A herd of unicorns has made their way to Denver! Local artists and beuncommon founder Benjamin Oritz-Hill painted the six-foot magical creatures. Each unicorn is influenced by leaders of past and present who helped move the needle on diversity and inclusion.
Local Denver artists include James Jensen, David Alderman, Shawndell Oliver, and Joseph Gutierrez. Each artist received a blank unicorn to use as their canvas.
“Starting from scratch was really intense for me, and the level of failing was much higher because I’ve never done anything like this,” said Alderman. “That excited me because I like novelty and like to push myself….it’s something I’m super proud of.”
Alderman said he created quite a disturbance as he was photographing and filming his unicorn in the mountains, and everyone was wondering what was happening. “This project was super exciting for me,” said Alderman, who painted the unicorn with an artistic array of geometrical shapes in bright colors inspired by the symbol of LGBTQ+ Pride.
In 1978 artist Gilbert Baker, an openly gay man and a drag queen designed the first rainbow flag. Baker later revealed that Harvey Milk urged him to create a symbol of pride for the gay community.
The unicorn herd and their stories will be showcased on social media along with an exposé about each artist. The unicorns will then be auctioned to raise funds to support building an Encircle home in Denver.