Women of Inspiration

Artist: Frank Garza
Location: 66 S. Main Street
Acquisition Date: June 2024

Description: This beautiful mural can be found on the north-facing exterior wall of the H&R Block building at 66 S. Main St. in downtown Brighton. Entitled Women of Inspiration, it was commissioned by the Brighton Cultural Arts Commission (BCAC) and completed by Loveland-based artist Frank Garza.

Garza is well known throughout Colorado for his deeply meaningful artwork promoting community spirit and celebrating history and culture. Garza’s Women of Inspiration mural celebrates the diverse array of women who shaped Brighton, Colorado, including:

• The Strength & Vigor of Brighton’s Women of Industry — Hardworking factory workers at the core of Brighton’s early prospering industries and the inspiring “ahead of her time” business leaders and entrepreneurs. 
• The “Sugar Sweet” Impact of Brighton’s Women — Arduous sugar-beet field laborers and lab workers who helped make beet sugar Colorado’s most profitable industry, impacted a profitable local economy, and enhanced the community with an enriching multicultural heritage.
• The Pioneering Spirit of Brighton’s Women — Homesteaders and growers who helped transform the dry plains into the fertile farmlands of the “Garden Spot of Northern Colorado.” The pioneering spirit also included educational shapers, governmental leaders, and advocacy leaders.
• The Enriching Cultural Heritage of Brighton’s Women — Women’s groups, clubs, and special events that have enriched the community with multi-cultural heritages through the sharing of traditions, food, crafts, music, dance, and more.
• The Artistic Heart of Brighton’s Women — Women who have expressed their talents and supported growth in arts and culture, including: the visual arts, performing arts (theatrical, musical, and dance), language arts (writers and poets), and natural (and local) history.
• The Charitable Benevolence of Brighton’s Women — Women who joined together in various faith-based and other organizations to assist the poor and disadvantaged, inspiring social reform along the way.
• The Championing Spirit of Brighton’s Women — Athletes and program-and-resource boosters opening the way for competitive play, youth and adult recreational opportunities, and community spirit building.

In the mural’s foreground, girls and young women of the present sit immersed in books, each page a gateway to stories of Brighton’s many “women of inspiration,” shown in the background. The women grace each side of the Community Christmas Tree, where a young girl adds to the ornaments, handmade by the community, each representing the many facets of Brighton’s culture and personality.

The ornaments are inspired by actual ornaments that once decorated the tree displayed over several years at Brighton City Hall (such as the straw folk-art ornament representing the first schoolhouse built on the Aichelman Farm), reimagined through Garza’s distinct style of strong symbolism. The artist’s use of symbolism and realism intrigues throughout the mural.

“With this particular project, I had a lot of suggestions and guidance with my research of potential subjects from the beginning and even during the project as it developed and evolved,” Garza remarked. “I found this to be a benefit to the creative concept and a true collaborative effort.”