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Falling for fall

Posted in Blog by People's Press on October 12, 2011

The autumn season in the mountains is beautiful, but fleeting. Don’t miss it! Let our guidebooks show you the way.

By Alison Berkley

If you’re anything like most men I know, you probably refuse to stop and ask for directions. You may or may not like instruction manuals or assembly instructions. But no matter who you are, you’ll love these guidebooks published by People’s Press.

Fall in the mountains is a beautiful but fleeting time when the aspens explode across the Rockies like a fireworks display. The color burns bright, but it’s short; two to three weeks is all you get as the foliage peaks and then the leaves start to fall, first from the higher elevations and then down into the valley as the aspens begin to brace themselves for winter.

Everyone has their favorite hikes, mountain bike trails, and four-wheeling adventures. But this year, maybe it’s finally time to try something new. We know you’re not lost—it’s just that there’s always a different path to go explore.

Four-wheeling: Rather than pedal, pedal to the metal.
There’s no doubt the best way to see the most in a short amount of time is with a little help from a mechanized vehicle. Fall is prime time four-wheeling season and Central Colorado 4-Wheeling by Wayne W. Griffin has everything you need to know about how to get your wheels on the dirt. Descriptions and maps of twenty-four spectacular four-wheel-drive routes in the mountains near Aspen, Leadville, Vail, and Crested Butte will take you to routes over the system of mining and supply roads left behind after the mining boom of the late 1880s. Ratings and detailed route descriptions, plus ethics of four-wheeling, rules of the road, driving tips, and emergency phone numbers and addresses are all included.

 

 

 

It’s all about the bike: There’s no better way to see fall colors than a mountain bike
It might take a lifetime to explore the expansive network of roads and trails for mountain biking in the Roaring Fork Valley, but Mountain Biking: Aspen to Glenwood is the best way to find out how to do it. Singletracks, jeep trails and paved routes throughout the valleys and surrounding mountains offer trail options for riders of all abilities. Nineteen detailed maps and 48 route photographs give the reader a true sense of the scenic wonderland available to the biker in one of the country’s most beautiful areas.

 

 

 

 

 

The road less traveled: whether you want to bike or hike, you’ll still have to find your way
Explore the Roaring Fork Valley with the Aspen to Snowmass Outdoors Map by Warren Ohlrich, a shaded-relief map with contours that covers Aspen, Snowmass Village, Independence Pass, and the Maroon Bells area. Bike trails, hiking trails, trailheads, and mountain peaks are all highlighted. The flip side contains a town map of Aspen showing bike routes and trails, and descriptions of the 27 bike routes indicated on both sides. The town map is especially useful as a guide to the town of Aspen, and the overall map makes a good guide to the roads, hikes, and biking routes in the surrounding area.

 

 

 

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Through oversized glasses

Posted in Blog by People's Press on September 28, 2011

After six decades and an extraordinary collection of books, Mary Eshbaugh Hayes’s Aspen legacy is solidified in print.

By Alison Berkley

Anyone who has lived in Aspen for a decent amount of time has probably seen a little older woman with oversized glasses around town, likely toting a camera and a small notepad to document Aspen’s social scene for The Aspen Times, a beat Mary Eshbaugh Hayes has been covering for some fifty years. If you’re at an Aspen event, say the Food & Wine Classic or maybe the Art Crush fundraiser for the Aspen Art Museum or the Komen Aspen Ride for the Cure, she might come up and snap your photo and then quietly ask you for the correct spelling of your name. She has that quality of a good journalist and seems to embody the very definition of the silent observer with her slight, petite frame, light step, and soft-spoken voice.

In print, her voice rings much louder. Eshbaugh Hayes has been working for The Aspen Times in some capacity (writer, photographer, editor) since 1952. Her books about Aspen have established Eshbaugh Hayes as the premier expert on all things Aspen. She carefully collected the recipes and took the photographs for her cookbook Aspen Potpourri, which she first published in 1968, and she has done five editions. She wrote the book on Aspen, literally, entitled The Story of Aspen: the history of Aspen as told through stories of its people, in 1996 and there have been three editions. She has also published two children’s coloring books and a line of note cards featuring color photos of Aspen doors.

