Discover the "Aspen Idea"
On Friday June 2, The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF) will host a daylong excursion in Aspen, a place that seduces with its stunning natural beauty and remarkable examples of innovative landscape architecture. Discover the “Aspen Idea,” where mind, body, and spirit coalesce in an exceptional environment. The excursion features morning expert-led tours of iconic public sites – the Aspen Institute and Aspen Pedestrian Mall – and afternoon visits to exquisite private residences. And, of course, in true TCLF tradition, there will be a sumptuous lunch.
The 40-acre Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies, founded in 1949, is a world renowned gathering place for great thinkers and doers. It is also home to pioneering examples of site-specific sculptures and earthworks by the influential Bauhaus artist Herbert Bayer that were installed over a two-decade period starting in 1955. These icons were not only precursors of the earthworks movements of the 1960s and 1970s, they also presaged the environmental art of the 1980s. Bayer was also responsible for the Institute’s master plan and influenced everything from the architecture to the graphic design elements. The tour will be led by Ann Mullins, FASLA.
The idea for the Aspen Pedestrian Mall began in the mid-1950’s as tourists and new residents began to visit and live in Aspen. In the 1970’s Robin Molny, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright, led the master planning effort that converted three acres of downtown streets to a car-free zone. The project, which was completed in 1976, aligned with national trends in urban design to pedestrianize public space and reflected the collective thought of the mountain naturalists to bridge Aspen’s urban fabric with its natural environment. Today, the Aspen Pedestrian Mall is that rare success story out of more than 200 similar projects that failed, and thanks to recent revitalization efforts it continues to thrive as an urban park -- one that was recently recognized by the American Planning Association as one of the Great Places in America. The tour will be led by Tina Bishop from Mundus Bishop.
The Soldner Center is an idiosyncratic residence that was hand built by the artists Paul and Ginny Soldner, a ceramicist and a painter, respectively. The home, a Modernist rift on barn-meets-ranch-meets-A-Frame-meets-stupa, features an innovative use of a mélange of materials, including wood and stone. The Soldners also shaped the landscape, planted the trees, and were early adopters of solar energy. The Center now serves as an early Aspen example of the integration of arts, architecture, environment, energy, and community. The tour will be led by descendant Stephanie Soldner.
DBX Ranch, designed by Aspen-based landscape architecture firm Design Workshop, is the recipient of the National Award of Excellence in Residential Design from the American Society of Landscape Architects. The residence – a compound of structures designed in the modern ranch vernacular – is unified by the careful placement of layered and interconnected outdoor gathering spaces and curated native plant communities. A singular palette of stone and wood seamlessly connects indoor and outdoor space through simple and compelling expressions. Context-sensitive and sustainable strategies address water quality, reforestation and visual character, restoring ecological integrity to this once-derelict site. This tour will be led by Richard Shaw and Mike Albert from Design Workshop and architect Cristof Eigelberger.
Transportation and a scrumptious lunch will be provided.
5.0 LA CES™ professional development hours will be available to attendees.
Refund Policy
Cancellations and Refunds will be granted according to the following schedule:
Up to two (2) weeks in advance: 50% (Deduction represents administrative processing fees)
No refunds will be made for cancellations thirteen (13) days prior to event
No refunds will be made for “No Shows” (a person who registers for a program but who does not cancel registration or attend the program).
Refunds will be processed as they are received or after the conclusion of the program, depending on the program date and when cancellation occurs. Refunds may take five (5) to seven (7) business days to process.
