Sundance Christmas tree decorated with ornaments from North Texas artists

by David Moreno, Fort Worth Report
December 23, 2025

Fort Worth artist Cole Gunter, 33, typically paints on large-scale canvas when creating scenes inspired by his Texas upbringing. 

For the holidays, he pushed his artistry to a new level by painting on an unfamiliar surface: a beach ball-size ornament. 

Gunter was among 40 North Texas artists invited this season to decorate a unique ornament for Sundance Square’s 86-foot-tall Christmas tree. The pieces range in themes from colorful piñatas to mischievous Labubus — a popular plush toy collectible — to fluttering hummingbirds.

Gunter illustrated vaqueros on horseback to highlight Fort Worth’s diverse Western culture. Painting an ornament felt like a “sentimental opportunity” to honor his family’s artistic legacy, he said. 

“Both my grandmothers were artists, and I’d like to think they would be really proud and honored that I had an ornament on the Sundance Square tree,” Gunter said. 

Sundance Square has invited local creatives — both emerging and established — to hand paint ornaments for the past five years to build community and spotlight the diverse artistic talent in the region, said Simone Fisher, the downtown district’s gallery manager and curator. 

The Norway spruce, 11 feet taller than this year’s tree at the Rockefeller Center in New York, is decorated with old and new ornaments.

The most recent pieces are placed lower for guests to get a closer view, which is tempting for some would-be Grinches. An ornament by artist Arely Morales was stolen in late November but returned a few days later. Sundance security now frequently patrols around the tree to prevent other thieves from stealing Christmas.

“Sundance really cares about incorporating local artists into the tapestry of the city,” Fisher said. “Why would we go to a store and buy a bunch of ornaments? Why don’t we activate our community and have our artists contribute?” 

Notable past Fort Worth contributors of the seasonal artworks include Daniel Blagg, Letitia Huckaby and Erik Gomez. 

Gomez, who has painted an ornament for three years running, said he loves participating because it gives him a platform to expose his art to more people. This year his design features traditional Mexican flowers and butterflies to represent transformation and his journey as an immigrant, he said. 

“Sundance Square’s tree has grown every year, and I’ve kind of grown with it as an artist,” Gomez said. “Art isn’t necessarily valued as much as other professions, and the fact that Sundance is willing to look at us small artists and foster the community is so significant.” 

In order to attract new artists, Fisher and Sundance Square’s creative team spend months scouting local talent. They contact artists directly and pay them for their contributions. 

The end goal is to treat the Christmas tree decorations like an exhibition in the plaza, Fisher said. 

“Fort Worth is mostly known for its rodeo and for cowboy culture, but we have an incredibly strong arts scene that is the fabric of this community,” she said. “I really want our viewers to connect with the artists.”

The Sundance Square Christmas tree will be on view through New Year’s Day. 

David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or @davidmreports.

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