When I first moved to Aspen in 2002, I lived in a ramshackle house on the corner of Aspen and Hyman streets that was right next door to the white Victorian house Eshbaugh Hayes shares with her husband Jim, a silversmith whose aspen leaf belt buckles have become coveted collectors’ items. I know she wasn’t happy about the four dogs that lived with us and barked constantly or the noise from our frequent parties. But when I came on as a columnist at The Aspen Times, she welcomed me with the same quiet curiosity and gentle distance she gives everyone. More than once, she snapped my photo and put it into one of her columns.

The house that I lived in was finally torn down a few years ago and replaced with a brick monstrosity that now occupies most every square foot of the entire lot, leaving little in the way of a yard or any semblance of the past. The Hayes’ house still stands next to it, a constant reminder about why it’s so important to document Aspen’s past.

That’s only part of why we are so proud of our collection of Eshbaugh Hayes’s books, an archive of Aspen that’s richer and more dimensional than anything else out there. Through her words and photos, Eshbaugh Hayes always has been and always will be one of Aspen’s living legends.

For more information on Eshbaugh Hayes and her books, click here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Navigating the ocean of mass media

Posted in Blog by People's Press on September 7, 2011

If nice guys finish last, what happens to the little guy?

By Alison Berkley

I’ll admit it: When it comes to choosing which books to buy, I’m clueless.

For every attempt to read an inside-jacket flap description or even the first paragraph of the first page, whenever I try to select books for myself, I rarely end up liking what I’ve chosen. In the aisles of a bookstore (despite that wonderful, distinct smell of new paper), I’m lost.

If I see a book review in The New York Times or (hell, who am I kidding?), Elle or even People, I might be more inclined—my expectations might change. If Oprah likes it, I’ll probably like it too, right? There has to be a reason it made the best-seller list/was made into a major motion picture/the author was interviewed on Letterman.

But more often than not, I can’t stand those books. I hate them even more than the ones I chose (badly) for myself. I resent them because, more often than not, they’re just not that great. So, why all the hype?

I know a guy whose autobiographical account of a horrible tragedy he’d survived was published by Atria, a subsidiary of Simon & Schuster. While the story was riveting, the book was okay. It was so-so. It was readable, but in the same way a term paper might be. It came off to me as a little pretentious and a little academic, like he was using big words to make up for his apparent lack of natural writing ability.

That might sound harsh, but his book became a New York Times best seller and went on to become a major motion picture. Why? Some say it’s because his publisher paid for a full-page ad in The New York Times. Let’s just say it didn’t hurt his cause.

So where does that leave the independent publisher who might not have a monster marketing budget or name recognition? How are we supposed to get the word out, so to speak? What do we do in a culture where people put their money where someone else’s mouth is? The sad thing for people like me, who need to be told what books to read, is that we’re missing out.

Sandy Munro, author of Finding Uri, would probably say you can find the best writing in your own attic: the stories hidden in boxes in envelopes that have been sealed for fifty years. Aimee White Beazley found it at an archeological dig in her own backyard and turned it into a story for her children to share with their generation in Snowmastadon! DJ Watkins literally had to scour the country to piece together the story of an artist’s life and portfolio in Tom Benton: Artist / Activist.

The best stories are sometimes the ones that might be harder to find. But like a treasure, the value goes way beyond the smoke and mirrors of a book whose hype is inflated by a fat marketing budget.

Tell Us: How do you choose what books to buy? What’s the most effective resource for reliable reviews?

 

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People’s Press recommends

Posted in Blog by People's Press on August 25, 2011

As the fall season in the Rockies is fast approaching, check out our selection of guide and naturalist books that make for the perfect field companion.

By Alison Berkley

EVERY YEAR THE WILDFLOWERS BLOOM like a fireworks display, an explosion of color that always seems to appear out of nowhere and never ceases to amaze. Sure, I know a few of them: I can pick out Indian paintbrush. I know what columbines look like, an easy one to identify with their unusual tendrils and of course I know it’s the Colorado state flower. And once, on a 30-day backpacking wilderness course, I dined on the leaves of bluebells, which are so sweet and delicious I wondered why they would be considered as much of a delicacy as black truffles.

