The Intersect Aspen Art and Design Fair announced Wednesday that it had awarded its inaugual Artist Award to Meghann Riepenhoff.
Riepenhoff is known for her "camera-less photography" in which she uses cyanotype, one of the oldest photographic processes, to expose photographic paper to water, wind, and sediment. The results capture humans' relationship with the environment and the elements.
In a press release, Intersect said that the fair decided to honor Riepenhoff due to "her innovative process of using natural elements, her ability to integrate organic materials, sustainable practices, and environmental themes into her work."
"I had the pleasure of seeing Meghann's exhibition at Jackson Fine Art in Atlanta last October," Intersect CEO Tim von Gal told ARTnews in an email. "It was evident that her immersive environmental process shared extraordinary messages and insights about the beauty and complexity of our natural world. Meghann is the perfect recipient of this year's award as we honor her and Aspen's dedication to environmental consciousness through her unique and beautiful work."
The fair, held from July 30 to August 3 at the 16,000 square-foot Aspen Ice Garden, will have special programming related to Riepenhoff and its overall thematic focus this year is on the environment, social consciousness, design, and the "Aspen art journey." Riepenhoff will receive the award during the fair's opening day.
On July 31, Riepenhoff will co-host a meditation and yoga program in the morning at the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies, in partnership with Aspen nonprofit Lead with Love. Later that afternoon, Intersect will host a panel discussion on the environment, moderated by landscape architect Ann Mullins. The panel will include Riepenhoff, as well as Guadalupe Laiz, an Aspen-based and Argentine-born photographer and conservationist, and Nathan Kipnis, the principal of Kipnis Architecture + Planning who has specialized in integrating High Design aesthetics with "Low Carbon" concepts.
"I'm honored to receive this award and am grateful that my work can draw attention to the essential questions of how we relate with our environment," Riepenhoff said in a statement. "It is more essential than ever to realize our interconnectedness, and to find opportunities to prioritize environmental wellbeing."
This edition of the fair will have a total of 30 galleries participating, with a dozen first-time exhibitors. Among those participating are Aspen Collective, Axiom Contemporary, bG Gallery, Hilton Contemporary, HOFA, Jackson Fine Art, LEE & BAE, Phillip + Dan, and Winston Wächter Fine Art.
For the first time, Intersect will include contemporary design galleries, like BDDW, as well as a panel discussion on August 2 on the intersection of contemporary art and design with Todd Merrill of Todd Merrill Studio and Fernando Mastrangelo of Mastrangelo.
"We could not be more thrilled with our lineup of extraordinary galleries, programming, cultural and community partnerships," von Gal said in a statement. "We are ecstatic with the record-setting registration of VIP collectors and art enthusiasts upon announcing our 2024 galleries. This demand and appreciation from our attendees validate our extensive efforts in serving both Aspen and the art community."
