Earlier this week, we blogged an update on the Over the River project, which, for now, hangs on the decisions of three separate lawsuits.

On Friday, we spoke with Joan Anzelmo, spokesperson for Rags Over the Arkansas River, Over the River’s main opposition group. ROAR has filed one of the three suits, theirs against the Bureau of Land Management for violating state federal law in allowing the project.

However, before ROAR’s suit can continue, an administrative appeal through the Interior Board of Land Appeals must be decided. (This is an entirely separate affair, in which the board will decide if the BLM broke any rules in allowing the project. This was brought on by a group of individuals unaffiliated with ROAR.)

Anzelmo says that no matter what the outcome of the IBLA appeal, the federal judge presiding over the other two suits federal suit will request a 60-day stay, further halting construction on the project. As of yet, OTR Corp. has not announced a new date for the exhibit.

“I think for folks who are wondering about the status, I think it’s helpful for people to understand that the OTR project is indefinitely delayed, per the lawsuits. And even if IBLA were to make a decision that supports BLM’s decision allowing the project, there’s still quite a few legal procedures that will ensue.

"We’re convinced that there are some serious violations that BLM made of two federal laws — the Federal Land Policy Management Act and the National Environmental Policy Act — and we have a strong case, so we think the project will be indefinitely delayed for a very, very, very long time. And it is our goal to make sure that the project never happens because of the devastation that it will wreak on Big Horn Sheep Canyon and that section of the Arkansas River.”

Professor Mike Harris from the University of Denver’s law clinic is taking the case pro bono, with his students. Meanwhile, the other lawyers in the cases the lawyers defending the BLM and Colorado State Parks Board are costing the state tax dollars, Anzelmo says.

“In a sense, Christo’s having his cake and eating it too because they’re saying, ‘Oh no, the lawsuits are filed against the BLM and the state parks board,’ and he’s letting federal taxpayers and state of Colorado taxpayers foot the bill for the legal defense of the OTR project, which will be very costly.

"It is already costly to taxpayers because ... the organizations or the entities that should be regulating and providing oversight for a project as large-scale and industrial as this, instead of doing their oversight work and regulating, they’ve become the torchbearers for the project and the taxpayers are footing the bill. Certainly taxpayers are footing the bill as BLM and the state try and defend their approvals in court.”

• ROAR

ROAR also takes issue with the numbers OTR Corp. offers for economic impact. The quote given for temporary jobs, Anzelmo says, is really only half the 620 positions stated, since half the work will be done by prisoners in area correctional facilities. This was what ROAR gleaned when OTR Corp. was petitioning for permits from the Fremont County Board of Commissioners.

Yet Anzelmo and ROAR are more focused on the litigation right now. She estimates ROAR members board members and attorneys are working through 90,000 pages of documents, from the Environmental Impact Statement to the administrative record that BLM was required to file with the court to ancillary paperwork. Plus, there are many variables, starting with the IBLA decision, that could send the BLM “back to the drawing board” in reviewing the EIS, she says.

As for when that IBLA announcement could arrive, no one knows for sure. Anzelmo tentatively expects to return to court sometime in the spring.

ROAR was formed in the late 1990s, after Over the River was first publicly announced. It became a nonprofit in 2005 and according to Anzelmo has about 300 members and 5,000 “supporters” from across the country and overseas. A supporter, she explains, is anyone who has donated money or approached ROAR to help.

“As people understand more fully what the impacts will be and as the courts really evaluate this," she says, "we feel very confident that the project will never happen.”

• Wolfgang Volz

In the spirit of our multi-part news update series (see the latest edition here), here's the most recent news on Over the River:

All was going well for Christo and the late Jeanne-Claude’s Over the River project, until August, when a spate of court cases put the project on hold.

Over the River, another of the pair’s large-scale land installations, proposes hanging giant swaths of silver fabric across 5.9 miles of the Arkansas River over a 42-mile stretch between Salida and Cañon City. Currently, the project date has been rescheduled, though a specific time has not been identified (it was last slated for August 2015). This is due to three ongoing legal battles that could potentially threaten the entire enterprise, though Over the River Corp. says it’s confident in outcomes in their favor. None of the suits are aimed at OTR Corp. directly, rather, Over the River’s main opposition group, Rags Over the Arkansas River (ROAR) is challenging Colorado State Parks and the Bureau of Land Management, two agencies that gave their stamp of approval for the project. (ROAR got help from Denver University’s law clinic.) The third suit is an administrative appeal through the Federal Interior Board of Land Appeals by three individuals in response the BLM’s Record of Decision allowing the project. (OTR has sided with the BLM in its suit, though it’s not providing assistance in any way.)

