Artist Registration Is Now Open

Artists Sunday is a nationwide art-shopping event taking place with professional artists, non-profit art organizations and municipalities across the country. Laramie Plains Civic Centet has joined community partners in a city-wide week of local shopping opportunities for the kick-off of the holiday shopping season. Join us as we invite Laramie to keep their dollars local and support local artists, makers, and performers.

Register now to sell your work at: lpccwy.org/artistmarket

Early registrations help staff plan the appropriate space for the event. While we work to accommodate all registrants, space will be first-come, first-served.

Thank you for the Nights to Remember!

This summer we celebrated with you at the 3rd annual Gem City Nights at the Downtown Farmers Market. This art and music series is a labor of love brought to the community at no cost, thanks to many giving hands.

The community showed up to learn, create, and gather around performing and visual art with us each week, and it was a treat. This community event is a love letter from us to you, and we felt the love right back. Join us in thanking all who contributed their energy, talent, and passions with us.

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Thank you to the talented teaching artists who gifted their time to collaborative art-making each week. These artists brought their skills to you to learn, share, and create together. What a treat it was to make art together each week! Stay tuned because we will hang your hard work in the building later this fall for you all to see.

To to the energetic performing artists, many of whom traveled to join us each week. They showed up through rain, shine, and lots of wind and gifted Laramie a treat. Thank you for helping us fill the park with many dancing memories.

A big thank you goes to the staff who brought you this event. While a community event may last one night for Laramie, it takes many months to execute for the team. This event was made possible thanks to hours of support from the Laramie Plains Civic Center, Gryphon Theatre, Siren Studios, and Laramie Main Street teams.

Last but not least, thank you to our sponsors. We could not do it without your financial support. Thank you for your vote of confidence in this team and this programming for Laramie. Your contribution is priceless.

Photos by Laramie artist and Laramie Plains Civic Center board member Ana Castro

Less Waste = More at Siren Studios

In the summer of 2021, the Wyoming Community Foundation supported the installation of a clay pugmill at Siren Studios as a means to support the environmental impact and sustainability of the Laramie Plains Civic Center’s community ceramic space.

In the wake of supply chain delays and the economic health of 2020 until today, this equipment addition was finally installed and put into use in mid-June of 2023. 

Despite the lengthy wait, this installation has already begun to make an impact, thanks to these generous grant dollars. 

What is a pugmill? 

A pugmill is a machine that reconstitutes old clay. Perhaps you’ve noticed the large tubs of clay and water in the corner of Siren Studios. These are step one of the recycling process. After removing excess water, the clay is placed in the pugmill–a large piece of equipment used to homogenize the clay bodies and remove air. New, usuable clay is extruded from the machine, bagged, and saved for use by artists of the studio!

Studio teachers and volunteers rallied around the new clay recycling equipment in the late Spring of 2023. After nearly two years of supply chain delays, this heavy lift was long overdue.

How will it make an impact?

Since installation, the studio's recycling process has allowed all classes and workshops to use recycled clay. This means the materials in Siren Studios leave a gentler footprint by eliminating the costs and impact of packaging, shipping, and receiving.

Additionally, recycled clay creates a more financially feasible way for Siren Studios to offer accessible learning and create opportunities for the community. The dollars spent on clay go further, allowing funds within the Civic Center’s arts programming to pay teachers, support facility improvements, and support a future for the nonprofit as a whole. 

Pieces from July 2023’s Kids Camp sit to dry in the ceramic studio. Since the pugmill installation all classes and workshops have benefited from using 100% recycled clay.

Less Waste = More for Siren Studios!

Beyond the financial implications, Laramie artists have enjoyed learning and working with the pugmill, knowing that the clay wastes are being recirculated back into the studio instead of being unnecessarily tossed away. While some instructors managed reprocessing by hand in years past, the staff time and physical labor required to do so was not a physically sustainable practice to achieve the notable results of this equipment installation. We’re eager to see how this addition continues to support the community resources made available through Siren Studios to Albany County. 

Learn more about Siren Studios, upcoming classes, workshops, and more at sirenstudios.art.

Now seeking stories from Laramie Junior & Senior High alumni

Built in 1878 as the Wyoming territory’s first brick schoolhouse, the Civic Center has served as an institution for Laramie’s youth as East Side School, Laramie Junior High, and Laramie High School. From first kiss to visits to the principal, we want to know what you remember most from these halls!

Donate to the Laramie Plains Civic Center to have your memory captured and shared in the public spaces throughout the historic building. Select the Recurring Donation option to join our monthly donors club and support the building all year long with a monthly gift of $18.78 in commemoration of the original building’s date of construction!

Your one-time or recurring gift will support the continued preservation of the building and the organization’s mission to serve as a place for the community to gather, connect, and grow. Your memory will be printed and hung to spark memories, share stories, and celebrate the rich history of this property with the building’s visitors. 

Help us make these halls talk by visiting https://rb.gy/9r290, or filling out this form and returning to Jessica Brauer at 710 E. Garfield St. 110, Laramie, WY 82070. 

Free art & music series comes to Laramie Farmer's Markets this August

This August, Laramie Plains Civic Center’s (LPCC) Gryphon Theatre and Laramie Main Street Alliance present the third annual Gem City Nights art and music series at the Downtown Laramie Farmers Market. This summer’s series features free music performances from ten regional acts, five art making workshops, and art sales from local artists. 

“This collaboration between nonprofits is our way of giving the community a unique opportunity to connect,” LPCC Executive Director Jessica Brauer said. “A summer night at the Laramie Farmer’s Market is the perfect place to gather in appreciation for the arts.”

Each Gem City Night, hosted Fridays from August 4 to September 1, will feature one all-ages art making drop-in workshop from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., and two musical acts from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the North side of Depot Park. 

"Laramie Main Street is thrilled to partner with Gem City Nights to bring music to the Downtown Laramie Farmers Market this summer,” Laramie Main Street Alliance Communications Director Jennifer Power said. “We love collaborating and supporting artists especially through events that bring the community together downtown."

This year’s event lineup  includes:

August 4: Rob Icke’s and Trey Hensley & Ansel And the Brain Tattoos

August 11: SGRNY & Crooked Rugs

August 18: Taylor Shae Band & Jen Korte and the Loss

August 25: Pleasure People & Gasoline Lollipops

September 1: De Gringos Y Gremmies & Banshee Tree

“We have ripsnorting local and regional bands including SGRNY, De Gringos Y Gremmies, Gasoline Lollipops, Jen Korte and the Loss, and Banshee Tree, and we have the Grammy-nominated Nashville pair of Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley,” local musician and LPCC Board Chair J Shogren said. “A great summer of free live music downtown!”

Gem City Nights is presented by Blue Federal Credit Union and supported by the Wyoming Arts Council and local sponsors.

The Laramie Plains Civic Center is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to conserve the integrity of Laramie’s historic building while cultivating safe and accessible spaces for Laramie to gather, connect, and grow together.