The Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies was founded four years ago and works to maintain Aspen’s artistic history, including the Bauhaus movement, through public programming, art exhibitions and educational initiatives.
It is also dedicated to the art and legacy of Herbert Bayer.
Bayer was an influential artist and designer who helped lead the postwar revitalization of Aspen, shaped the early vision of the Aspen Institute and designed the Aspen Meadows campus.
The nonprofit is hosting events on Saturday to celebrate its four-year anniversary, as well as the Aspen Institute’s 75th anniversary.
Reporter Regan Mertz sat down with Executive Director Lissa Ballinger to talk about how Bayer fits into the Roaring Fork Valley’s cultural scene, the struggle between preservation and modernization in Aspen and cuts in federal arts funding.
The conversation below has been edited for clarity and length.
Regan Mertz: Something that struck me was the center being four years old, and then the Aspen Institute celebrating its 75th [anniversary].
How do you balance being such a young organization and something that's been around for 75 years?
Lissa Ballinger: Well, we're such a young organization, but our history is so formidable. Herbert Bayer was such an important part of the beginning of the Aspen Institute, so it's very timely. Our exhibition specifically deals with the actual campus itself and all the sculptures and land art, etc., on the campus. So, it was the perfect year to celebrate the three-dimensional artwork of Herbert Bayer specifically.
Mertz: I do see that spirit in Aspen, but I also see people that do want to modernize Aspen.
So, how do you walk that balance between preservation but also modernizing a town that was established 150 years ago?
Ballinger: Walter Gropius was invited to visit Aspen before Herbert Bayer actually came, and he is quoted as saying the thing that really helped define the growth of architecture in Aspen, which is, “preserve the best of the old.” So, he looked at the town in 1945 and said, “preserve the best of the old Victorian architecture, but if you're going to build, build modern.”
Don't be reductive. Don't be imitative. Don't just create an Airsas Bavarian village. Create and design architecture to the design problems of the day, which I think Herbert Bayer did — was an exemplar of that. He preserved the grand dames of Aspen, and then he was able to create his own buildings on the Aspen Institute campus.
Mertz: What does the Bayer Center bring to the cultural landscape here in Aspen and in the Roaring Fork Valley? What sets it apart?
With this being a place that is so abundant in arts and culture, what is the center trying to do?
Ballinger: I think we play a very unique role that is part of such a broader incredible landscape that we were speaking about earlier. The cultural riches of Aspen are unbelievable, but the Aspen Institute is the origin of that. And I think that is so important to remember, especially in this 75th year of the Aspen Institute.
Specifically, Herbert Beyer was part of that as well — a huge part of that. So, we are able to address the incredible phenomenon of having this moment in Aspen's history, in which we have now developed into what is considered modern Aspen today.
Mertz: How do you go about maintaining the lasting legacy for a person that's been gone, preserving arts and culture in an increasingly technological world, as well as funding generally?
It's not as free flowing as it once was in the nonprofit scene.
Ballinger: I mean, there's no question always with every nonprofit. And as we have mentioned several times, there's so many amazing nonprofits in this valley, and we're all competing for many of the same dollars. But we just keep presenting exhibitions, and we're constantly looking for new funding sources to help us and grants and every different arena to help. But it's a true concern.
We're part of the larger Aspen Institute, and that is an amazing resource and anchor for us, but we have all the same struggles, and it will continue. We're constantly — I am constantly looking for increasing funding, etc., especially just to be able to get access for more educational programs. That's really what we're aiming to do: more public programs, more educational programs, and to continue our free access to the center for people to be able to visit and experience the exhibitions for free.
Mertz: Thank you so much for being here. I really appreciate it.
Ballinger: Thank you, Regan.
Support for this Nonprofit Spotlight series comes from the Aspen Community Foundation.
