Posts tagged colorado
Transforming Tents

It’s the summer of tents in Aspen. It seems like every party, wedding and reason to celebrate is taking place under a temporary structure. And while tents are nothing new, the decorations going into making them seem so un-tent-like are.

During the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, the grand tasting tents go up in Wagner Park to protect people while they drink and eat their way through hundreds of wineries and food purveyors. But away from the center of the action, smaller tents for seminars and private parties steal the spotlight. Nice touches in these included red-and-white checkered tablecloths for a seminar on picnicking. At night, private tasting events were transformed into ultra-cool lounge settings with low, cushy couches and brightly colored accent throw pillows.

Mid-summer is also a time for galas. Many of the nonprofits in town host their annual benefits, and they go all out in making it a luxe affair. Understated elegance has been the theme here, again with thoughtful, intimate touches; long picnic tables, small sofa sets around oversized tables and tall-boy tables with stools all encourage conversation and provide a sense of community at events that can otherwise be stuffy. Gone are big round tables for 10. Instead event planners are moving toward a mix and match of tables and group sizes.

And finally, what summer isn’t complete without weddings? Some of the most interesting designs have been on the walls surrounding these lavish events. Instead of keeping the ceiling white, one bride covered the ceiling with large swatches of navy-blue-striped fabric. In a separate tents, light blue plaid hung from the walls while the ceiling was covered in painted in stars and moons. It was heavenly and truly transformed the space into a mystical place. Spotlights pointed toward the wall casting shadows of stenciled leaves and flowers create a multidimensional affect. Carpets on the floor softened the noise and provided a comfy feeling.

I can't wait to see what the rest of the summer has in store!

A Great Friend And A Great Artist

Artist Profile:

Marilyn Minter

Though we are quite secluded in Aspen – far from the hustle and bustle of New York or L.A – it pleases me to know that we are not, however, too far removed from some of the greatest artists of our time, including my friend Marilyn Minter (www.marilynminter.net).

Represented here in Aspen by the Baldwin Gallery, with whom I work closely for my clients,  Marilyn Minter (born 1948) is an American artist currently living and working in New York City and one of the most engaging photographer / painter I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

An aspect I admire the most about Marilyn’s photography is that her photographs are most often not altered in any way – leaving a raw, exposed image of the life around us to consume as is. No magic.

BIO

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Marilyn Minter has been the subject of numerous solo exhibitions including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in 2005, the Center for Contemporary Art, Cincinnati, Les Rencontres d’Arles festival in 2007, France, OH in 2009, La Conservera, Centro de Arte Contemporáneo, Ceutí/Murcia, Spain in 2009, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, OH in 2010 and the Deichtorhallen in Hamburg, Germany in 2011. Her video Green Pink Caviar was exhibited in the lobby of the MoMA for over a year, and was also shown on digital billboards on Sunset Boulevard in LA. She has been included in numerous group exhibitions. In 2006, Marilyn Minter was included in the Whitney Biennial, and in a collaboration with Creative Time she installed billboards all over Chelsea in New York city. In 2009, she had solo exhibits at Regen Projects, Los Angeles and Salon 94, New York. In 2011 Minter had a solo exhibition at Team Gallery, New York. She was featured in Commercial Break, at the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture and POST, for the 2011 Venice Biennale. Her work is currently featured in “ Riotous Baroque”, a group exhibition at the Kunsthaus Zurich which will travel to the Guggenheim Bilbao in June 2013.