Carbondale Unveils Steel Stag at Fourth and Main Kickoff

The intersection of Fourth and Main streets in Carbondale is usually defined by the rumble of tires on pavement and the rush of commuters heading home. On Wednesday, that rhythm changed. A large stag, forged from steel and bronze, now stands guard at the corner, its hoof resting on a rock from the Grand Canyon. It’s a quiet, watchful presence in the middle of the town’s busiest crossroads.

This is the first piece of Carbondale’s 2026 Art Around Town Artwalk, and it signals the start of a month-long transformation. Over a dozen more sculptures will join this one, turning the downtown district into a living gallery.

The decision to install "Spirit of the Forest" by Longmont artist Ted Wilson wasn't just about decoration. It was about continuity. The Art Around Town Artwalk is a Carbondale staple, a way the town ensures art isn't locked away in museums but is woven into the daily fabric of life. Each year, the Carbondale Public Art Commission (CPAC) votes on dozens of online submissions to select the yearlong exhibition. The pieces go up on marble bases, mapped out for self-guided tours that encourage locals to walk the streets they already know.

“I’m looking forward to sharing this beautiful collection of art with the community,” Julie Little, a CPAC member, said.

The question is whether locals will stop long enough to look. The installation process is deliberate. After the sculptures are set, the public is invited in through a guided walking tour. This year’s official kick-off happens at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 4, starting at Town Hall. That’s followed by an Artists Reception at 7 p.m. at Marble Distillery. It’s a structured effort to turn a civic project into a social event, drawing people out of their offices and into the streets.

Wilson, a self-taught blacksmith, has been doing this for 20 years. This is his second year in a row featured in a Carbondale artwalk, which suggests the commission has found an artist who resonates with the town’s aesthetic. But Wilson isn’t just churning out metal. He describes a creative restlessness that drives him.

“There’s a creative side of me that doesn’t rest,” Wilson told the Post Independent. “Sometimes I’ll get a shape or an idea in my head that won’t leave me alone until I make it.”

That idea became "Spirit of the Forest." The sculpture features a stag, but the inspiration came from something smaller: bronze leaves. Wilson had used those same leaves on a previous tree sculpture, and they sparked the image of the stag. The result is a piece crafted from forged steel, bronze, and stone. It took Wilson and his assistant six weeks of full-time work. They heated eight-inch chunks of steel, bent them between cleats on an anvil or welding table, and hammered them into textures that mimic woody vines. The leaves on the antlers are made from bronze sheet.

Wilson actually created two versions of the sculpture. The one standing at Fourth and Main is the second version. The first had a diamond plate base; this one sits on a platform of weathering steel. The choice of materials matters. The weathering steel ages, changing color with the elements, much like the forest it represents.

In Wilson’s mind, the piece didn't start as an animal. It sprouted as a plant before growing into the stag. It’s meant to capture the quiet, wise presence he feels when he wanders alone in the woods. The stag calls for good stewardship of the land, a reminder of the fierce, beautiful power of nature and the respect the wilderness demands.

As the rest of the 15 sculptures by 12 artists are installed over the next month, the town will have to decide if this "living gallery" is just another tourist draw or a genuine addition to the community's identity. The art is there. The map is ready. The reception is set.

“The pieces are installed on marble bases around town and included on a map for self-guided tours,” Little noted, emphasizing the accessibility of the project.

Wilson hopes that when people walk past the stag on their way to the grocery store or the bank, they’ll see more than just metal. They’ll see the forest.

“The stag calls for good stewardship of the land,” Wilson said. “It reminds viewers of the fierce, beautiful power of nature and the respect the wilderness deserves.”