ART AUCTION TO BENEFIT HELLER CENTER RESTORATION

23, 2003

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Tom Hutton, University Relations, 262-3439

SPRINGS, COLO — Original and donated works of art will be auctioned

May 15 to benefit efforts to create the Heller Center for the Arts and

Humanities.

Beginning at 5 p.m. May 15 in the University Center, the donated works

will be on preview for individuals interested in bidding. Event organizers

anticipate more than 40 works will be donated and that the event will

will include creations from campus faculty, staff and students as well

as for bronze pieces created by the late Larry Heller. Local artists

will also donate original sculpture, paintings and other artwork. Individuals

may also donate works they have collected. Available work may be previewed

Perrin Cunningham, coordinator, Heller Center, 330-3463, or Gerry Riggs,

Heller Center is incredible,” Tom Bellamy, interim vice chancellor

for academic affairs, said. “We envision a unique indoor and outdoor

art ranch place where original artwork can be displayed, where artists

in residence can create new works, and where gatherings of people interested

in the arts and humanities and their relations to other disciplines

proceeds, the university hopes to stabilize the eclectic 1930s-era main

building that previously was home to Larry and Dorothy Heller. The home

needs extensive renovation. Long-term plans call for the creation of

sculpture gardens, access improvements, renovation of the art studios

and additional new meeting and exhibit space. The property is located

in Jan. 1999 at age 92, leaving the ranch, five buildings and a collection

of artworks completed by her late husband, Larry Heller, to the university.

Inside the home is an extensive collection of Larry Heller’s sculptures

and paintings as well as mementos of the couple’s passions in

addition to art – horses, racing cars, photography, golf and music.

The Hellers asked the university to preserve the estate as a place for

visiting artists and humanities scholars, retreats, workshops and exhibits.

A three-stage plan is under development by a committee headed by Tom

Bellamy, interim vice chancellor, Academic Affairs. Rex Welshon, associate

dean, College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, and Cunningham, serve as

caretakers of the property and live in the small guesthouse while helping

renovate a larger, main house. Their presence helps ensure the property

is not vandalized or threatened by natural elements.

For more information about contributions to the Heller Humanities Center,

contact Martin Wood, vice president, University Advancement, 262-3438.

located on Austin Bluffs Parkway in northeast Colorado Springs, is the

fastest growing university in Colorado and one of the fastest growing

universities in the nation. The university offers 25 bachelor’s degrees,

17 master’s and two doctoral degrees. The campus enrolls more than 7,400