Colorado Mountain Living is a brand that emerged as Amy and Bryan Hager documented their journey of moving to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and building their dream rural homestead.
The Hagers started a YouTube channel to document their journey. Over the past two years, Amy delved into a new creative venture, creating mixed media artwork that combines natural materials such as dried flowers, encaustic medium (made from beeswax and tree resin), and wood.
Amy’s art studio is a part of the Colorado Mountain Living brand. Her compositions are literal pieces depicting the Hagers’ Colorado lifestyle, in that they contain wood remnants from their home build, flowers either foraged or planted on their property, and beeswax from Amy’s beehives.
In late July, Amy partnered with Wild Bear Nature Center to host an “Art in the Wild” class where students can learn in the outdoor environment. Wild Bear Center is a nonprofit organization in Nederland whose mission is to inspire a lifelong connection to nature and community through creative exploration of the outdoors.
Students were instructed in the art of encaustic botanical collage, which involved foraging for wildflowers, creating compositions on wood planks, and sealing them.
Working outside encouraged the students to find inspiration from the natural world. “I enjoy teaching in groups and would like to continue offering classes as part of the Colorado Mountain Living brand,” Amy says, smiling.
The Hagers are building a year-round greenhouse that they hope will become a novel environment in which to teach classes, giving “students a unique experience of being surrounded by verdant botanicals even amid a long winter and chilly spring.”
Amy adds, “I want the greenhouse to feel like a magical retreat inside a whimsical and inspiring eco-dome.” Inspirations for classes include additional art and botanical collage classes, greenhouse gardening instruction, food preservation, cooking instruction, and recipe development.
Art is found in so many forms. Since my first meeting with Amy and Bryan Hager, I can’t help but see art in every aspect of their beautiful lives.
The public is welcome to explore the Hagers’ homestead, art studio, and newly constructed greenhouse dome during this weekend’s Studio Tour sponsored by The Mountain-Ear. Learn about The Mountain-Ear Studio Tour here: https://www.themtnear.com/pageview/viewer/studiotour2024.
To find out more about Colorado Mountain Living, visit https://coloradomountainliving.net/ or find them on YouTube @ColoradoMountainLiving.
