The pandemic hit Denver’s arts and culture scene hard, forcing many businesses, performance spaces, museums and galleries to close, at least temporarily, at the end of March. In the months since, artists and curators have rallied to keep culture alive, to comment on social injustice, and to inspire us all to appreciate essential workers and health-care providers.
Along the way, the scene has shown its grit and ability to stay relevant through the toughest of times, though some longstanding cultural institutions have been wrangling with their own inner demons.
Here are the ten biggest arts and culture stories in Denver in 2020:
Denver Needs the Tattered Cover, and Tattered Needs Denver, Say Readers
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Len Vlahos and
Kristen Gilligan sold the store to Bended Page LLC, an investment group led by Back and Spearman.
“The impact of the economic crisis caused by the pandemic made it clear that Tattered Cover was going to need not only new management, but an infusion of capital,” Vlahos and Gilligan wrote on the store’s website. “The difficult sales environment has not kept pace with the business’ mounting debt.”
In addition to the impact of the pandemic, the owners had to issue a public apology in June after stating the store would not be taking a public stance on the Black Lives Matter movement, according to a report by
The Tattered Cover has sold to a local investment team.
Len Vlahos and Kristen Gilligan have sold the 49-year-old independent book store to the Colorado-based Bended Page LLC. Billed in a statement as “national bookselling and publishing experts,” Bended Page is owned by Kwame Spearman and David Back.
“The Tattered Cover, and all it embodies for us as Denver natives reading, learning, the independent spirit, buying local, and most importantly community and connection are the ingredients that drew up to this endeavor,” Spearman said in the statement.” As we approach Tattered Cover’s 50th anniversary, we are honored and excited to invest in this important community treasure and ensure it remains a piece of the Colorado experience for generations to come.”
Andy Cross / Denver Post via Getty Images
Originally published on December 10, 2020 6:47 pm
Denver s beloved local chain founded in 1971 has been having a rough year. Several of its locations had to close temporarily because of the pandemic, making a massive dent in sales.
So this week, owners Len Vlahos and Kristen Gilligan announced the sale of the store to Bended Page LLC, a group of investors led by businessmen David Back and Kwame Spearman. Spearman, who is Black, will serve as CEO, making the Tattered Cover the country s largest Black-owned independent bookstore. They ll be guided by an advisory board that includes Oren Teicher, former CEO of the American Booksellers Association and outgoing Macmillan CEO John Sargent.
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