Last week in Aspen, CULTURED swapped ski poles for champagne flutes, taking over the newly opened Sant Ambroeus Aspen for an intimate dinner blending art, design, and après-ski indulgence in collaboration with Aspen One and the Aspen Art Museum. The occasion? A dual celebration of Italian architect and interior designer Giampiero Tagliaferri’s latest triumph—the restaurant’s effortlessly chic interiors—and "Heaven," Alex Israel’s newest exhibition, which happens to be accessible only on skis.
Guests including Israel, film producers Brian Grazer and Sybil Robson Orr, Serpentine Galleries CEO Bettina Korek, actor Jesse Johnson, collector and philanthropist Jamie Tisch, and Vogue Creative Editorial Director Mark Guiducci enjoyed good conversation, a warm fire, and dishes like Sant Ambroeus's famous tagliatelle bolognese.
The pasta also provided welcome fuel to visit Israel's latest exhibition, which is perched at the base of Ruthie's Run, a blue trail on Aspen Mountain. "Heaven" takes its name from a now-defunct Century City novelty shop once frequented by Andy Warhol, Freddie Mercury, and the like. The show presents more than 30 portraits of late cultural icons—specifically, figures who have passed since Instagram’s 2010 inception—as part of Israel’s ongoing examination of celebrity and memory in the age of mass media. But his Aspen footprint doesn’t end there: Israel also designed the mountain's 2024-25 lift tickets, incorporating typography from the series.
As glasses emptied, coats were draped over shoulders, and a final bite of dessert was taken, sated guests slipped back to their alpine hideaways to prepare for tomorrow's adventure: seeing art on skis.