Until the administrative appeal is settled, the judges in the other two suits will not proceed, setting the timetable on OTR activities, such as the ordering of materials and gaining final permits, on hold. OTR spokesperson Miles Graham says that the team is still moving forward where it can, working on other aspects, such as the bighorn sheep habitat enhancement program. Graham adds that Christo is planning a visit to Colorado on Wednesday, Jan. 23. (He'll be speaking at 6 p.m. at the Center for Visual Art, 965 Santa Fe Drive, Denver.)

The project, which was first conceived in 1992, is estimated to bring in more than $121 million in total economic output, according to the official OTR website, which also estimates more than 620 temporary jobs will be created and 344,000 visitors will come to the area over the 14-day exhibition window.

Think about this if you're pulling apart the packing material on that new TV or computer you're going to get for Christmas. (Amiright?)

Those awkward chunks of Styrofoam are just what artist Michael Salter needs for his upcoming exhibition at the Galleries of Contemporary Art (GOCA 1420 specifically). Salter builds robots, both large and small, from the material, to dramatic effect:

• GOCA

In January, Salter will build a "monumental sculpture project" for GOCA, and to get him going, the gallery is collecting "packing and substantial pieces of extruded polystyrene." Broken pieces and packing peanuts will not be accepted.

Donations will be accepted at both galleries, and pick-ups can be arranged for large quantities. Click here and here for more info.

I'll admit to being late to certain things in life.

For instance, it wasn't until I got to college ('97) that I picked up my first zine, and then subsequently contributed to my then-new friend Aaron Retka's humble effort called Death's Car (Has California Plates).

It was at Toons (currently The Leechpit, if only a little while longer) that I grabbed it, if I recall correctly, and to be honest, I wouldn't know exactly where to go to pick one up today.

A good guess might be online, where I'm sure the even-more-cost-effective format appeals to the DIY-types who invest their time and talent on these small artists' books.

But good thing I don't have to guess since a friend recently clued me in to her and some of her pals' new local publication, Ragwater Monthly Magazine, currently hosted on Tumblr.

Check it out, and consider submitting your fine work at ragwatermonthly@gmail.com.

• Get in on the ground level with Issue No. 1.

Today, the Colorado Springs Business Journal reported that the Millibo Art Theatre's move to the Ivywild school project area — specifically Ivywild Community Church — has hit something of a snafu.

Howard Hillman, a vicar for St. Aidan’s Anglican, the congregation that meets at the church, says he's not been notified of any changes from building owner Joseph Coleman. Hillman says there was no agreement, and that his parishioners are upset at the news.

Meanwhile, Jim Jackson, MAT executive director, is moving forward with the plans as he understands them. The CSBJ first reported on the move three days ago, pointing out that Jackson has even worked with architects and engineers for a renovation. Today, reporter Amy Gillentine writes, "Jackson seemed as confused as Hillman about the communication breakdown."

Read the full story here.

• Business of Art Center
• Patrick Bohnen

Today, the Business of Art Center announced that Patrick Bohnen will be its new curator and gallery manager. Bohnen will replace Liz Szabo, who left the BAC in November after four years.

According to the press release, Bohnen started at the BAC as an intern in April, then became a gallery assistant. He has also worked as co-director of the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Student Gallery. “In short, I want to take the amazing foundation I have been provided and build on it by opening up the galleries to a wider range of visiting artists and guest curators of the highest caliber while simultaneously building new and exciting connections for the organization,” Bohnen says in the release.

For now, though, he'll inherit a gallery schedule already established by Szabo that runs through early 2014.

A larger number of applicants applied, the BAC says, all of whom were well-qualified. Yet BAC executive director Natalie Johnson says Bohnen's experience, knowledge of the organization and community-building chops made him the top choice.

"He is fearless, collaborative and works well with our current staff and administration," she says.

While the vandalism that damaged the Business of Art Center's Venue 515 was certainly a setback, more good seems to have come out of than bad.

For instance, in the clean-up process, they were able to reconfigure the layout of the offices upstairs, giving them an extra space that will become a reading room/lending library/community art gallery, says BAC executive editor Natalie Johnson.

The BAC had the books for the lending, but were given another boost from the Manitou Springs Education Foundation through a mini-grant.

The new space opens today (Thursday), and to christen it, students from Manitou Springs High School's print-making class will host a fundraiser for Sophie Valdez. That's the young daughter of LastLeaf Printing's Mathias Valdez who's been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

MSH teacher Holly Garlow, an accomplished local artist herself, brought her students to Valdez's studio for a field trip last spring, she says via e-mail. "[Valdez] inspired my students tremendously and they want to return the favor."

The benefit and reception starts at 6 p.m. and features prints that run the gamut from $5 to $50. All proceeds will go to the Valdez family. Expect live music by Chauncy Crandall and Briffaut as well.

