The Blue Trees

In spring 2018, internationally reknowned artist Konstantin Dimopoulos brought his unique and head-turning environmental art installation - The Blue Trees - to Denver. The Blue Trees aimed to draw attention to trees - often overlooked in our urban areas and too frequently out of sight, out of mind further afield. The artist hoped to raise awareness about global deforestation and the importance of trees to people and their environment.

Dimopoulos launched the installation downtown in The Denver Theatre District, coloring 150 trees using a biologically-safe, water-based, non-permanent colorant. And roughly 200 trees colored by the public during a family day were planted throughout Denver neighborhoods. The colorant naturally degraded from the trees over a period of months, depending on the type of tree and the local weather.

I chose to use blue because blue trees do not exist in nature. I want people to notice the trees, to see them as more than just wallpaper in their lives. Change can be threatening. Changing a local environment through color is both disconcerting and even uncomfortable. The trees I color blue will revert back to their natural state. Yet the old growth forests and rainforests that are being removed from the planet - trees that we cannot see, trees that are hundreds of years old are irreplaceable, at least in our lifetime. When you remove these trees, these forests, you remove whole ecosystems of plants and wildlife.

- Konstantin Dimopoulos, the artist

The installation was accompanied by family-friendly and free programming throughout the spring and hosted by The Denver Theatre District. Programming included musical performances, performances by local arts & culture organizations, educational lectures and wellness events.

"The Denver Theatre District, with the support of numerous city partners, is thrilled to welcome the performance art of Konstantin Dimopoulos, The Blue Trees, to Denver," said David Ehrlich, executive director, The Denver Theatre District. "We've worked closely with the Denver Department of Public Works, the Office of the City Forester, and The Park People to identify the trees that will receive the colorant and to partner with us in infusing our urban environment with a message of environmental impact."

Find more pictures and information on Denver Theatre District's Facebook and Instagram (@DenverTheatreDistrict). Engage in the conversation about The Blue Trees by using the hashtag #KonBlueTrees.

About Konstantin Dimopoulos
Konstantin Dimopoulos creates both permanent and temporary public art installations, from sculptures to land art. Born to Greek parents in Egypt, he and his family migrated to New Zealand when he was a young boy in the 1960s at a time when there was no support for new immigrants. This experience as a merely tolerated stranger in a new land has resonated throughout his life when he studied first as a sociologist then as an artist. A deep connection with humanity, social justice and environmental consciousness pervades his artwork. The Blue Trees highlights the issue of global deforestation; while The Purple Rain removes the anonymity from the generic term "homeless." His kinetic linear sculptures are in public art collections around the United States. For more information about Dimopoulos and his work, visit www.kondimopoulos.com.

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