In Vail, you expect to be wowed by the power of nature. But what may be unexpected is the power and beauty of the site-specific public arts on display throughout the resort village.

Since 1992, the Town of Vail’s Art in Public Places (AIPP) program has collected more than 70 bronzes, environmental sculptures, colorful murals, and site-integrated art—put on permanent display in mostly outdoor settings in what has been described as a museum without walls.

Visitors arriving by car might notice, and puzzle over, Lawrence Weiner’s “language as art” installation, a provocative phrase (“To the Extent of How Deep the Valley Is at Some Given Time”) installed on the concrete façade of the village’s main parking garage, a donation from globally recognized contemporary art collectors Vicki and Kent Logan.

Those strolling over the Covered Bridge at the northern end of Bridge Street stop to admire a larger-than-life-size bronze (by Victor Issa and Scott Stearman) of a ski trooper—a memorial to soldiers of World War II’s 10th Mountain Division. Others stumble (or sit) upon less-obvious functional artwork like elements of sculptor Jesús Moroles’ Granite Landscape, which originally had been installed at the top of Bridge Street and was moved to Ford Park near where the Vail Art Studio stands today.

Also on view near the Art Studio this summer: A temporary (June 20-Oct 30) sculpture and light-based installation by the artist collaborative HYBYCOZO. To best appreciate this work, and other gems in the town's museum without walls, stop by the Vail Village Welcome Center Wednesdays at 11 a.m. (July 2–Aug 27) for a free hour-long walking tour of the collection led by AIPP Coordinator Molly Eppard.