Click here for more info on the event.

Holly Parker, local artist and former director and curator of the Smokebrush Gallery, announced last week that she has taken a new position as resident artist and curator at the Ivywild school project.

Parker's studio and gallery will relocate to the mixed-use brewery/bakery/coffee bar/event center in February, where she will also curate exhibits from local and regional artists. This is exciting news given the amazing work she did at Smokebrush, landing shows from the likes of James Balog, Ron English, Regan Rosburg and others. (Parker left Smokebrush at the start of 2011 to pursue her own artwork.)

In her newsletter, Parker adds that she also hopes to "foster art/design projects that integrate ecology & sustainability."

To start, she's opened a call for artists for "general consideration" for future shows. With a rolling deadline between now and next March, artists may be chosen for solo shows, small group exhibits or larger themed shows. The main criteria are that artists must be from Colorado, have been creating for the past two years at least, and the artwork must be for sale. For more information on that, click here.

• File photo
• "Portal 1" by Chris Weed

An art show at the Wynn Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas wouldn't live up to its surroundings if it weren't grand and bombastic. As such, the World of Art Showcase is all about the big statements. Billed as "the most amzing art show in over 150 years" and "unprecedented," the Dec. 20-22 expo is all about buying art, for love or money.

The list of contributing artists is impressive, including: H.R. Giger of Alien fame; Max Ginsburg, who has illustrated for the New Yorker, will bring paintings and do a live demonstration; as well as presidential portrait artist Nelson Shanks. Rare prints of da Vinci drawings as well as bronzes made from a "recently discovered beeswax sculpture" by the artist will also be for sale.

And among the 80 or so exhibitors, local artist Chris Weed will also be there. Weed's most recent public art is his award-winning sculpture pair, "Portal 1" and "Portal 2," built as part of this year's Art on the Streets. According to the World of Art website, Weed will be in attendance at the show as well.

(Vail-based artist James Van Fossan will also be showing. Check out his classical-meets-supernatural paintings and delicate drawings here.)

Want to go? Day passes to the event are $55, and VIP weekend passes are $500.

People luring you into an alleyway sounds like a bad idea, but not when it's a bright alley, dotted with galleries, artwork, food and drink.

• HB&A ARCHITECTS AND PLANNERS
• Something that looks like this.

That's the idea behind the Art in the Alleyway event scheduled for Friday, Dec. 7 from 4-9:30 p.m. In an effort to raise awareness about the Alley Arts District plans for gentrification — which have been conceptualized by HB&A Architects and Planners and promoted by Brett and Lauren Andrus of the Modbo and S.P.Q.R. — members of Leadership Pikes Peak: Leadership NOW!'s class, with the help of Mayor Steve Bach's Streetscapes team and HB&A, will set up a "pit stop" for pedestrians in the alley running north and south of Bijou Street between Cascade Avenue and Tejon Street.

Here's the gist, from an e-mail from spokesperson Chelsie Reynolds:

We will be a "pit stop" for the pedestrian traffic, rerouting them to walk through the alleyway to stop at the Modbo art gallery and continue on to where our team will be, located in the alleyway behind Remax. We will be getting donated artwork from youth at Spring Creek, Bemis Art schools veterans program, and Cottonwood artists to display along the alley walls, and project the proposed renderings that HB&A is providing to show people what the future could be for the alleyways if we could connect arts and culture in the community.

They hope to also have a food truck, coffee barista and beer to serve to visitors.

For more on the event, click the pdf, and for more on the Streetscapes team, visit their Facebook page here.

Art_in_the_Alleyway_Flyer.pdf

From the listings desk: For years, local artist Spika, who heads up the blacKiowa Gallery at 745 E. Kiowa St., has thrown a post-Thanksgiving exhibit called blackFriday@blacKiowa.

The past two blackFriday shows have been devoted to works by new, up-and-coming artists, but this year, he writes via e-mail, he's doing something different: "... this year marks twenty years that I have been making photographs. So, we're talking thousands of photos and I'd like to get rid of some of them to hopefully serve as holiday gifts."

He's also hyping the show differently: "To advertise for the show I will be doing a performance piece handing out hundreds of nature photos taken around Pikes Peak to passerbys on Tejon street across from Acacia park the day of the show."

Interested? Make yourself available that day in and around said location, and/or head to blacKiowa beginning at 7 p.m. for 20 years of Rocky Mountain photographs by Spika, with live music by Foster.

Here's what you'll find:

• Spika
• "Sunset on Sheep Mountain"

• Spika
• "Sunset on Capitol Peak and Lake"

• Spika
• "Sunrise on Columbines, Mt. of the Holy Cross"