Chautauqua Park Bears 2026

The bears are back in Boulder’s Chautauqua Park!

Every year, Chautauqua Park is home to a series of painted bear sculptures created by local artists as part of an annual fundraiser, and as a way to add a little color to Winter.

This year’s event features twelve large bear sculptures (40” tall) and fifteen miniature bear sculptures (14” tall). Unlike in previous years when the bears were dotted around Chautauqua Park in a treasure hunt, most of the large bears can all be found in Centennial Park on Morning Glory Drive. Two of the large bears can be found inside the lobby of the Academic Hall building, just across the road from Centennial Park. You’ll also find two of the small bears on display here, while one is displayed in the General Store on Clematis Drive, and the remaining bears can be found in the Community House, also on Morning Glory Drive.

Check out all the bears below, and if you’re interested in taking one home, make sure to read on for details of the auction.

“Birds of a Feather Stick Together” by Sarah Spencer

“Homestead Hugger” by Jaclyn Brada 

“Polaris” by Ryan Hughes

“Ace & Mav - A Rocky Mountain Duo” by Candice Cain

“The Return” by Tabitha Benedict

“Honey Slopes” by Isabel Rhodes-Wolin

“The First Bear” by Lena Larrieu

“Harmony Keeper” by Michelle Hanson

Chautauqua Park Bears

Boulder's Chautauqua Park is over run with bears!

But don't worry; they're friendly bears!

Friendly, colorful bears waiting for a hug and a photo!

These fun bear statues are part of Chautauqua's annual Art in the Park event. Fifteen colorfully painted fiberglass bears can be found throughout the historic campus. They make for a fun little treasure hunt, and if you've been here a while you'll know that I'm a big fan of statue treasure hunts. In the past we've enjoyed searching for the heart statues in San Francisco, the lobster statues in Plymouth, the bison statues around Salt Lake City, and the prairie dogs right here in neighboring Superior. 

Each one of these fun bears was painted by a different artist. Let's take a look at them...

Boulder Bear Statues

If you've been here a while you'll know that I love a good scavenger hunt and that I'm a big fan of street art. I'm an even bigger fan of these to things coming together!

So when a friend told me about the painted bear sculptures in Boulder's Chautauqua Park as part of the Art in the Park program, I knew we needed to check them out. 

Unlike other sculpture scavenger hunts that we've done, these painted bears are all contained in a relatively small area, making it an easy activity for kids of all ages. There are fifteen painted bear cubs along with one large mama bear sculpture located within just a few blocks from each other. In fact, some of them are so close to each other that you can often see multiple bears at any one time. 
 
Over the Winter break the kids and I headed to Chautauqua Park to search for the bears. I didn't think to download the map first (which you can find here), but we had no problem finding all the bears none the less. It was pretty chilly when we visited, which you can probably tell from the pics, and the combination of cold air and mask wearing made for pretty fogged up glasses for Mathilde. She totally had a Dr Bunsen look happening until I took her glasses off! There weren't other people around but the kids kept their masks on anyway to keep their faces warm. Last Winter Lola wished for a face warmer; this Winter she's got one!

Anyway, let's take a look at those painted bears...