David Yarrow Xanadu Photography

Photograph by David Yarrow “Xanadu”. Limited edition

There is no doubt that Aspen is the most notorious and scandalous ski resort in the world. The mere name conjures up images of raucous parties, glamor and celebrities, which is a little unfair to all those who head up the hill from Glenwood Springs just to ski. Good things have happened in the town, but so have many bad things, making it delicious material for the storyteller.

70 years after the silver market burst at the turn of the century, Aspen was booming bigger and louder than ever. It was a carefree bohemian paradise where rock’n’roll was as important as skiing itself. The question wasn’t so much which resort to ski in, but whether to stick with the Eagles, John Denver or Jimmy Buffett.

In the early 70s, the J Bar in the traditional Jerome Hotel had firmly established itself as a meeting place for drinking. It reflected the mood of the times when Hunter Thompson was running for sheriff and was taken seriously. The rich and famous were running amok in Aspen.

I really wanted to take a photo at a prominent location in Aspen that looked like it was taken in the hipster days of the early 70s. The car was sourced by locals and Nicole Allowitz’s styling of Kate Bock and Josie Canseco was – as always – on point. But I needed something more and the heavy snowfall gave me a chance to make the background timeless.

This could be 1973 and what a time everyone must have lived through, if only they could remember it.

David Yarrow