Art World Descends on Aspen

J amie Tisch and Sara Zilkha understand the value of combining an active alfresco life with the more cerebral excitement of cultural concerns. Tisch, a businesswoman and philanthropist, and Zilkha, co-founder of the outdoor apparel store Salt + Snow, are longtime friends and will again co-chair the city’s ArtCrush Gala – including a special auction hosted by Sotheby’s to benefit the Aspen Art Museum – bringing a dash of high-altitude high life to the Rockies.

The gala will be held on the evening of Friday, 4 August at the base of Buttermilk Mountain – a popular local ski and snowboarding area – and will mark the culmination of Aspen Art Week, which Tisch describes as a “celebratory program that brings the art world together in Aspen.” The live auction of ten highlights will be supported by an online auction of a further 48 lots, collectively offering a curated selection of exceptional works by world-renowned artists – including paintings, sculptures, ceramics, work on paper and design – with estimates ranging from under $5,000 to over $500,000. The art week coincides with Into the Woods, a selling exhibition at Sotheby’s Aspen open from 29 July through 4 September.

Past Auction

ArtCrush 2023: Art Auction to Benefit the Aspen Art Museum

27 July–5 August 2023 | 12:00 PM MDT | Aspen

Aspen Art Week presents “world-class performances, talks and events, even artist-led hikes in the mountains,” says Tisch. And parties, of course: this year’s gala theme is “Disco in the Woods.” But summer in Aspen offers art lovers much more: climbing and biking, paddle-boarding and fly fishing on the Roaring Fork River, and a booming food scene.

The week also provides a rare opportunity to see some of the region’s incredible private art collections, notes Zilkha. “A hot ticket is a visit to the collection of Nancy Magoon. Nancy is a legend and has built one of the most impressive collections in the country. Not to be missed.” A board member of the Aspen Art Museum, Magoon has turned her Aspen chalet into something of an art gallery, featuring works by Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and Andy Warhol (who reportedly painted her in the early hours of the morning following a party in Miami).

Founded as a mining town in the late 19th century, Aspen has enjoyed a long and cherished cultural history, from the 1970s when John Denver and Hunter S Thompson stamped their counter-culture credentials on the mountain retreat, through to the current success of the Aspen Art Museum, an institution opened in 1979 with the founding principle of bringing together “artists, scholars, policymakers, organizations, innovators and risk takers.”

The museum is just one of several key sites staging events during the week. “This year I’m really looking forward to a performance by the British artist Matt Copson, which will take place in the incredible setting of Smuggler Mine,” says Tisch. The landmark is the oldest operating silver mine in the district. Another highlight for Tisch is the headline talk between Serpentine Gallery artistic director Hans Ulrich Obrist, Aspen Art Museum director Nicola Lees and the German-Iranian artist Nairy Baghramian (who will be honored with the Aspen Award for Art 2023).

All of the works appearing at the benefit auction have been donated by the artists and their galleries and will be on view at the museum. “I’ve been blown away by the boundless generosity,” states Tisch. “This is a vote of confidence for the museum, for our programs and for the community of patrons who support the museum.” She is particularly drawn to pieces by Baghramian and the New York-based painter Chase Hall, both of whom have exhibitions at the museum this summer. Her other personal picks include a photographic portrait of Octavia Butler by Todd Gray and a Kerstin Brätsch piece that “looks like terrazzo but is made from plaster and oil on honeycomb.” Brätsch will have a major exhibition in Aspen in 2024.

Zilkha is impressed by the variety of works appearing at auction, many of which speak to connections with the museum. “Roberto Lugo is presenting a ceramic pot featuring RUN DMC, with smaller ceramics featured in a pop-up on the museum's rooftop,” she says. “And there are chairs by Gaetano Pesce and a fabric work by Cauleen Smith, both of whom have been recently featured by the museum.”

As well as the works on view and the program of events, the week provides an opportunity for locals to share their town with an influx of visitors, as Tisch explains: “People come to Aspen during art week from all around the world – it’s a fantastic testament to the pull of our community here.”