But every year, there are also dozens of flowers I don’t know, and I find myself having these sophomoric discussions with my hiking companions, like “I love these ones that have the splash of yellow in the middle,” or “I don’t know if those are poisonous, but I would stay away from them just in case.”

Thankfully, People’s Press has published a slew of guidebooks that will enable me to go deeper into the backcountry than ever before in terms of my knowledge. You can only become so intimate with a trail by hiking it over and over. But with this collection of guidebooks, I can finally go the distance.

Wild at Heart
You’d be hard-pressed to find a question about the Colorado wilderness that can’t be answered with this natural history guide that covers 423 plants, 112 birds and 49 mammals in the Colorado high country. In addition to being a field guide, the book covers edible and medicinal uses of plants (just imagine how helpful you’d be if you found yourself stranded or injured), conservation status of birds and animals (hunters be warned), ecology of various local life zones, and the history, trails and geology of the Snowmass Village area. It’s a virtual library of fascinating information in a compact book that easily fits into daypacks or backpacks.

Janis Lindsey Huggins has lived in the Aspen/Snowmass area since 1970 and spent more than 40 years exploring the upper Roaring Fork Valley and Colorado’s high country, studying the plants, wildlife and ecosystems. For many years she has guided naturalist tours for Aspen’s Center for Environmental Studies, worked as a field botanist on the western slope for the Colorado Natural Heritage Program at Colorado State University, and taught others in sports such as alpine skiing and windsurfing. Janis continues to travel the state, hiking, observing nature and photographing wildflowers.

Guide to Aspen/Snowmass Trails 
Warren Ohlrich has a pretty easy, if not downright wonderful commute to work. For over 25 years, he’s been writing guidebooks while hiking, backpacking, running, biking, skiing and snowshoeing the trails in the Aspen and Central Colorado area.  “I get out and do every single trail,” he said, “It’s sort of like my work is play.”
Now in its third edition, Aspen’s best-selling hiking guide takes all the guess work out of finding the perfect hike for any occasion. The book describes 30 popular hikes, which vary in length from one hour to five days and lie mostly within wilderness area boundaries. The guide has distance/elevation charts for each trail, day hike information, and a section on wilderness ethics and regulations. There are even GPS coordinates, just so there’s no question you know exactly where to go.   

Aspen to Glenwood Trails: Day Hiking Guide
Another one from Ohlirch’s thoroughly researched and masterful guidebook collection, this volume includes hikes throughout Colorado’s Roaring Fork Valley. If there’s a trail from Independence Pass through Aspen, Snowmass, Basalt, and Carbondale to Glenwood Springs, and its side valleys, chances are Ohlirch’s guidebook can tell you all about it. This book includes 52 day hikes, with everything from short hikes suitable for families, strenuous hikes for athletes, all-day adventures, and hikes of all lengths with excellent photo and recreational opportunities. Yes, GPS coordinates are included for trailheads, destinations and important waypoints in this book, too.

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When actions (and posters) speak louder than words

Posted in Blog by People's Press on August 16, 2011

The legendary collaboration between Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson and artist Tom Benton is celebrated in Daniel J. Watkins’ new book, “Thomas W. Benton: Artist/Activist”

THEY SAY A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS, and well-written prose paints the perfect picture, but what happens when a powerful artist and prolific writer collaborate and the two mediums are combined? What if it’s March 1970 in Aspen, Colorado?

When Hunter S. Thompson randomly stumbled into a frame shop next to artist Tom Benton’s gallery with some pictures of Hell’s Angels making out, a fast friendship was born. “Right then, Hunter and I became friends. He seemed just crazy enough,” Benton reportedly said.

It was Thompson’s idea to create “The Aspen Wallposters,” the collaboration that featured Benton’s art on one side of the twenty-two-by-fifteen-inch sheet and Thompson’s political rants on the other. It was the official print media of the Aspen Liberation Front to promote their Freak Power movement. (Like we said, it was March 1970 in Aspen.)

