Colorado Mansion Inspires A & C Collectors

In 1917 Charles Boettcher, a German immigrant who rose from obscurity to become one of the richest men in Colorado, commissioned Denver’s most prominent architectural firm to design a summer home for his family on Lookout Mountain, just west of the city. William and Arthur Fisher designed the Lorraine Lodge, since known as the Boettcher Mansion, which in 1968 was bequeathed, along with 110 acres, to Jefferson County for the public’s use and enjoyment.

“Even after being listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984,” explains Cynthia Shaw McLaughlin, director of the Boettcher Mansion, “as a significant example of the Craftsman style, the Mansion still seemed like a gem needing to be polished.”

The sprawling mansion’s half-timbered stucco and native stone exterior combined with an Arts & Crafts inglenook, a massive fireplace, hand-carved beams and period lighting to attract the attention of area Arts & Crafts enthusiasts.

“It soon became clear that creating a non-profit group headquartered on the premises might help the stone-and-timber estate solidify its cultural identity,” Cynthia continued. “So, with the help of a handful of dedicated local aficionados, the Colorado Arts and Crafts Society officially incorporated in 1997, with a mission dedicated to educating the public about the Arts and Crafts legacy in and around the Centennial State.”

With assistance from the state’s Conservation Trust Fund, the Boettcher Mansion underwent a complete $3.1 million dollar restoration between 2005-2007. Today its historic features are complemented by Arts & Crafts furnishings, paint colors and wall stencils.

Since its inception, the Colorado Arts & Crafts Society has held a number of events at the Boettcher Mansion, most notably their annual spring Show, Sale & Workshops, and have announced plans for two such events this year.

On Saturday, January 23, the Society will host their 14th Annual Symposium at the Mansion, featuring Mary Walker, owner of Weaving in Beauty in Phoenix. Mary Walker is a textile conservator and weaver dedicated to enhancing the appreciation and knowledge of works by Navajo people in the Southwest. She will be teaching a weaving workshop during the day prior to the evening dinner, board meeting and her lecture, “Trends in Contemporary Navajo Weaving.”

The society’s ongoing commitment to hands-on education will be further cultivated at the May 9-10th Show & Sale, also at the Boettcher Mansion, where bookbinders, metalsmiths, potters and weavers will be demonstrating and teaching their respective trades. These craftsmen and craftswomen will be accompanied by a number of Arts & Crafts exhibitors whose work will be offered for sale during the two-day show.

“It is gratifying,” Cynthia reflected, “to chart the ebb and flow of the Mansion and Society, and to realize how the symbiotic union between both entities has helped each other gain a firm footing in the Arts and Crafts world. As we continue to spread the word about a way of life that is maybe even more valid today than it was when it was first promoted a century ago, the Colorado Arts & Crafts Society will keep honing its cultural programs designed to bring practitioners and apprentices together in a setting that epitomizes the Arts and Crafts style.”

For more information on the Colorado Arts and Crafts Society and the Boettcher Mansion, visit www.coloarts-crafts.org and www.jeffco.us/boettcher.

Coming Next: Report on the January 16 David Rago Arts & Crafts auction.

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