Carbondale Creative District

09/30/2026

See you out there spuds!

Ladies and gentlemen… start your engines!

09/28/2026

Carbondale Arts presents First Friday | Harvest Party | October 2 | 5:00-8:00pm | In The Heart of the Carbondale Creative District

Featuring extended hours and special events at local shops, galleries, and restaurants. The evening also includes live music, street activities with community booths, and food trucks.

🦬🌻 Opening reception of “The Beauty of Beasts” by Megan George & “Everlasting Floral Design” by Abby Zlotnich | 5-7pm at the Carbondale Arts Gallery
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🚒🪩 Live DJ set with the Sunfire Ranch Firetruck | Chacos Park, 5-8pm


🍁🚶🏼Fall Sculpture Walk led by Town of Carbondale's Public Art Commission, showcasing “Art Around Town” sculptures | Meet in front of Town Hall at 5:30pm


🎃 Pumpkin painting contest | Engel & Völkers on Main St.
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🖼️ Carbondale Clay Center reception for "The Language of Texture" by Michael Wisner | 6-8pm at Main Street Gallery & Framer
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🌼🐓ACES and Marigold Livestock Co. host pop-ups with locally inspired specials | Sprazzo, Happy Hour 4-6pm
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🎉 Complimentary card making station with potato stamps and Spring Pilates 4 Year anniversary celebration | 5-8pm at Mountain Tide Provision
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🎨 ☕️ Open studio with art making and Pika Coffee pop-up | at Handmakery

👯‍♀️ Surprise performances from the Bonedale Flashmob

💃 Dance Initiative dance party and line dancing | 5-7:30pm on Main Street across from Peppino’s


👐🏽🙏🏼 First Friday is a perfect opportunity to give back to the community you love being a part of. Consider volunteering– you still get to be in the mix, the shifts are short, and we will give you snacks. Sign up here: https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/561680036061/false #/invitation

09/21/2026

For Cassidy Willey, theater has been a lifelong love—but painting opened up an entirely new creative world. Now, those two worlds are coming together at Thunder River Theatre, where she’s performing in “Every Brilliant Thing” while exhibiting her paintings alongside the work of her late mother. We got a chance to chat about her draw to the arts, motherhood, grief, play, and the powerful ways art can help us connect.

“Making art has been critical in getting me through the hardest times in my life. Grief, loss, joy, love, motherhood, climate change, imagination, aging, and finding purpose are themes I’ve explored in both theater and visual art. I believe in the importance of sharing our stories and the power of the creative process to heal us, connect us, and help us lead more meaningful lives. “

“I am so grateful to call Carbondale and the Roaring Fork Valley home! To be able to live, work, and create here is so dreamy. I feel like there is a place for everyone in the creative fabric of Carbondale. It’s inspiring how many folks are here making their art. Theater has always been a tight-knit community for me. Diving into painting, I have been touched at how welcoming the visual art community is too.

Through both theater and painting, I hope that my art connects people and helps them feel less alone. I love bringing laughter, levity, and wonder to folks through art, both on stage and on the “canvas”. I also think it’s important that art sparks conversation and invites us to go deeper.”

09/15/2026

Local artist Rose McPhee has her work on display at Bonfire Coffee through October. Join in for an artists reception with refreshments this Friday (9/18) at 6pm.

Rose is a mixed media artist who works in an abstract, non-representational style. She uses acrylic paints, mark-making tools, paper, and other collage elements. She works on archival paper or canvas, and draws inspiration from both the abstract expressionist movement and the Asian calligraphic arts. She describes her creative process as intuitive decision-making to create form and color.

Rose has formal art training, and marries traditional aspects of design with her intuitive approach. Conceptually, her work is about movement and stasis, the tension between energy and stillness. Her work encapsulates motion paired with quiet contemplation.

A 4th generation Colorado native, Rose was born and raised in Denver, where she grew up in an art-friendly home. Rose’s mother was a writer and her father a photographer. Rose was very involved in art in high school, and went on to major in fine art in college. She taught high school and adult visual art for 30 years. Rose has participated in art shows and festivals around Colorado, such as the Vail, Beaver Creek, Steamboat Springs, and Carbondale.

