Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo

Institute of Forensic Psychiatry

Dawn
Michael Clapper; Denver, Colorado
Central Park Sculpture
Budget: $42,000
Installed June, 2008
Dawn was created with the intent of providing a visual gesture of hope. Metaphorical inspiration came from the act of the sun rising over the eastern horizon. The piece serves to remind us that there are constants in our lives and every day brings the opportunity for a new beginning. One large, carved disc of marble illustrates this concept. The use of white is a metaphor for the emerging light of dawn because this material exhibits a soft glow when the sun shines on it. The negative space at the center of the disc is covered with a heavily carved texture. It is meant to portray the energy that comes from within the sun.

Calming Colorado Nature Series
Eileen Gay; Sparks, Nevada
Nine Patient Care Unit Entryways
Budget: $167,000
Installed February, 2009
Nine patient care units each showcase colorful yet calming mosaic panels portraying images of nature indigenous to southern Colorado. A small key panel representing each of the nine themes and facing out into the hallway can be used as way finding indicators.  Two larger panels installed near entry doors and two more in each day-room area thematically continue the sense of unique identity for each wing. 
           
The smaller ‘key’ panels are one foot square.  The larger mosaics by each wings’ entry door include two, four foot by six foot panels.  The day room panels include two, six foot by four foot panels installed above doorways for staff and patients to enjoy.  With a color palette reflecting nature, the panels offer peaceful views portraying imagery representing birds, fish, horses, antelope, mountains, hills, prairie grasses and the twilight sky of Colorado, all represented in stone and glazed tile mosaic.

Ancient Stones Healing Waters
Richard Hansen; Penrose, Colorado
Seven water features
Budget: $105,000
Installed  April, 2009
Richard Hansen ’s goal was to have these water features offer something for all of the senses – sight, sound, touch and even smell.  In the arid West these sensory experiences must be maximized with a minimum amount of water and in the winter months when the water is not flowing, the memory of water should be present. 

The medium is glacial granite boulders gathered at 10,000 feet above elevation from the Arkansas River drainage.  These stones are rounded, gray, and rich with understated white veining. The water features have a sculptural presence, offering calm and strong forms throughout the season and the soothing sight and sound of water.

Birds
David Tonnesen; Somerville, Massachusetts
Budget: $62,000
Installed  August, 2008
David Tonnesen has created a sculpture that provides focus and interest on the entry courtyard while conveying a hopeful, inspiring and uplifting message. Standing about 14 feet high, the sculpture expresses a gesture of flowing and soaring through swooping shapes that appears weightless. The sculpture consists of forms of brushed stainless steel which will catch and reflect the colors of the sky, the grasses and surrounding environment. The rust oxidized base will pull in the earth tones of the building façade and will be reminiscent of the Colorado cliffs, rich in iron ore, and a reference to Pueblo’s once burgeoning iron mining industry.

Flower Works
David Tonnesen; Somerville, Massachusetts
Budget: $42,000
Installed  August, 2008
The transition spaces create a separation between the three main buildings and provide the residents a place to stop, rest, interact, and experience the landscape views.  Nature is his inspiration, specifically the Allium plant. This exterior piece creates a dialogue that some will see as large flowers, dandelions or the Fourth of July fireworks.

The sculpture is a composition of three abstracted Allium blooms each higher than the other with stems that curve in a life like matter. The tallest flower will be about 18 feet tall and the smallest about 8 feet tall. The spherical blooms will vary in diameter from 3.5’ to 6’. At the top of each stem is a polished sphere from which emanate many long filaments punctuated by bright bursting buds or sparks. The buds are heat treated to provide interference colors ranging from yellow to vibrant violet and breezes will gently pinwheel some of the blossoms adding a soothing life-like feeling.