Anderson Ranch Arts Center Benefits Aspen Show House Opening
/anderson ranch arts center, aspen colorado.
In a recent post on the Mountain Lane Show House website, we shared our excitement over opening our first show house in Colorado. The show house will be located in the stunning and much sought-after community of Aspen Snowmass. After months of upcoming renovations, the Mountain Lane Show House plans to open its doors in the fall of 2021. Over the next several months, we will share the transformation online. Our hope is that our new neighbors in Aspen will join us along this virtual journey and in person for the opening. After a year of hunkering down and “staying safer at home,” we cannot wait to welcome our Aspen neighbors to the show house. We have chosen to do so by honoring one of our community partners. We are proud to announce that the Anderson Ranch Arts Center will be the beneficiary of the Aspen show house opening’s ticket sales. The center is a cornerstone of the Aspen arts community and a hub of creativity. Their commitment to both the Snowmass community and to the arts has inspired all of us at LUDC. Follow below to learn more about the Ranch, our other partners and our Mountain Lane Show House opening event in Aspen!
OUR GOALS FOR THE MOUNTAIN LANE SHOW HOUSE
Our goals for the Mountain Lane Show House center around creating a beautiful home for Laura and a multi-purpose space for the community to engage with the Collective.
Working together, LUDC founder Laura Umansky and Creative Director Gina Brown plan to create the first show house in the Aspen area. Alongside Monogram Appliances, Permiano Builders and others, Laura and Gina will transform a 25-year-old home nestled in the mountains. It will become a modern, functional space for Laura and her family. As we noted in our post “Introducing the Stunning Mountain Lane Aspen Show House,” we will update the community virtually. We plan to invite everyone “into our ‘wholistic’ process as we design a home…in one of the most magical places in the world.“ Once the home has been completed this Fall, we plan to open the home for both virtual and small in-person, scheduled tours. Tour ticket sales will go on sale this summer with all proceeds benefiting the Anderson Ranch Arts Center.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE ART CENTER’S FOUNDING
Our goals for the Mountain Lane Show House center around creating a beautiful home for Laura and a multi-purpose space for the community to engage with the Collective.
In an April 2003 interview with Margaret Carney for the Archives of American Art, Paul Soldner recalled an unpleasant experience. He described an awkward encounter he had with art around eight years old. At the time, he created a painting of a sunset for his elementary school art teacher. Soldner was embarrassed when she announced the subject as a “fried egg.” From this moment until the early days of his college career, Soldner turned away from art due to fear of harsh critique and humiliation. Soldner founded the Arts Center alongside Cherie Hiser in the 1970s. They did so as an alternative to traditional education where students’ individual approach to art would be celebrated. He started the program with the intention that students come together for a “communal experience.” After this experience, each student would “end up with the knowledge, experience, skills, and aesthetics that any artist needs.” Soldner’s Arts Center would become a hub for legendary fine artists like Laurie Anderson and Ed Ruscha as well as designers like Sam Maloof. In 1980, the program evolved from what the Center calls “a sleepy summer workshop program to a dynamic year-round arts center.”
SERVING THE ARTS COMMUNITY IN ASPEN FOR 55 YEARS
(Left) David Ellsworth pictured in the woodturning studio of Anderson Ranch in 1971. This same year, Ellsworth launched the woodturning program. (Right) Visiting artist Laurie Anderson is pictured in 1982 at Anderson Ranch after she was invited to participate in a print project with Bud Shark. Photos courtesy of Anderson Ranch.
In the years that followed, the award-winning Anderson Ranch Arts Center emerged as a space for artists of all levels. They were encouraged to engage with their chosen mediums and express their creativity without fear of failure. Since its founding, the Center has received many accolades. These have included the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts and the Colorado Council on the Arts and Humanities Highest Merit Award. Over the last fifty-five years, the Anderson Ranch Arts Center has awarded dozens of scholarships. It has launched community-based initiatives like the Children’s Art Program. Today, the Center offers the Aspen community a variety of lectures, workshops and events. It supports artists through its Artist-in-Residence program, mentorship programs and critical feedback days.
WHY WE CHOSE ANDERSON RANCH ARTS CENTER FOR OUR ASPEN SHOW HOUSE OPENING
Founded by raku ceramicist Paul Soldner in 1966, the Ranch began as an avant-garde community arts center in the still-developing town of Aspen. The Ranch has always been dedicated to introducing people to the arts. In its early days, it focused on fostering the artistic spirit within those dissatisfied by traditional arts education.
As such, the Ranch pursued a different method and ethos of art instruction. Fifty-five years later, the Center remains a staple of the Aspen arts community. It is hailed across the US as one of the most respected visual arts programs in the country.
For fifty-five years, the faculty, students and board of Anderson Ranch have demonstrated their commitment to the arts and to the community. We are honored to partner with the Ranch! Photo courtesy of Anderson Ranch.
Years of service to the Snowmass community and a mission to encourage creativity and engage people of all ages sets the Center apart. This mission made the Ranch an easy choice as the beneficiary of ticket sales from the Mountain Lane Show House opening. We identified with the Center because of their commitment to artistic expression and because of LUDC’s connection to the organization. Below we describe the Center’s impact on the community and Laura U Design Collective’s connection to the center.
YEARS OF SERVING THE ASPEN SNOWMASS COMMUNITY
Children’s educational programs and the Annual Arts Auction are just two of many ways in which Anderson Ranch serves the community. Photos courtesy of Anderson Ranch.
The Center offers everything from workshops and artist talks to internships and scholarships. As such, the Anderson Ranch Arts Center serves the Aspen community in a number of ways. In 1979, the Ranch began a tradition of annual art auctions, the proceeds of which fund its many educational programs.
Back in 1984, the Ranch expanded its commitment to providing safe, artistic spaces for children. It was then that Evelyn Siegel and Susan Casebeer launched workshops for children. Shortly afterwards — in 1985 — the Ranch provided its first scholarship. Since then — according to their website — the Ranch has “increased the number of scholarships awarded to [their] workshop students to a record level of 32%.” They note that “scholarships allow [the Ranch] to bring diversity and a richer experience to all of [their] students.” The Ranch also provides the Aspen community with a free summer series. During the series, respected artists speak to and mingle with artists, faculty and members of the community.
