In 1986, Crested Butte was still a relatively undiscovered, quiet, and self- reliant mountain town. Information traveled by bulletin boards rather than text messages, and handmade flyers announced community events. Paper maps guided visitors through the mountains, and film cameras captured Mother Nature’s hidden gems. It was in this setting that a small group of locals organized the first Crested Butte Wildflower Festival to inspire tourism during the slow summer season.
Led by Terry Hamlin, Maura Bailey, and others, the festival began as a weekend event with the customary wildflower identification walks and other offerings, such as butterfly hikes. It quickly expanded to include photography and art events as well as wildflower teas and wildflower- inspired ice cream parties. For a few years, organizers scheduled horse tours with Jim Talbot’s Fantasy Ranch but quickly discovered it was hard to point out the unique characteristics of wildflowers from the back of a horse. Later, the legendary nature photographer John Fielder led photography workshops at the Wildflower Festival for over a decade and served as an honorary board member.
Since its early, informal days, the Wildflower Festival’s mission has remained the same: the preservation and appreciation of wildflowers.
Summer is no longer a slow season in Crested Butte, and the Wildflower Festival is now a ten-day celebration with 150 events led by 40 experts from around the globe. GPS maps guide visitors to trailheads, and smartphones capture the beauty. Through all of the changes, one tradition has withstood the test of time: the annual Wildflower Festival poster. Each year, the festival is celebrated with the creation of a poster by a local artist, featuring 35 artists over the years in varying media. Each poster represents just one of the 40 years, yet together they form something larger. On a wall lined with Wildflower Festival posters, summer blooms again and again, a visual chronicle of place, season, and the special community that gathers each year to share in the magic of wildflowers.
Local artist Susan Anderton has watched it all unfold. She created the artwork for the very first poster in 1987, a limited-edition silk screen that featured Old Town Hall as well as columbine, paintbrush, and glacier lily blooms. Just 80 copies of that original piece were produced, a far cry from the 1,000 copies printed this year for her 40th-anniversary poster. Since assuming the role of executive director several years ago, I’ve been continually struck by how deeply the organization’s history is intertwined with the artists who have shaped it. Few embody that legacy more than Susan. I had a few moments to visit with her and talk about creating the first and now 40th poster.
What brought you to Crested Butte?
I arrived in 1969 from England and was immediately struck by the town’s historic architecture as well as the bountiful blooms that grace our hillsides. It’s hard to believe I have been part of this community for almost 60 years.
When you created the very first Wildflower Festival poster in 1987, what was your starting point, artistically and emotionally?
At that time, I was doing a lot of poster design and silk-screen printing, as well as watercolors and pen and ink drawings. I was interested in capturing the character of the old mining town, before it got discovered and developed.
How did you approach the creative process differently for the 40th-anniversary poster, knowing it would sit in conversation with your original work?
This was difficult! I thought about using the same or a similar format. I do love the noble façade and history of the Old Town Hall, but to use it again would not be appropriate. I wanted to establish a sense of place. The Wildflower Festival is not about the town. It represents the valley, the trails, the woods, the views, the thrill of coming out of the woods and seeing the valley open up, and everywhere the glorious flowers in colorful display.
Wildflowers are both scientifically specific and emotionally evocative. How do you balance botanical accuracy with artistic expression in your work?
This is always the dilemma. However, wildflowers are not only inspiring and beautiful, they are also very forgiving. You can’t really go wrong when painting or drawing them. As humans, we crave beauty in everything. Flowers fade. Painting them preserves their beauty for many to enjoy for a long time.
The Wildflower Festival has grown over time. How do you think the posters helped shape its identity and public perception?
The poster has taken an essential role. The Wildflower Festival is an effective, excellent way to educate, enrich, and create awareness of the protocol around wildflowers — do not pick or dig them up! The joy of learning to identify and name the wildflowers — it enriches everyone’s experience.
When you imagine someone seeing your 2026 poster decades from now, what do you hope it communicates about this moment in the festival’s history?
That we cared for and appreciated the beauty of the wildflowers and took measures to protect them, while educating and enriching the experience of visitors and ourselves!
Just like the town itself, the Wildflower Festival has changed and adapted over the last four decades, and its contributions to this community endure. Through the efforts of visionary leaders, we advocated to the Colorado Legislature for the official designation of “Wildflower Capital of Colorado” in 1990 and designed and purchased the ornate Chamber of Commerce sign that remains today. In 2003, the Wildflower Festival created the Wedding Garden in Mt. Crested Butte and cared for it for ten years (and countless weddings) before gifting the garden to the Town of Mt. Crested Butte. Along with our partners, the Crested Butte Botanic Gardens, we will install a wildflower garden at the historic Train Depot this summer.
To celebrate our ruby anniversary this summer, we’re hosting a special lineup of over 150 events. Highlights include everything from expert- led hikes to creative art and photography workshops. The Center for the Arts’ Kinder Padon Gallery will host a special exhibition featuring every Wildflower Festival poster to date — a chance to stroll through the halls and enjoy 40 frames in bloom.
The 2026 Wildflower Festival takes place July 10-19. More info can be found at: crestedbuttewildflowerfestival.org