Artist and public art champion dies at 80 in NYC

The Denver Post

Phyllis Anna “Wopo” Holup, a public artist whosework is displayed in Colorado and across the country, died last month at her home in New York. She was 80.

Holup’s publicworks in Colorado include “Orchard Road Orchard” at the RTD light rail Orchard Station, 2006; “Phases of the Moon,” Lionshead Transportation Center, Vail, 2012; and “Colorado River” atDenver International Airport’sWestinHotel, 2016.

Her 2010 drawing “Mississippi Delta” is in the Denver Art Museum collection, and additional Holup drawings have been displayed at DIA, Republic Plaza and the Longmont Museum and Cultural Center.

Holup had created art works in Lyons since 2004 and in New York City since 1978. Her public art includes more than two dozen installations, including several works in New York City. Her first publicly commissioned art piece was in 1987, a VietnamWarMemorial in Forest City, Pa.

“Public art at its best affords us a fresh look at our surroundings. The art plays a supportive role to the community’s experience of place,” Holup wrote this year.

Denver artist John McEnroe, a colleague and friend, recalled Holup as a champion of public art, an accomplished artist whowashumbleand supportive of fellowartists.

She died Sept. 29 after battling lung cancer. She is survived by her husband, Peter Brown, of Lyons and New York; two sons, Matt Brannon of Lyons and Mark Brannon of Denver; and three grandchildren.