These posters, and the fabled story behind them, are being brought back to life through DJ Watkins’ new book, Thomas W. Benton: Artist/Activist, with the most complete compilation of the collaboration to date.

“It’s a double-edged sword because I want to expand people’s horizons regarding Benton’s work,” Watkins says. “But Benton was friends with Hunter for forty years. This book is the first book to catalog and document Benton and Thompson’s collaboration. My hope is that’s the hook to grab people in to the larger project.”

The Wallposters are lesser known and perhaps even more coveted to Thompson fans, who might not have seen or known much about the collaboration until now. “I think it is fair to say that Benton has been criminally overlooked, not just in relation to his collaboration with Hunter S. Thompson, but also in terms of his contribution to protest art and political activism both at a local and national level,” writes Rory on totallygonzo.org, a Hunter S. Thompson fan site.

Watkins writes, “Embodying the ideals and beliefs of Thompson and Benton and other activists during this turbulent time, the posters capture a fascinating collaboration and an artistic experiment at pivotal points in these two men’s careers. They illustrate the development of Thompson’s Gonzo writing style and Benton’s artistic ability, yet remained their rarest and most relatively unknown works.”

What he doesn’t say, or doesn’t need to say, is that between the art and the words, it’s some powerfully provocative stuff that’s so progressive it’s still shocking, even startling, 42 years later. One of the posters of Nixon with blood running from his mouth and swastikas in his eyes was so controversial the duo couldn’t find a printer—in all of the United States—that was willing to publish it. Pushing the limits of free speech is taken to another level, in this case, when words and images are combined to make a powerful message. It’s also a testament to the power of an artist who is able and willing to collaborate with other artists.

It was a legendary partnership, and one that is forever preserved in the pages of Watkins’ book. What would Thompson or Benton have to say about a blog that tries to express in words, how words aren’t always enough? Check it out and meet the author this Saturday, August 20, when the Aspen Historical Society hosts “Remembering Tom,” a book signing, storytelling session and party from 4-6 p.m. at the Wheeler/Stallard museum.

Were you in Aspen in the 1970s? Tell us what it was like, and better yet, post your photos. We welcome, and encourage, your comments.

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Where fact and fiction meet: an author’s perspective

Posted in Blog by People's Press on August 8, 2011

Mark Stevens talks about the regional issues and events that inspired his newest book, Buried by the Roan

DO YOU EVER WONDER HOW AUTHORS COME UP WITH their ideas, the concepts for their novels? It turns out there’s a lot more fact to fiction than you might think. We caught up with Mark Stevens somewhere between Denver, Boulder, and Buena Vista during the busy week of his newest book release, Buried by the Roan, to talk about what drove the plot points for his latest work. Stevens had three very clear sources of inspiration he was willing to share with us:

1) Theme: After Antler Dust, a lot of people asked for a sequel. Readers liked [main character] Allison Coil. She’s tough, she likes horses, and she’s a refugee from the city. She’s based on an actual woman from the Flat Tops Wilderness who’s a hunting guide. I knew I wanted to stick with the character, but I needed another theme for the plot. In Antler Dust, I’d addressed animal rights and poaching. In late 2007, the Rocky Mountain News ran a feature series entitled “Beyond the Boom” about natural gas exploration in the Western Slope and the Roan Plateau. There was a lot of debate over whether fracking [hydraulic fracturing, a process used to extract natural gas] was hurting the ground water—oil companies said it was not, while others argued their water was being tainted.  I realized that was happening right in Allison Coil’s backyard. You have different points of view, controversy, flare-ups, and wealth potential. I thought it would make a terrific flash point for a plot.

2) More on plot: In 2007, there was an interesting lawsuit in Boulder County over the Adverse Possession Law. The Adverse Possession Law allows someone to gain possession of a property if they have been using it unchallenged for over 18 years. A new property owner had plans to build a dream home when the neighbor claimed the land as his own under the terms of this law. The judge favored the claim and the rightful property owner had to shift the land over. The law has since been amended because of this case, but it was a great concept for bitterness and feud, and I like how it’s sort of Old West versus New West.

