A Pipe Dream of a Kid Who Wanted More
As a young artist growing up just an hour outside of Cheyenne in Greeley, Colorado Brothe dreamed of pushing beyond the boundaries of traditional Western art. Before there was a center, a mobile gallery, or an annual festival, there was a kid in Greeley longing for a space to explore the alternative arts that didn’t exist yet. “I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about why I do the work I do,” shares Brothe. When Arts Cheyenne first opened the Cheyenne Creativity Center, she explains, “This is exactly where I was at as a 17-year-old.”
Part of what makes Brothe such a powerhouse innovator, leader, and arts advocate is that inner young artist—a passionate creative who deeply understands the importance of arts access in the community. When she’s not trailblazing as the Executive Director for Arts Cheyenne, Brothe, founder of Magpie Creations, serves as the Artist Development Director for the Wyoming Women’s Business Center and Development Manager for the West Edge Collective, constantly pushing for more. At Magpie, she allows intuition to lead, continuously playing with out-of-the-box ideas and concepts.
Brothe lives to celebrate art, capturing the spirited magpie birds of the West in a beautiful light. One of her favorite series, called ‘Unseen,’ unveils the mystery of these wild creatures soaring across downtown Cheyenne. “We don’t really know where they came from, what they are, what their purpose is, good or bad,” explains Brothe—a sense of wonder that fuels her creative process.
This modern-day arts pioneer knows what it’s like to be a kid “always looking for more.” Her guiding question throughout each new project is simple, yet ambitions—how can she make more possible?
For Brothe, her calling and talents come from an unwillingness to sit and wait—not when she can carve a fresh path to fill that unmet need.
A Space to Elevate Emerging Artists
With a career built on downtown revitalization, Brothe has a proven talent for turning ideas into reality for the local community—thanks to years of balancing many roles. For the Friday Art Walk, held on the first Friday of every month, this means coordinating with 13 venues to bring art to the community. “Most people going to the Plaza for Friday night are not expecting to encounter an art gallery,” Brothe explains. “This allows them to have exposure to pieces of the community that they may not otherwise be actively seeking or know exists.”
While Arts Cheyenne has been making waves for over a decade, with Brothe at the helm as Executive Director for the last year and a half, the non-profit organization’s ambitions have flourished. One initiative is the Art House, a mobile art gallery in a 11,000-pound tiny home that travels throughout the city. “It catches heads,” she muses. While mobile galleries aren’t new, Brothe wanted more, venturing beyond the traditional form of trailers or old buses. “We wanted something more elevated. The impetus behind it is we did not yet have an arts center. We were hungry for that opportunity.”
How far they’ve come. Today, they’ve launched Cheyenne Creativity Center as a full-fl edged arts center featuring monthly gallery and seasonal shop rotations. “We do weekly workshops. We give artists studio rentals. Everything that an arts center should be doing is what we have strived for.”
This vision also supports an outlet for emerging artists of all ages, from high schoolers to retirees—paving the path for anyone to unleash their creativity. It’s a rare chance for new artists to be able to display and sell their work. The Art House now averages about 1,800 to 2,000 visitors a year. Brothe loves that each partnership opens a different avenue, allowing artists to “come into spaces and learn new and unique things without barriers behind them.” It’s not just about celebrating the creation and education of the arts—it’s about sparking connections and reaching a new, excited audience.
Putting All the Pieces Together
For Brothe, with her expertise in economic development, it’s second nature—making programming happen on a community level. She knows what questions to ask, where to push, and how to bring the logistics to life. “How do we bring people here? How do we keep them here? Well, we do that through art. We don’t realize—a lot don’t recognize that’s really where that comes from. Without that programming, that’s how we keep people here, engaged and invigorated.”
“People aren’t going to talk about some new structure that was built unless it has particular importance to them.” So Brothe sets out to create experiences that feel meaningful, because “for tourists or residents, that’s what this is all about.” After all, “somebody has to build them.” She leaps into action. At Magpie, she allows intuition to lead, continuously playing with out-of-the-box ideas and concepts.
With the murals, Brothe witnessed the glory of community pride at its strongest, arts uniting people of all walks of life together. For Brothe, the biggest piece of them all comes down to creating platforms—so that an artist of any culture or background can share meaningful stories in their own voices. As Brothe worked with artists and building owners, all the while securing logistics for lift equipment and grant funding, Cheyenne exploded into technicolor—about 50 murals now bringing new energy to Magic City streets.
Brothe believes and fights for the idea of more for her community—”not for the sake of filling our time, but because we deserve it, because it’s important, and because everybody here is looking for those things. This is where the arts come into play.”
The wonder of an eclectic downtown lies in the difference between the ordinary and the extraordinary—a piece Brothe understands all too well. It’s this depth of knowledge and gusto that have helped the beating urban heart of Wyoming take on new colors. Brothe sees beyond what separates the blur of any other city from the moments that make downtown Cheyenne stand out in time—creating interactive experiences to remember. In every corner of her work, she pieces together a thriving artist’s haven, open to all.
