a Letter from tim
Our Executive Director
Dear Friends and Supporters,
When we started Buckhorn Public Arts, our goal was simple: MAKE ART HAPPEN. In just three years, we’ve done that again and again, from turning bare construction fencing into public canvases to bringing Sanford Biggers’ Unsui to Paepcke Park. All of this has added to the cultural vibrancy of our town, but our newest initiative goes further: a physical space where Aspen’s community and artists can gather, connect, and create. It’s the kind of third space our town has lost in recent years, and I am incredibly proud of what we built this summer with the Aspen Arts Club.
creative spirit
art happen
opened its doors
In July, with the generous support of Mark Pincus and Hilary Shaw, we opened the doors. Aspen has always been a place where artists, thinkers, and neighbors come together to make something bigger than themselves. That spirit is why a town this small is globally recognized. Elizabeth Paepcke helped shape that vision more than seventy-five years ago, and with the Aspen Arts Club, we carry it forward: a home for our whole community, built on creative collaboration and a shared love of culture.
in residence
members served
build it all
Upstairs, overlooking Wagner Park and Ajax, BPA’s first artist residency has given eight local artists studio space in the heart of town. In a place where studio space is scarce and expensive, a dedicated room to work changes everything. It gives artists the time and focus to take on bigger, more ambitious work. Just as important is who’s working next door. Sharing a floor with other artists has sparked conversations, critiques, and collaborations that have pushed each of them in new directions. They’ve given back too, teaching community classes and sharing their skills with our guests.
Downstairs, on the club level, hundreds of community members have come through for salsa and yoga, full moon ceremonies, tarot readings, stand-up comedy, local maker markets, and Teen Art Night, which gives our high school students a creative outlet of their own. We’ve given Aspen back a third space, a place where programming like this can happen. We’ve kept it open to everyone.
Everything you’ve read about happened in a single season. Eight artists now have studios and a community behind them. Hundreds of neighbors found a reason to come downtown, meet each other, and try something new. Teenagers got a creative space that’s theirs. None of this existed in June.
Keeping it going takes the people who believe in it. Your membership keeps the studios open, the residency running, and every community program accessible and open to all. It keeps the lights on in a room where a salsa class, an artist’s first workshop, and a comedy night can all happen in the same week. And it keeps a piece of downtown Aspen for the people who make this town what it is.
This is more than a donation. As a member, you’re part of the Club: a place to belong, to connect, and to see your support turn into something you can walk into. We’ve proven what this space can be. With you, we can support the program through 2027.
Come see it for yourself. Join us for a class, catch a show, or take your next meeting in the space. We want the Aspen Arts Club to be the locals’ living room, a place where we gather around the culture that makes Aspen stand apart.
Join us at aspenartsclub.org/join. Will you?