consecutive textured walls of various sizes and will wrap around the building with partial mural coverage on the east and west facing sides of the building. The mural will be seen from far distances as people drive past and through the Fairgrounds, and up close as people walk along the adjacent sidewalks.

Click here for pictures of the mural walls, detailed, wall texture images, and elevations. 

This mural is part of the public art phase of the recently completed Brantner Gulch Infrastructure Capital Improvement Project at the Riverdale Regional Park and is part of the Adams County Percentage for the Arts Program.

Community Engagement 

The selected artist will be expected to engage in layered community engagement to understand the history and present use of the Fairgrounds and the varied perspectives of our diverse communities. This work will inform the design and content of the mural and will integrate community into the artists’ process. 

We ask artists to thoughtfully engage the public and park staff to facilitate creative and unique experiences for our residents. Your community engagement is shaped by your art practice, the project site and community, and can take many forms. Past examples include community artmaking at the project site or a county event, workshop series, or collaborations with local schools and youth organizations. 

As part of your application, artists are expected to demonstrate successful prior community engagement and a basic understanding of this project, the location, and the surrounding communities. Once selected, the artist will work with the Adams County Cultural Arts Division to develop a complete community engagement plan. 

The selected artist will be expected to attend select events at the Fairgrounds, including the 2027 Adams County Fair (August 4-8, 2027) and others, to be determined by artist.

About the Adams County Fairgrounds

Adams County holds several large events throughout the summer at the Fairgrounds and within Riverdale Regional Park, including the Adams County Fair, Adams County Pride, Stars & Stripes, Festival Latino, and Colorado Dragon Boat’s Riverdale Regatta. Local families hold baptisms, birthday parties, quinceañeras, baby showers, weddings, and funerals here. The Fairgrounds are the site of many first jobs, first dances, and first kisses. Farmers and ranchers hold auctions and competitions for a wide variety of animals, and organizations and groups of all kinds gather for dog shows, gaming conventions, quilt and craft shows and swap meets.  

The Adams County Fair alone attracts 160,000 visitors yearly with approximately 60,000 on the final day of the fair, Dia de la Familia. The Fair brings 4-H shows and competitions – all presented by the year’s Fair Queen and Lady-in-Waiting. The grandstands draw crowds with Professional Bull Riding, a Charreada, the Demolition Derby, and concerts. Local performances, a carnival midway, and all the classic fair foods round out the event. 

The first official Adams County Fair was held in October 1904 in what is now downtown Brighton, but the fair and rodeo predate the formation of the county. In the late 1880's that area was first known as the "Driving Park," because of the horse, plow, and chariot races held there. The fairgrounds also hosted baseball games; bicycle, foot and auto races; carnivals and circuses; and monthly market days with produce and livestock sales. Nat “Deadwood Dick” Love, known as the greatest Black Cowboy of the Old West, was a horse trainer at the Brighton Fairgrounds and competed in rodeos there.  The present-day site of the Adams County Fairgrounds was once a report-like property of one of the area’s eeriest cattle farmers and the former site of the Denver Poor Farm. 

The Fairgrounds are within the Riverdale Regional Park. An expansive park in Brighton and unincorporated Adams County that has several lakes and an interconnected trail system, including the South Platte River Trail and the Colorado Trail. The park campus has amenities including Adams Hollow Disc Golf Course, the Adams County Veteran’s Memorial, the Adams County Animal Shelter, and the Adams County History Museum. 

Submission Requirements

All professional artists responding to the call-for-entry must submit complete answers in the CaFÉ application portal. Responses will be evaluated based on the selection criteria below. Respondents should present the required information clearly and concisely.

Work Samples (8 - 10 photos or videos) highlighting past projects of similar scope falling under two categories: artwork style and execution

Artwork Style Samples (4 – 5). Style samples can be a mix of murals and large paintings. Artists may include multiple images of a single piece. Examples of past work with contemporary western aesthetic encouraged.

Execution Samples (4 – 5). Execution examples do not need to have a visual connection to the project vision/aesthetic but show proof of concept to deliver large-scale exterior works. Murals of similar size and/or wall texture encouraged. Artists may include multiple images of a single piece

Work Sample Key: Upload a PDF with thumbnails of work samples provided in the section above. Include Project name, wall size, your role in the project. Artists applying as a team: Explicitly call out collaborative works and works executed by a single artist. Let us know if the sample is an example of artwork style, execution, or both.

