Art stars at this year’s version of Snow Lodge, the wintry Aspen sister to Montauk’s summery haven Surf Lodge. Curated by Brandon Boyd, of Moonlight Arts Collective, and presented by Eva Longoria’s Casa del Sol tequila, the art program features a miscellany of photography, paintings, and sculptures by photorealist Richard Phillips, multimedia artists Tonia Calderon and Zoe Buckman, and Anthony James, known for his mind-bending LED installations that create the illusion of infinity.
Since the Snow Lodge opened its doors at the St. Regis Aspen Resort, the buzzy supper club has been the epicenter of the après ski scene, much thanks to founder and creative director Jayma Cardoso’s experiential pedigree, Casa d’Angelo–alum Mark Connell’s coastal Italian menu, cocktails by New York’s award-winning bar Dante, and live performances by Diplo and the Chainsmokers, among others. With Catskills-based designer Kimberly Bevan‘s touch, the sumptuous interiors are appointed with whimsical furniture from the women-led brand TOV, from fringed back swivel chairs and tufted sofas to velvet poufs.
Boyd, the frontman for rock band Incubus, wanted to match the space’s convivial spirit with artworks from like-minded creatives who “moonlight” as artists—a theme that inspired the name of the collective he formed with Jen DiSisto. Case in point: Filipino actress Heart Evangelista’s new collection of hand-painted Hermès Birkin bags, which recently went on display. Boyd also contributed work, collaborating with longtime friend and photographer Brian Bowen Smith on mixed-media pieces where he painted over Smith’s photographs of his girlfriend Sarah Hay dancing ballet.
“The Moonlight Arts Collective is a celebration of multidisciplinary creativity. Creativity itself isn’t linear, the phenomenon is almost antithetical to linearity, and perhaps that is what attracts people of all walks of life towards it,” Boyd says. “Whether it’s painting, photography, sculpture, music, film, or literature, artists rarely have one straight line in their process. So this display in Aspen is a microcosm of a relatively limitless idea.”
On a recent visit, Boyd relished the electric setting as the crowd spilled in from a performance by Bob Moses in the courtyard. “It was amazing to see people celebrating in the room with the art being a part of that. Art is often shown in stuffy, white, vibeless rooms with hushed voices and turtleneck sweaters, so having our art be witness to people laughing and singing is kind of amazing.”
