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Artists bring interactive, experiential pieces to new Snowmass community hub

On the evening of Sept. 13 in Base Village, over a dozen people were hard at work in The Collective building.

At the rink level, people drilled away in a stereotypical construction environment, surrounded by plastic tarps, unfinished wood and power tools.

On the floor just below them, people were equipped with spray paint, thick brushes and bright colors, working individually to collaboratively turn a once white-walled space into a diverse hodge-podge of interactive art pieces.



“Everything here is artistically affected,” said Chris Beatty, creative director of the soon-to-be game lounge and experiential art center in The Collective building. “I want it to feel comfortable and organic and I think that’s the secret.”

From a mural that plays music when your hand meets different painted shapes on the walls and inspiring word clouds, to giant, cool-hued spirals and time-warped images of Zeigler Reservoir, Beatty said all 12 artists will create at their own pace over the next several weeks to fill the bottom floor of The Collective with color, texture and design.




The experiential art and gaming center aims to be a fun gathering place for kids and adults full of “Instagram moments,” Beatty said, and will house an Xbox video game area, an eight-person fusbol table, a Ping Pong tube, a roughly 130,000-ball pool shaped like Zeigler Reservoir, neon-lit pinball, lounge space and more.

The space will be educational, too: about 10% of the balls in the Zeigler-inspired pool will be clear with artist interpretations of footprints that kids can match with the prehistoric mammal they belong to, creating a fun learning opportunity, Beatty said.

“I love giving people an experience because I think it’s more meaningful and it resonates,” Beatty said. “So for me, I want people to feel. … I want kids to come in here and start interpreting how they feel through color, shape, meeting new friends. Kids are just going to come down here and play with each other and I think that’s lovely.”

A graphic designer in Denver, Beatty said he hasn’t taken on an artistic endeavor quite like The Collective before. From 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. over the past week, he’s kept The Collective space open for artists to work on their pieces and has watched their work evolve from the original designs.

Most of the artists working on The Collective are from Colorado and most Beatty found through research, Instagram or his two “anchor artists”: Thomas “Detour” Evans, who is creating the interactive music mural, and Chad Bolsinger who is crafting the Zeigler Reservoir piece surrounding the ball pool.

East West Partners, the Snowmass Base Village developer, plan to pay for each artist to stay in the village while they work and hope to have a soft opening for the entire Collective building, which also will house a restaurant, bar and flex space at its rink level, on Dec. 7.

The company has promoted The Collective as the future “heartbeat” of Base Village, and will spend roughly $4 million to build out the inside of the new community space, bringing the finished building total to around $11 million.

“The Collective pays homage to the core aspects of Snowmass Village: It’s family friendly, fun and approachable,” said Charlie Singer with East West Partners. “It’s a unique project and we’re really excited about it.”

A grand opening for The Collective and part of One Snowmass will be held Dec. 14 as part of a Base Village opening celebration.