His work is also exhibited at Union Station and the Red Rocks Visitor Center. The 1908 Auditorium was the historic anchor of Denvers Performing Arts Complex but had been largely neglected. In 2000, Batura was awarded his first public art commission for the Schlessman Family Branch.

Currently, he is represented by Robischon Gallery, and his work has been exhibited both nationally and in Europe. For five years, Batura was a member of the North Denver co-op gallery, Pirate. and one of nine world-wide with an electronic seatback titling system available at every seat in the house. The Ellie is one of only three opera houses in the U.S. After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he traveled to Barcelona where he studied art and worked as an English teacher. Part of Denver Arts & Venues, the Ellie Caulkins Opera House is located in the Denver Performing Arts Complex. My handling of paint and surfaces reflects my interest in twentieth century painting.” “I’m not much interested in the representation of history, but the recurring activities and themes in the photos. “My paintings often use historical photographs as their source,” stated the artist.

The Ellie, a world-class acoustical hall designed in the lyric style, encompasses four levels: the balcony, loge, mezzanine and orchestra. To meet this objective, the artist’s solution was to use a familiar four part image of a theater curtain, stage, orchestra pit and audience seating, and then give it a beehive-like quality. The Ellie Caulkins Opera House, colloquially known as 'the Ellie,' is the premier venue inside of the historic Quigg Newton Denver Municipal Auditorium. In the beginning, the box office sold tickets to operas, concerts, musicals, plays, basketball games and even the 1908 Democratic National Convention. It was originally called The Municipal Auditorium and became the second largest venue of its kind in the United States. His second objective was for the mural to be as interesting from two hundred feet as from twenty. The Ellie Caulkins Opera House, commonly called The Ellie, opened in Denver, Colorado on July 8, 1908. Ultimately, the artist selected each person and detail from hundreds of films, old photographs, paintings, illustrations, as well as new photographs of stage workers, friends, family and arts patrons. His first objective was to portray the range of activities that might go on in advance of a grand night of opera. The oldest of Denvers theaters magically became the citys newest on Saturday, when the Ellie Caulkins Opera House was unveiled at a star-heavy night of. For Rehearsal, the artist’s task was to create a mural that would provide an appropriate transition from the lobby of the Ellie Caulkins Opera House to the performance space.

Ellie caulkins opera house colorado