The CU Art Museum at the University of Colorado Boulder is presenting "Fairy Tales and the Power of Wonder," an exhibition running from February 6 through May 2026. The show brings together artworks, books, and maps that explore the themes and narratives of fairy tales, featuring hybrid creatures, magical beings, and imagined landscapes. It is supported by CU Boulder Student Arts and Cultural Enrichment fees and coordinated with concurrent exhibitions at the CU Museum of Natural History and Norlin Library.
This exhibition matters because it positions fairy tales as a lens for reimagining human experience and social norms, linking artistic creativity with the transformative power of storytelling. By blending art, literature, and natural history, it fosters interdisciplinary dialogue and underscores the role of wonder in addressing contemporary challenges, making it a model for community-engaged, cross-institutional programming at a public university.