Rose works today as an art therapist at a treatment center, and continues to be an avid painter. Prior to painting, her creative focus was clay sculpture.

09/01/2026

Join us for First Friday this week, in the heart of downtown, 5-8pm. September First Friday's lineup features extended hours and special events at local shops, galleries, and restaurants, plus live music by Mountain Jam, activities with community booths, food trucks, the Bonedale Flea Market and more!

🛍 Bonedale Flea Market | 4th Street | 4:30-8:30pm

🖼 Exhibitions "Tiny Print Showcase" and "You Don’t Have To Be Perfect, But You Could Try Harder" | Carbondale Arts | 5-7pm

🎶 Mountain Jam plays live | Chacos Park, 4th St Plaza | 5:30-8:30pm

💿📻 KDNK's volunteer DJ, vespertinesbaby, plays tunes | Weant & Main St | 5-8pm

🚒 🎧 Live DJ set with the Sunfire Ranch’s Fire Truck | Main & 2nd St | 5-8pm

🎵🍪 Live music by Harley Ellis and Youthentity Bake Sale | Mountain Tide Provisions | 5-8pm

🎨 Live painting of musicians | Kahhak Gallery | 6-9pm

🎶 🎻 Live music with Hell Roaring String Bands | Townline Trucks | 7-9pm

🎶 😎Live music on the patio with the Wowzers | Carbondale B**r Works | 8-11pm

🛑 Main Street is closed to thru traffic from Weant Blvd to 2nd Street. 2nd and 3rd Streets will remain open for cross traffic.

➡ Full details at carbondalearts.com

08/21/2026

Craig Wheeless of Rainy Day Designs has played a significant role in shaping the visual identity of the Roaring Fork Valley. Through his work creating and developing brands for countless businesses, organizations, individuals, and schools, Craig has helped give the valley a visual language all its own. It’s only fitting to recognize him as someone who has quite literally left his mark on how this place sees — and presents — itself.

"We live in a small town, and we look out for each other. We genuinely care more about the collective than the individual. That's really the core of good design — people. Everything we do comes back to people. And because we're always changing as people, the work has to keep evolving with us, always circling back to what people actually need.

I honestly couldn't tell you what's coming next. But I know this: artists and creatives will be right up front, leading the way, making sure we're taking care of each other along the way."

Read Craig's interview here: https://www.carbondalearts.com/featured-creatives/building-visual-identity

06/29/2026

Kick off Independence Day weekend this week during July First Friday (7/3) from 5 to 9pm in the heart of the Carbondale Creative District! Check out what's happening below 👇 and remember that Main Street is closed to thru traffic from 5-9pm from Weant Blvd to 2nd Street, with 3rd Street open for cross traffic!

🎵 Busking with Bridger Langfur & Jeny Bets | Promenade, 5-9pm

🪑 First look at the Basalt Collection, a new furniture & live music by Hanna von Bernthal | Mountain Tide, 5-8pm

🎨 Live music and painting demonstrations | Kahhak Gallery, 5-8pm

🏔️ Mt Sopris Music Festival with The Jazzmonauts, The Incomparable Dan Sheridan, & Stray Grass | Chacos Park, 5-9pm

☕️ Carbondale Clay Center Reception of Clay National XVIV: Heirlooms | Main Street Gallery, 6-8pm

🎉 Exhibition closing party for Visceral Alchemy | Carbondale Arts, 5-7pm

🍧 Shaved Ice & Friendship bracelets making station | Nido Boutique, 5-8pm

🍦 Free ice cream cone with each burger order | Fatbelly Burger, 5-9pm

👯‍♂️ Street Dance Party with KDNK & Dance Initiative | Main & 2nd St, 5-8pm

🎸Live music by Stage Coach Rush | Townline Trucks, 5:30-10:30pm

06/22/2026

This month's featured creative is local multidisciplinary artist Matt Hays . Matt is in the midst of renaissance of sorts, or an excelled trajectory of his artistic journey. His recent projects include teaching and mentoring with The Art Base, completing the design for this year’s Strawberry Days, an installation at TRTC, a massive co-curated exhibition and mini tattoo convention with Carbondale Arts, an upcoming public art project with Town of Carbondale, all in addition to a busy career as a tattooer. With his diverse skill set and enthusiasm, he’s adopted the motto “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop”.

