Colfax Canvas Mural Fest

Happy Monday!

Did you do anything exciting over the weekend? We had two very different adventures. I'll be sharing Sunday's adventure tomorrow but first up is Saturday's adventure...

On Saturday Lola, Mathilde and I headed to the Denver neighborhood of Aurora to go on a mural hunt. Aurora is probably the Denver neighborhood that we visit the most. It's not a touristy location with museums or galleries but it is home to Third Culture Bakery, one of our favorite food places from Berkeley. It's a little out of the way coming from Boulder, but we stop by regularly for a little taste of home.

Aurora is also home to lots of amazing street art, and on Saturday the number of murals around the neighborhood increased as part of the Colfax Canvas Mural Fest. You know I love a good mural so when I heard about Colfax Canvas I knew we had to go check it out.

Mural by @pher01

Mural by @love_pulp and @tukeone

Mural by @detour303, @A.L._Grime and @annacharneyart

Mural by @caseykawaguchi

Mural by @rube.zilla

Mural by @Pher01

Mural by @pin.pusher

We started off our day with a quick stop at Third Culture Bakery for mochi muffins, mochi donuts and lychee soda before checking out the murals being painted around the neighborhood.

Mural by @c.bolsinger

Some of the murals were completely finished while others were still a work in progress. This meant that we got to see the artists working but also appreciate finished works. It also means that next time we go back to Aurora we'll get to see the finished murals. Here's a look at some of the murals that were being painted while we were there. I'm always in awe watching artists work. I've shared the artists' Instagram handles on each pic so you can go check out their work. There were a few I wasn't sure of but I'll update when I find out.

Mural by @love_pulp and @tukeone

Mural by @c.bolsinger

Mural by @rube.zilla

Mural by @rube.zilla

Murals by @hieroveiga and @rube.zilla

Mural by @hieroveiga

Mural by @caseykawaguchi

Mural by @elvis.freshleee

Murals by @pin.pusher and @elvis.freshleee

Mural by @pin.pusher

Mural by @chelsealewinski

Mural by @chelsealewinski

While most of the murals were still being completed, there were some that were finished. Aren't they all amazing? I love the pop of color on the neon dogs by Patrick Kane McGregor at the top of the tower below. While it was hard to pick a favorite, the large colorful portrait by Detour, Anna Charney and A.L. Grime was definitely right up there.

Mural by @patrickkanemcgregor

Murals by @justcreatedit and @patrickkanemcgregor

Murals by @rube.zilla and @justcreatedit

Mural by @detour303, @A.L._Grime and @annacharneyart

Mural by @detour303, @A.L._Grime and @annacharneyart

The kids loved this mural by Pharaoh One below the best, especially the little round birds - I think they're birds. It stretches along the whole side of the building and is super colorful.  

Mural by @Pher01

Mural by @Pher01

Mural by @Pher01

Mural by @Pher01

Mural by @Pher01

While the festival was all about street art, there was also other entertainment. We stopped and listened to the Brothers of Brass band play for a while.

One of my favorite things about the festival was all the extra art that appeared as artists dropped in to take part unofficially. This sign by Matador that had been put up near the Detour mural was my favorite.The text on it glows when car headlights shine on it at night.

Sign by @matadorfeet

We had fun checking out the murals and seeing some of them being created. We'll definitely be back again soon to see them all completed.

Mural by @patrickkanemcgregor

The murals that make up Colfax Canvas can mostly be found on East Colfax Ave between Florence Street and Dayton Street in Aurora. There are plenty of other great murals to be found around here too. You can find a detailed map as well as information about each of the artists at https://www.colfaxcanvas.com/.