3) Character development: My friend Ralph has this interesting theory about evolution, and how a lot of us (I put myself in this category) have become so specialized in our skills we no longer have a survivalist mentality. We sit in a chair all day and work at a computer and maybe we work out in gym, but we can no longer survive in wilderness. He wonders if we haven’t gone past the point where, as human beings, we’re less capable because we rely so heavily on others for food, shelter, and warmth. I developed a character, Devo, who is interested in showing the world how to devolve. Devo moves to the wilderness, sends out You Tube videos to get people to follow his point of view, and becomes sort of a cult hero. Devo’s character plays on that inspiration.

What do you think? Is fact stranger than fiction? Tell us about your favorite books that taught you something factual about the world.

Read about the Adverse Possession dispute: The Denver Post: “Lawyers awarded property next door,” November 18, 2007

Read about “Plan to Drill on Colorado Plateau meets Resistance,” The New York Times, October 29, 2009

 

 

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So much more than skeletons

Posted in Blog by People's Press on August 3, 2011

Like Sandy Munro, author of Finding Uri, what you find might say a lot about your past, and your future.

By Alison Berkley

It’s always interesting to interview authors and learn where their inspiration comes from. What more are books than interesting stories to tell? During a recent interview with Sandy Munro, author of Finding Uri, I not only discovered what inspired his novel, but what I learned from him also inspired me.

“I’ve sent a whole shitload of people rummaging through the attic looking for old letters and things,” the Aspen-based author says. “The thing that seems to happen is they realize they too have letters in the attic.”

Munro’s book was inspired by 190 letters he discovered between his mother and his father, whom he barely knew before he was killed fighting in World War II. From a writer’s standpoint, it’s a virtual goldmine of material. For Munro, it was getting to know his father, a man whose footsteps he followed in a military career that turned out to be eerily similar. But the letters revealed even more: “I was also getting to know my mother as a 23-year-old who was madly in love.” (The letters included some sentiments that would make any son blush.)

I don’t know many people who are lucky enough to have an attic anymore, but we all have our boxes packed away in storage closets or in the garage or the basement. They’re the boxes that are the hardest to get to, buried by time and the acquisition of stuff that doesn’t really mean much, but sits there like a pile of dirt burying the treasures that are not hard to find as long as you’re willing to dig.

“That’s what people seem to connect with the most after reading my book, this whole idea of why let these things sit in the attic? Why not take a look at it?” said Munro.

So I did. I went out to the storage closet and had to remove several plastic storage containers and empty suitcases and the random items that had been tossed aside.

I dragged out the box of family memorabilia I’d salvaged from my parents’ move when they retired. Even though I’ve looked through it many times before, I always discover something new. Not because I haven’t looked at it before, but because each time I look at it, I have a different perspective. What struck me this time was my parents’ wedding invitation, as I too am soon to be a bride.

Tell us: What’s hidden in your closet (other than the skeletons)? Post your photos and have a chance to win an autographed copy of Finding Uri.

 

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Books without Borders

Posted in Blog by People's Press on July 27, 2011

What does the liquidation of one of the mega-bookstore chains mean for the future of the old black and white?

By Alison Berkley

My take on the value of paper books is crystal clear: if I can’t take it into the bathtub with me, put it on a shelf where I can see it or set it out on a coffee table and enjoy its display, I’m not reading it. I love the aesthetic of a book—I love the way the pages get a little bit warped after I read them. I love to write notes in the margin. I love to stack them on my nightstand as a physical testament to what titles I’m currently reading, the words and ideas that fill my head before I fall asleep.

Nostalgia aside, the liquidation of Borders has the publishing industry and its consumers in a panic. What does this mean for the future of print? A wide variety of theories abound. At the most fundamental level it means 399 book stores are no longer and 10,700 people lost their jobs.

The American Booksellers Association offers a simple, optimistic outlook with their official statement. They call it the “rightsizing of a bookstore landscape that has suffered from overexpansion in certain markets.”

There are ways this may positively affect small book publishers like People’s Press. “The biggest changes could come to the book publishing industry: As Borders stores disappear, the bookselling landscape could rapidly change, forcing authors to look for other places to market their work,” says Mae Anderson for the Associated Press.

