Insider Tour: Cloud 9 Park

About the tour: Join artist Ana Maria Hernando, public art coordinator John Grant, and Landscape Architect Gretchen Wilson, to explore how Cloud 9 Park at 9+CO emerged from an empty city block in four months. Though the park is temporary, its features can be moved to future permanent locations within the development.

About the park: This simple city square based park design supports an array of uses and features such as a mountain themed playground, a nature walk, a padel court, games, and Ana Maria’s piece ‘To Let the Sky Know’ as the centerpiece on a circular mound.

About the tour guides: Ana María Hernando, multidisciplinary Artist born in Buenos Aires in 1959 and based in Colorado, creates work centered on the feminine, using empathy and abundant textiles to explore visibility, interconnectedness, and the value of nature and humanity. Her installations often incorporate the handwork of women from Latin America, including cloistered nuns in Argentina and Peruvian artisans, reflecting her deep engagement with cultural traditions. Hernando holds a BFA from California College of the Arts and has studied in Buenos Aires and Boston. She has exhibited widely, including solo shows at Madison Square Park in New York, the Kemper Museum, and international residencies, and was the 2020 recipient of the Prix Henry Clews in Sculpture. A 2023 Joan Mitchell Fellow and 2024 Women to Watch artist at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, she is currently preparing major exhibitions for MCA Denver and the Fine Arts Center in Colorado Springs in 2026.

Gretchen Wilson, Founding Principal and Partner of Dig Studio, an award-winning firm that delivers excellence in planning, landscape architecture, urban design, and graphic visualization. The studio mostly serves the western US with offices in Denver, Phoenix, and Spokane. Gretchen is the 2027 President-Elect of ASLA national. She is dedicated to utilizing the power of public space to bring diverse communities together, improve health and well-being, connect people to healthy foods, create resilient habitats, and improve the environment. She is involved with CU Denver through teaching, lecturing, and jurying, and serves on the Master of Urban Design Advisory Council. She recently received her Master of Science in Environmental Science from CU Denver focusing on water systems and ecosystems.

Accessibility: The presentation will take place in a fully accessible space easily accessed from the garage. Paths to and around the park are concrete, while paths within the park are compacted crusher fines gravel because the park is temporary.

Refund policy: The Denver Architecture Foundation is a nonprofit educational organization. Ticket sales support the Foundation in continuing to provide quality events to the public. We are unable to provide refunds or credits for any reason less than 14 days prior to the event.

Please note that DAF tours take place rain, snow or shine. If your tour includes an outdoor portion, please dress for the weather. DAF staff will contact all attendees directly should a tour be cancelled for any reason.

Photo provided curtesy of Dig Studios