Art contest asks how ranching and recreation share the land
The Montelores Coalition is paying $250, $150 and $100 in youth and open divisions. Entries are due January 29, and the work will hang at ZU Gallery in Cortez in February.
Artists who live or work in Montezuma or Dolores County have until January 29, 2027, to enter a contest built around one question: What does sharing the landscape look like to you?
The Montelores Coalition’s Art of Sharing Spaces contest asks people to explore how ranching and outdoor recreation coexist across Southwest Colorado. The contest opened October 1, and the Cortez-based coalition this week asked local organizations to help spread the word.
“Our region is full of working landscapes that are also places to recreate, and sharing those spaces can sometimes lead to misunderstandings about cattle, cattle drives, gates and the day-to-day realities of ranching,” Cara Gildar, the coalition’s executive director, said in an October 1 news release announcing the contest.
Gildar said the coalition hopes to “highlight perspectives from people who interact with the land in different ways.” The selected artwork will be used in a brochure developed with local ranchers and recreationists “to encourage greater understanding and long-term cooperation,” she said.
The contest leaves it to entrants to decide what that relationship looks like. “Maybe it’s cattle sharing a trail with mountain bikers. A gate along a favorite hiking route. A rancher at work while recreation happens nearby,” the coalition wrote on Facebook. Its news release adds ranching traditions alongside modern recreation, or “a perspective the Coalition has not considered.”
Who can enter
There are two divisions: Youth, for ages 18 and under, and Open, for adult and community entries. Individuals can enter, and so can classes and groups. Each person may submit up to three original pieces.
Painting, drawing, illustration, photography, digital art and other visual media are accepted. Work must be able to be shown both in person and online, and reproduced at different sizes.
Image: Montelores Coalition. A cyclist at a cattle gate, one of the images in the coalition’s contest materials.
Work made entirely or substantially with generative AI isn’t eligible, and AI can’t be used to write the required artist statement. Basic edits such as cropping, resizing, scanning and adjusting brightness and contrast are allowed.
Prizes and judging
Each division pays $250 for first place, $150 for second and $100 for third. Winning work will also be featured on a printed piece the coalition plans to share across both counties.
The coalition will weigh how well each piece connects to the theme and to Montezuma and Dolores counties, and whether it can be reproduced at different sizes and in different formats. A public vote also counts toward the results.
Entries go on display at ZU Gallery, 48 W. Main St. in Cortez, starting February 14, when public voting opens in person and online. Each person gets one vote per division. Winners will be announced at a community event at the gallery February 21.
How to enter
Email entries to montelorescoalition@gmail.com with the subject line “Art of Sharing Spaces Submission.” Include:
- Your name, division, and age or grade if applicable
- Your school, organization or group, if applicable
- The artwork’s title and a short artist statement on what the piece represents, what inspired it and how it connects to the theme
- A phone number and email address
- A digital image or file of the work
- For entrants under 18, parent or guardian information and permission
Several entries can go in one email if each is clearly labeled.
Artists will also need to provide the original work or a print for the gallery show. The coalition says it will send delivery and pickup details to eligible entrants after the deadline. The guidelines don’t mention an entry fee.
Flyer: Montelores Coalition
By entering, artists agree that the coalition may display, share, photograph, reproduce and print their work and artist statement to promote the contest and in future educational and outreach materials.
The full guidelines are at montelorescoalition.org/art-contest.
About the coalition
The Montelores Coalition describes itself as a regional partnership of local governments, tribes, land management agencies, outdoor recreation groups, and agriculture and conservation organizations working for healthy lands, thriving communities and sustainable recreation in Montezuma and Dolores counties. It is a program of Onward! A Legacy Foundation. The contest is funded by the LOR Foundation, and ZU Gallery is the venue sponsor.
Questions can go to Executive Director Cara Gildar at cara@montelorescoalition.org, Communications Coordinator Kelsey Girod at montelorescoalition@gmail.com, or the coalition at 970-564-3537.