Resume: A PDF highlighting projects of similar scope.

Short answers to the following prompts, 1,000-character limit in text box

Express your interest in this specific project and Adams County communities. Share any connections or experiences you have with the county, if applicable.

What expertise will you/your team bring to this public art project Describe a past project(s) with similar square footage and/or wall texture. Include names and role of any collaborators. This is especially important for artists who are applying as a group and artists who will execute the project with a specific fabricator, arts admin team, or community engagement team.

Describe prior work with community, please give specific examples.

Selection Panel and Process

The Artist Selection Panel for the Fairgrounds Gateway Mural is made up of members of the Adams County Arts & Culture Commission, volunteer residents appointed by the Board of County Commissioners, a representative from the Parks, Open Space & Cultural Arts, and community members with connections to the project site. 

Adams County Cultural Arts will review all applications using scoring criteria outlined in the call-for-entry and in consideration of the project and project applicant pool. The Artist Selection Panel will then review and score applications to select finalists. Finalists (3-5) will be paid an honorarium of $750 to create a detailed proposal specific to this project and present their ideas to the panel during in-person interviews. 

The panel will select the artist or artist team that best meets project requirements, based on the information contained in their response to the call-for-entry and the information presented during their interview. The artist selection panel will make a recommendation to the Parks, Open Space & Cultural Arts Department. 

The selection panel does not participate in the design process once the artist is contracted. The selected artist will work with Adams County Cultural Arts to develop and finalist artwork design through informed community engagement. 

Evaluation Criteria

The Artist Selection Panel will individually rate each applicant on the following criteria.

• Work Samples
  • - Quality and originality of past work; technical and aesthetic.
  • - Fit of work samples with contemporary western project vision.
• Demonstrated experience executing projects of similar scope
  • - Relevant experience showing your ability to successfully design and install murals of similar wall size and/or texture.
  • Demonstrated technical expertise.
• The connection between the project and the artist's creative practice
  • - Help the artist selection panel understand what unique skills, expertise, and perspective you will bring to this project. Highlight how the project site, art direction, community engagement component, or other elements of the project vision connect to your art practice.
• Experience with Community Engagement
  • - Demonstrate your ability and excitement to connect with the public creatively.
     

Finalists

Finalists (3-5) will be selected using the evaluation criteria. Finalists will be paid an honorarium to design a site-specific proposal with mural concepts (2). Once awarded, the selected artist will work to create fresh concept designs (2-3) based on their research and community engagement.

Finalists will attend a virtual info session to inform their proposal. They will also meet 1:1 with Adams County Cultural Arts staff for proposal feedback before panel interviews.

Artist Selection Timeline

subject to change

• - August 16, 11:59 MST: Application Deadline
• - Friday, September 23: Finalists Notified
• - Wednesday September 30: Finalist Information Session, evening virtual meeting
• - Week of October 12 or 19: Finalists meet 1:1 with Cultural Arts staff
• - November 1: Project-specific proposal deadline
• - November 4 & 5: Finalist Interviews – evening, in-person
• - November 12: Selected Artist Notified

Project Execution Timeline

Selected artist will manage project planning and execution to meet the deadline listed below.

• December 2026: Contracting
• Q1 2007
  • Community Engagement Development
  • Design Development
• Q2 2027
  • Community Engagement Plan Finalized
  • Community Engagement begins
  • Design development
• Q3 2027
  • Artist at Adams County Fair (August 4-8, 2027)
• Q4 2027
  • October 15, 2027: Deadline for mural completion and maintenance plan approval

Payment Schedule

Artists will submit invoices after payment milestones are reached. All checks paid by mail.

The selected artis can reach the milestones below at any time and in any order that fits their art practice and the overall project timeline.

Contracting

• 5% ($4,000) Upon issue of PO

Design Milestones

• 10% ($8,000) upon approval of concept design
• 20% ($16,000) upon approval of final design

Community Engagement Milestones

• 10% ($8,000) upon approval of community engagement plan
• 15% ($12,000) upon completion of community engagement

Installation Milestones

• 40% ($32,000) Upon final installation approval, and approval of all final project documentation files, and maintenance plan.