ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
Introducing P.E.A.R.
Founded in 2023, The Packaging Express Artist in Residency Program (P.E.A.R.) was created by our owner Matt Davis and his wife Maggie. It serves to provide space for an artist to work for free on a project that requires more space than they would normally have access to. Furthermore, this program has a finite deadline of 4-8 months. This space is located at the Packaging Express box plant in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Each Artist in Residence will then end with a closing reception so that the public may honor the artist and experience their work. Matt and Maggie are huge supporters of our local community and this is another opportunity for them to give back to Colorado Springs.
Apply to P.E.A.R.
Are you a local artist in need of extra space for a special project for 4 to 8 months? Then maybe P.E.A.R. is the perfect solution for you! Please contact Lauren by email at themodbo@gmail.com for consideration into this exclusive program.
Check out the article in the Colorado Springs Gazette – Colorado Springs box factory site of new artist residency, receptions.
We were excited to host the very first P.E.A.R. Reception at Packaging Express on April 14th, 2023. It was the first time for the public to view Wendy Mike’s beautiful art installation before it went to its final home at the new hospital. Over 100 people from the community joined us at our box plant to celebrate Mike’s completed project and the beginning of The Packaging Express Artist in Residency Program!
Wendy Mike
Life long artist Wendy Mike was the first to enjoy the P.E.A.R. program. In 2022, she was commissioned by Nancy Noyes Art Design for Colorado Springs’s new orthopedic hospital, St. Francis Interquest (SFI). The purpose was to create a unique piece of art for the fourth floor waiting room of their surgical suites. The piece is comprised of five life-size figures in various rock climbing postures. They are made of packing tape and take up roughly 18.5 x 14 feet. Mike’s downtown art studio wasn’t nearly big enough to execute the work, and so a collaboration was born. The studio at Packaging Express became the perfect landing place for her to stage and create this large-scale project. The piece is now located in its permanent home at the new hospital.
JD Stranquist Sell
We were thrilled to celebrate JD Strandquist Sell’s year-long residency with the Packaging Express Artist in Residence (P.E.A.R.) Program, wrapping up in June 2025.
A multi-disciplinary artist, JD works in painting, handmade audio/effect machines, and video projection installations. After completing a major project in New York, he joined P.E.A.R. to reignite his creative practice—producing a dynamic body of work that will soon appear in exhibitions later this year.
Born in Maplewood, MN and raised in Boulder, CO, JD earned his BFA in Painting from UCCS. His work has been shown at Denver University, FAC, and GOCA. JD has completed residencies across Colorado, served on the Pikes Peak Arts Council Board, co-founded non-book-club-book-club (NBCBC), and led workshops at Colorado College, DU, and UCCS. He currently works as a Museum Preparator for FAC and Fabricator/Studio Assistant for Senga Nengudi.
Artist Statement:
“I’m captivated by corrupted or decayed images, videos, websites, music or audio recordings. They feel otherworldly, like a glimpse behind the veil of reality. Commonly, I explore feelings of isolation, loneliness and death. My work centers around collected artifacts that I reference and/or alter. They move through rites of passage with me before being considered for drawings, paintings, installations and performances. I’m curious about understanding my gravitation toward hyper intimate and phenomenological experiences in the peripherals of everyday encounters. I see these subjects as navigational markers, supporting the ways I look, experience and learn from the world.”
ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
Introducing P.E.A.R.
Founded in 2023, The Packaging Express Artist in Residency Program (P.E.A.R.) was created by our owner Matt Davis and his wife Maggie. It serves to provide space for an artist to work for free on a project that requires more space than they would normally have access to. Furthermore, this program has a finite deadline of 4-8 months. This space is located at the Packaging Express box plant in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Each Artist in Residence will then end with a closing reception so that the public may honor the artist and experience their work. Matt and Maggie are huge supporters of our local community and this is another opportunity for them to give back to Colorado Springs.
Apply to P.E.A.R.
Are you a local artist in need of extra space for a special project for 4 to 8 months? Then maybe P.E.A.R. is the perfect solution for you! Please contact Lauren by email at themodbo@gmail.com for consideration into this exclusive program.
Check out the article in the Colorado Springs Gazette – Colorado Springs box factory site of new artist residency, receptions.
We were excited to host the very first P.E.A.R. Reception at Packaging Express on April 14th, 2023. It was the first time for the public to view Wendy Mike’s beautiful art installation before it went to its final home at the new hospital. Over 100 people from the community joined us at our box plant to celebrate Mike’s completed project and the beginning of The Packaging Express Artist in Residency Program!
Wendy Mike
Life long artist Wendy Mike was the first to enjoy the P.E.A.R. program. In 2022, she was commissioned by Nancy Noyes Art Design for Colorado Springs’s new orthopedic hospital, St. Francis Interquest (SFI). The purpose was to create a unique piece of art for the fourth floor waiting room of their surgical suites. The piece is comprised of five life-size figures in various rock climbing postures. They are made of packing tape and take up roughly 18.5 x 14 feet. Mike’s downtown art studio wasn’t nearly big enough to execute the work, and so a collaboration was born. The studio at Packaging Express became the perfect landing place for her to stage and create this large-scale project. The piece is now located in its permanent home at the new hospital.
JD Stranquist Sell
We were thrilled to celebrate JD Strandquist Sell’s year-long residency with the Packaging Express Artist in Residence (P.E.A.R.) Program, wrapping up in June 2025.
A multi-disciplinary artist, JD works in painting, handmade audio/effect machines, and video projection installations. After completing a major project in New York, he joined P.E.A.R. to reignite his creative practice—producing a dynamic body of work that will soon appear in exhibitions later this year.
Born in Maplewood, MN and raised in Boulder, CO, JD earned his BFA in Painting from UCCS. His work has been shown at Denver University, FAC, and GOCA. JD has completed residencies across Colorado, served on the Pikes Peak Arts Council Board, co-founded non-book-club-book-club (NBCBC), and led workshops at Colorado College, DU, and UCCS. He currently works as a Museum Preparator for FAC and Fabricator/Studio Assistant for Senga Nengudi.
Artist Statement:
“I’m captivated by corrupted or decayed images, videos, websites, music or audio recordings. They feel otherworldly, like a glimpse behind the veil of reality. Commonly, I explore feelings of isolation, loneliness and death. My work centers around collected artifacts that I reference and/or alter. They move through rites of passage with me before being considered for drawings, paintings, installations and performances. I’m curious about understanding my gravitation toward hyper intimate and phenomenological experiences in the peripherals of everyday encounters. I see these subjects as navigational markers, supporting the ways I look, experience and learn from the world.”