"When I first started making art I just wanted to make cool stuff. As I’ve aged and matured, both in life and in my practice, I’ve come to realize that art can be something so much more than purely aesthetics. It can be a mirror to be held up to society or a way to express things we may not have an adequate vocabulary for."

"Artistic collaboration with different groups and organizations is fairly new to me. It’s something that I’ve really only become involved in over the last three years and what I've been learning is that art, when practiced with community in mind, has the ability to strengthen, enrich and grow the community in a way that removes boundaries. It can unite people regardless of race, age, gender, orientation, etc. and bring them together under a common thread. When artists get together to create something, amazing things can happen for the community."

Read Matt's full interview here: https://www.carbondalearts.com/featured-creatives/matt-hays-cant-stop-wont-stop

06/01/2026

This week is June's First Friday | LOCAL PRIDE, in the heart of the Carbondale Creative District! Enjoy extended hours and special events at local shops, galleries, and restaurants. Plus a 🏳️‍🌈 Pride Parade, 🎶 live music, 🍔 food trucks, 🎨 street activities, and 🎯 games with community booths. June 5, 5-8pm.

Here's the deets:
🌈 👨‍🎤 Local Pride Street Party & Live Music by Emotional Rescue | Main & Snowmass 5:30-8:30pm
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ Carbondale Pride Parade | Main & Weant | Line Up, 6pm & Parade, 6:30pm
🌱🚙 CLEER hosts an EV Ride & Drive | Carbondale Town Hall, 4-8pm
🏳️‍🌈🍹 Pride drink specials, Surfside giveaway, and live music | Carbondale Tavern, 4-6pm
🌈 👯 Two-Part Drag Show with Roaring Fork Divas | Sprazzo, 4:45pm ; B**rworks, 5:30pm
🌈 🪩 KDNK Volunteer DJ Spin Live | Main & Weant Blvd, 5-8pm
🎉 🍩 One-year Anniversary Party with Aspen Mini Donuts, special tastings, and live music | Mountain Tide Provisions Co., 5-8pm
💜 🍻 Member Appreciation Party & Gallery Exhibition Visceral Alchemy (with live tattooing) | Carbondale Arts, 5-7pm
🏳️‍🌈 💜 Rainbow friendship bracelet creation station, photo booth, & Human Rights Campaign benefit | Nido Boutique, 5-8pm
🕺💃 Street Line Dance & Jam with Dance Initiative | Main St., 5-8pm
🎉 🍸 Viva Marble Anniversary Party with live music, dance, paella and a streetside mechanical bull | Marble Distilling, 5-10pm
🏳️‍🌈 🌮 Pride Patio Party with live music and fantastic food trucks | Townline Trucks, 5-10pm
🥂 Reception of Pairings | Carbondale Clay Center, 6-8pm
🏳️‍🌈🕺 Pride Parade After Party with live DJs | B**rworks, 6-10pm
🎸🎶 Live music by Brooklyn-based band Mojohand | Steves Guitars, 8pm
🎨 Art Around Town | Self-Guided Sculpture Tour

🛑 Main Street is closed to thru traffic from Weant Blvd to Snowmass Ave. 2nd and 3rd Streets will remain open for cross traffic.

Full details or sign up to volunteer at https://www.carbondalearts.com/upcoming-events/june-first-fridayhttps://www.carbondalearts.com/upcoming-events/june-first-friday

05/27/2026

Most of us have frequented "Carbondale's Living Room" also known as Carbondale B**r Works , who also just celebrated a decade of serving the community. As this month's District feature, we hear from owner Patrice Fuller on gained insights and highlights of business ownership.

"I always knew that when I owned my own business I would use my platform to help others. Being open to using my business to help others makes people feel comfortable asking me. It's easy to write a check, but I prefer hosting an event to help. That way you can hear the story of the person or group needing assistance. Everyone feels more connected to and involved in the process."

Read the full interview here: https://www.carbondalearts.com/featured-creatives/serving-community-for-a-decade