The Center for the Arts is the vibrant home of many community arts activities that occur in Crested Butte. The facility provides multiple spaces for performing, visual, and culinary arts activities. The 300-seat theater easily adapts to drama, dance, film, non-amplified music, and the raucous audience-engaged musical performances by local and nationally known musical acts.

An art gallery, visual arts studios, and two performance rehearsal rooms serve the broad range of community classes and events presented by the center. A tall copper-clad volume marks the multiple entries to the center. The theater and studios are organized into multiple wood-clad shapes that are sized to be similar in scale and character to buildings in the historic town.

The studio shapes are organized around a central multipurpose, double-height lobby that combines massive wood structural members, textured copper, and rich fabrics within floor-to-ceiling glass walls to create a warm interior environment. The lobby activities occur under a large faceted roof whose shape echoes the angular silhouette of the adjacent Crested Butte Mountain.