Annual ArtCrush Gala at Aspen Art Museum Honors Adrián Villar Rojas
The 21st edition of the scene-making party included a live auction that raised over $4 million
Another Aspen Art Week has drawn to a close, with the capstone ArtCrush Gala closing the festivities. This year’s event was chaired by philanthropist Sarah Arison and entrepreneur Charlie Pohlad. It honored artist Adrián Villar Rojas, whose sculpture and installation works realize world-building temporal confusion in organic and unstable materials. He received the prestigious Lewis Family Art Award for 2026, and his exhibition “First Gods, Lost Animals” is currently on view across multiple floors of the museum through April 11, 2027.
Names on the guest list included Julie Dash, Kelly Akashi, Adam Charlap Hyman, Vincenzo de Bellis, Stuart Comer, Linda Goode Bryant, Kristine Bell, Ashlee Harrison, Nikolai Haas, Charles Aubin and Jason Farago, Camille Henrot, Barbara Bluhm-Kaul and Don Kaul, Mary Ceruti, Jewel, Honor Fraser, Rickie De Sole and Beatrice Galilee. There was also a design-oriented component: Aspen architecture firm Rowland+Broughton created a “Design Room” with Design Miami, conceived as a contemporary Wunderkammer, or cabinet of curiosities. Inspired by Oaxaca, it combined collectible art with ceramics, handmade candles, lanterns, and other useful objects, expanding ArtCrush beyond the traditional boundaries of a fine-art benefit auction.
ArtCrush unfolded beneath a tent at the base of Buttermilk Mountain, where guests sat at softly lit dinner tables arranged around a central stage. The red carpet took place against an earth-toned ArtCrush backdrop. Later in the evening, the formal gala gave way to an after-party with an open bar, late-night bites, music by Jean d’Armes, and dancing until midnight.
The annual event is the largest fundraiser for the museum. Proceeds from ticket sales, donations, and the benefit auction support the museum’s year-round exhibitions and educational programming, including ambitious artist commissions and public programs serving both the Roaring Fork Valley and international audiences.
Christie’s managed the live auction for the third year running, with Sara Friedlander, Christie’s Chairman of Post-War and Contemporary Art, serving as the auctioneer. Some of the donated works came from artists personally attending the gala, such as Xinyi Cheng and Sayre Gomez, with contributions also coming from Henrot, Keith Mayerson, Ding Shilun, Michelangelo Pistoletto, and George Condo.
ArtCrush 2026 was presented by and made possible through the generous support of ZEGNA. Support was also provided by Van Cleef & Arpels, Bank of America, Christie’s, and Saslove & Warwick at Douglas Elliman Real Estate, with special thanks to UOVO and Concepto Studio. ArtCrush 2026 was produced by WE ARE ONA.
