SkiCo aims to be the Aspen culture | Opinion

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Editor:

Katrina Israel writes in the Australian: “Meet Paula Crown, Aspen’s Cultural Curator.” 

German artist Theodore Adorno derogatorily dubbed the commercialization of culture as “the culture industry.” And so it has come to pass in the former homeland of hip, the Sandwich Board Lady, is banned. How did the mecca of ski bums, hippies, artists and drop-outs get to the point that local artist Pat Milligan is banned from the town square, Gondola Plaza? Well, ask any artist that does not work for SkiCo.

Our past is simply a template for Jim and Paula Crown’s SkiCo, indeed, a historical prototype for the construction of a sleek glitzy image. The effect of the SkiCo’s advanced branding, if not the original intent, is to nudge the hosting culture (the community of Aspen) into the background and make their fabulous brand of Aspen the star. It is not to sponsor the original culture of Aspen but to be the culture: the Red Onions where locals and guests hung out are morphed into the exclusive Aspen Mountain Clubs where one joins with the payment of $250,000.

Why can’t Paula and Jim respect the old inclusiveness of the mind, body and spirit mantra instead of just bombing the efforts of Pussy and Walter Paepcke? While the historical aspects of Aspen have been replaced by the new private club Crown Royal version of Aspen, physical space in Aspen has undergone a parallel co-opting.  Banning political dissidents is small change when your big money is making weapons.

Lee Mulcahy

Basalt

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