Aspen Art Fair is newest addition to wealthy Colorado town’s art calendar

The Aspen Art Fair will take place at Hotel Jerome, Aspen, Colorado Courtesy Hotel Jerome, Auberge Resorts Collection
Nestled in a picturesque valley in the Rocky Mountains, Aspen, Colorado, may be known for winter sports and other outdoor recreation, but it has become increasingly celebrated as an art destination—especially with its Aspen Art Week, which brings together collectors, curators and artists in a culture festival co-ordinated by Aspen Art Museum. This summer, the Aspen Art Fair (29 July-2 August) joins the festivities with a debut at the high-profile Hotel Jerome, a historic gem in the centre of town that was recently awarded a Michelin Key.
About 30 galleries and projects—including from Los Angeles (Carlye Packer, Casterline Goodman), New York (Miles McEnery, Nancy Hoffman) and abroad (El Apartamento from Havana and Madrid, Galerie Gmurzynska from Zürich)—are in the art fair’s lineup. Perrotin is perhaps the biggest fish among them. About half of the galleries will be in stands set up in the foyer, bar and ballroom, and the other half in hotel rooms. While admission to the fair costs $30 per day, those staying at the hotel get complimentary passes.
The fair was co-founded by Becca Hoffman, who formerly ran Intersect Aspen (which is still taking place, 30 July-3 August), and Bob Chase, owner of one of the town’s leading contemporary-art galleries, Hexton, which will also show at the fair.
“The Aspen community is unique in its history and philanthropic support and connection to arts and culture,” Hoffman says, mentioning the presence of Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Aspen Art Museum and jazz and film festivals. “It is a community that is intellectually curious, highly informed and exceptionally engaged,” she adds. “And you know there are some amazing collections in Aspen.”
This means a lot of very rich people live there. Last year, Money magazine cited a study stating that one in every 67 residents in Aspen was “ultra-high net worth” with at least $30m in investable assets. In Aspen, a town of just over 7,000 residents, that means more than 100 people fall into this category. (Then add in those who visit, flying in on their private jets.)
In addition to Hoffman’s work with the art fair, through her newly founded organisation 74tharts, she sets up cultural programming throughout the year. In March, 74tharts helped organise an exhibition of women artists at Hotel Jerome. Last month, it co-presented a screening of the film Taking Venice, directed by Amei Wallach, about how the US government manipulated the 1964 Venice Biennale so that Robert Rauschenberg would win top honours. “It's really important to us to be part of the citywide cultural conversation year round,” Hoffman says.
Zanele Muholi's Bester I, New York (2019) Courtesy Southern Guild
Chase, Aspen Art Fair’s other co-founder, has been living in town for 15 years and cites its “culture-forward” spirit. “I was excited about the opportunity to create a platform where we could showcase some of our cultural institutions, alongside international galleries, and continue that art-history story that has been such a part of Aspen," he says. For him, the hotel is especially right for the fair. “It’s one of the oldest buildings in Aspen, and one of the gathering spots for this town,” he says. “It has such a cosy, elevated atmosphere, and it allows us to have conversations and curatorial projects."
At least one participating gallery is travelling particularly far for the fair: Southern Guild, from Cape Town, South Africa. Specialising in artists and designers based in Africa, the gallery has been actively exploring the US market. Recently, it set up a gallery in Los Angeles in the burgeoning Melrose Hill area. This year, Southern Guild has a stand in five other US art fairs.
“Aspen kept cropping up [in conversations] with artists that we know," says Southern Guild co-founder Trevyn McGowan. (The gallery had previously joined an online version of Intersect Aspen.) "Collectors we work with in LA have homes there or were travelling there,” he adds. “And then other galleries from New York that we've partnered with—just everywhere I turned, Aspen was coming up. So it seems to be growing in reputation and stature.”
One of the best-known artists the gallery represents, Zanele Muholi, will donate a photograph to the Aspen Art Museum’s ArtCrush auction (which will let artists keep up to 30% of the proceeds of their own sold works for the first time this year), as well as serving as artist in residence at Hotel Jerome during the fair. Since Muholi often works while on the road, taking self-portraits in hotel rooms with improvised props, the residency seems especially apropos.
While Hoffman and Chase skirted the question of whether there is room for two Aspen art fairs in the same week, they do believe the new fair has a place in the city. "The folks that I know asked, ‘Why don't we have something really elevated, worthy of the cultural footprint of this town?’ And so I'm super happy that we're answering that call,” Chase says. "I think that this is going to be the kind of space where the most discerning collectors are going to find galleries and works in curatorial projects that they love. Also that folks curious about art, design and culture are going to be totally enchanted. So it feels like it's not only the right time, but really the right fit for this town."

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