Since the Sunflower Theatre in Cortez opened its doors in January 2015, the intimate, elegant space with wood floors, tin ceilings, cut stone – even resident ghosts – has brought art, culture, lectures, events and media to a diverse, rural audience.

But these days, its vision is bolder and more ambitious. A magnetic force is building, pulling people from the outer reaches of Cortez and Durango toward memorable times at The Sunflower that can’t be found regionally.

With the likes of The Sunflower, the Four Corners will blossom in art, root and grow and inspire creatives, and shift from what the area’s been for too long – an arts desert. More and more, art is becoming accessible.

We’re excited about this.

KSJD Development Director Erik Quiroz heads up film programming and studio relations at the theater. Previously, he has been in these pages as host and producer of the podcast The Warrior Narratives, which juxtaposes stories of local veterans from wildly different backgrounds, perspectives and experiences.

A vet himself, Quiroz gently guides guests into their own stories, while keeping a respectful distance in the background.

His light but firm touch makes a difference here. We expect the same for The Sunflower.

Quiroz understands that vets are underserved in the Southwest. The thing is, underserved communities are spread out in each direction across this landscape, whether they’re ranchers or farmers or Indigenous or LGBTQ+ residents.

We’re all remote and rural. And programming at The Sunflower is largely intended with them in mind.

Most appreciate what’s happening at The Sunflower. But a noisy minority does not. In April, a drag show generated calls to city administrators, who made clear it had no authority to stop the show. A few threats followed but none were credible. The show went on to rave reviews. Funny and deliberate, it left behind a little showbiz glitter and glamour.

Arthouse cinema is becoming common viewing, too, thanks to a $35,000 film projector, paid for partially with grant money from the LOR Foundation. In celebration of Pride Month, the critically acclaimed “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” a film about an affair between two women – a painter and an aristocrat – in late 18th century France, will be screened on Friday.

This follows other movies – “The Boy and the Heron,” “The Zone of Interest,” “Marcel the Shell with Shoes,” “Love Lies Bleeding.” None were shown at, nor competed with, the Fiesta Theatre in Cortez or Durango movie houses.

Also, expect more plays. Quiroz produced the tragicomedy solo show “I’ve Grown Plenty, Thanks!” for the Hollywood Fringe Festival this month. The character finds certain things in life, such as romantic love, don’t come naturally to her. He hopes to showcase the play here sometime.

Quiroz, originally from Los Angeles, landed in Cortez during a transitional time and sort of fell in love with the place. After an encounter with a young woman on Main Street, his brain began firing about the possibilities of more art. The two fell into a conversation about movies, with horror her preferred genre. She mentioned a few favorites that Quiroz remembered from the Telluride Horror Show, a film fest in October.

He asked whether she’d seen the movies in Telluride. She said she’d never been to Telluride.

Her response lit something inside of Quiroz. Right away, he went to work to bring more varied cultural experiences to The Sunflower.

Cortez, population 9,220, has been growing annually at a steady clip of 1.22%. More art makes sense for more people.

For Quiroz and likeminded folks at The Sunflower, Cortez is a big blank canvas. We’re glad they see it that way.