Minturn — the sweet arm of the Valley that leads you on Route 24. Shops and eateries line the street, local presence is distinct and true, it’s a little artsy and a little funky — it’s a special piece of what keeps our community authentic.
As you drive through the main drag in Minturn and almost reach the end of town, you will be greeted by a big white barn on your right and a collection of buildings to your left. These spaces may seem unassuming to those that are passing through to Leadville or Buena Vista, but what they are is exactly the opposite. Bat Country Studios and The Barn are birth places of art and creation, collaboration and community — they may not be in the heart of Minturn or the Valley, but they represent what keep a lot of us here.
Bat Country Studios. Photos by Laura Mills.
Ben Belgrad is the owner of Bat Country Studios, a collaborative art space known for its connection to the high-end glass art community. In the summer of 2024, Belgrad welcomed four additional resident artists to be a part of the collective. In collaboration, they diligently worked to take the old Weston Backcountry offices and turned them into a high-end, yet extremely relaxed and approachable, art gallery and studio. Potters Heather McDonald and Ray Wright now occupy what once was Belgrad’s office with their wheels and clay creations. Glass blower Stan Morris relocated his equipment to add years of experience and presence to the glass blowing studio already in existence; photographer Remi Cuomo built out a small room in the space to become a black room for film. Whether it is the tactile feeling of pressing clay into organic and abstract shapes, manipulating glass to take unique forms or to turn a blank page to an emotion evoking image — all of these artists are leaving their mark on our community by creating what is authentic to them.
“This is a pretty raw and unfiltered space.” Belgrad reflects, “The gallery is set up to be presentable part of the space, but the rest of the space is just us. If you want to experience what is going on behind the scenes of art — this is a place to do that. Allowing people behind the scenes to be a part of the process, to see the process, that’s the special nature of this space.”
Belgrad and his team of creatives welcome individuals of all levels to dive into the space they have developed in Minturn, offering one-on-one or small group classes in glass, photography, pottery and more to come. At Bat Country Studios, they aim to foster the synergy of community and creativity as they continue to grow and evolve.
Directly across the street, Tracy Long is likely teaching a class of her own or taking one taught by her talented teachers at The Barn. This newly built, thoughtfully designed space offers solace for the busy mind, a playground for aerialists and an event venue where the community can create memories and celebrate any occasion.
Long has been in the Valley since 2003 and occupied her first studio from 2017 to 2020 in Minturn that her aerial dreams soon outgrew. It was then that Long and her husband Thom Conville bought the property that The Barn occupies and set out on the adventure of building this place of comfort from the ground up. Conville took his background in construction and a certification in passive house building to not only make The Barn a long-lasting structure, but to make it one that is extremely energy efficient and a home of practice. Plus, The Barn in Minturn this visually unique space also created an opportunity for two of their instructors — a place to live.
The Barn.
“Housing is expensive, and there’s not a lot of it. Even though every local government is trying to solve that problem, it’s still a problem,” Long reflects. “I really didn’t feel like we would be able to keep a steady and stable program here if we couldn’t solve that for at least two people.” Thanks to the apartments located at the walk-in level of the building, Long feels they are doing their part to assist in the housing issues our community faces.
With the blank canvas that The Barn offers, performances, weddings, birthdays and other celebrations can easily occupy this space and make it their own.
“We’re trying to bring more local art, theater and programming here. I think that’s something we can do with the barn and its space. It’s small and intimate — that’s plenty for Minturn,” Long explains, unintentionally echoing the goals of her across-the-street neighbors at Bat Country Studios.
Long and Belgrad have a variety of things in common, but one that sticks out the most when getting to know the both of them is that they feel an incredibly personal connection to bringing vitality to the places the love. Minturn being the place and creativity being the vital element.
THE BARN
thebarnminturn.com
@thebarnminturn
1041 Main St.,
Minturn, CO
BAT COUNTRY STUDIOS
drinkingvessels.com
@drinkingvessels
1040 Main St., Unit B
Minturn, CO