It is estimated that Borders owes over $270 million of outstanding debt to major publishers like Random House and Simon and Schuster that will likely never be recouped. That will cause major ripple effects for the big publishing houses that’ll trickle down to the little guys. To make up for their losses, big publishers will have to cut back on how many books they publish next year, creating more opportunity for small publishers like People’s Press to work with authors they might have missed out on otherwise.

The other big question is if this is somehow indicative of an overall demise of print as e-books and digital media evolve and a new generation of readers is raised on Kindles and iPads.

“It is yet another nail in the coffin of the old-fashioned brick and mortar, paper and gum book business as the world zooms toward an ever-more-digital model,” blogs Rachel Syme for NPR. “There is no other future for reading but a digital one, and getting misty about the decline of tangible books is an exercise in futility. Reading itself has never been more popular, even if formats are in flux.” Still, she agrees there is something to be said for the experience of the book-and-mortar bookstore. She writes, “The aspect of Borders’ implosion that troubles me is that there will be 399 fewer places to take part in the communal act of book buying, which is a completely separate activity from reading.”

There are those like me who believe the demise of Borders could mean a surge for independent bookstores and smaller publishers who fulfill a need for community outreach not fulfilled by surviving behemoths Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

“That whole thing about stumbling across a book, or stumbling across a stranger who recommends a book—the serendipitous aspect of your literary journey in life—is evaporating as these stores evaporate,” says Rachel Simon, author of the New York Times best seller The Story of Beautiful Girl, who says she visits her local Borders several times a week.

Ian Crouch writes for the New Yorker, “Maybe the independent bookstores that have held out during Borders’ forty-year run will now benefit from the closing, and, a larger point, reemerge as the primary model for selling printed books to a dwindling but dedicated niche audience.”

Ditto that for the small publishing house who provides what the bigger guy never could: a sense of community, a sense of purpose, and a collective for authentic voices that might not otherwise be heard.

Until they make a waterproof iPad or a Kindle that will warp when I read it or let me take notes, I’m sticking with print. For the page, and the pen, and for indie publishers like People’s Press, I will always be grateful.

What do you think? Let us know!

Alison Berkley is a columnist for The Aspen Times and an aspiring novelist who has lived in Aspen for nine years.

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The Aspen connection

Posted in Blog by People's Press on July 19, 2011

Mark Shaw talks to People’s Press about the “defining moments” he experienced in Aspen that changed his life. July 19th marked the release of Shaw’s book, Road to a Miracle.

“Aspen in the 1970s was the best time. There weren’t a lot of rules and it was a very peaceful place with a lot of camaraderie,” Mark Shaw says about his first hiatus to Aspen. “It opened up a whole new world to me.”

It turns out Aspen would play a significant role in Shaw’s life, which he chronicles in his new book, Road to a Miracle. Twice he ventured to the mountains during pivotal times in his life. And in both instances, Aspen triggered inspiration, or what Shaw calls “defining moments” that would provide him with life-changing direction.

The first was in 1976 when Shaw quit his successful practice as a criminal defense attorney in Indiana and moved to Aspen. “It shocked everyone I knew at the time. But I knew criminal law wasn’t what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.” Shaw had visited Aspen the year before and decided to make the move West. “In Aspen, there were all kinds of different people from all kinds of different places. It opened me up to the world. It was a very special time.”

Shaw’s arrival happened to coincide with the famous murder trial in 1976 when French actress Claudine Longer was arrested for fatally shooting her boyfriend, former Olympic skier Spider Sabich. Shaw covered the case as a legal analyst for Good Morning America, which opened him to a career in entertainment that would span over twenty years.

During the trial, Shaw also met Dave Danforth, a local reporter who would later become his partner in founding the Aspen Daily News, the only independent daily newspaper that still exists in Aspen to this day. “Starting a career in the entertainment industry and starting the Aspen Daily News would make the difference in my life moving forward,” Shaw says.

Many years later, his career in entertainment would inadvertently lead to the “war of words” between Shaw and Indiana Hoosiers coach Bobby Knight in 2000. “Both of us lost,” Shaw admits. “Knight his job, and me my step-family through a messy divorce.”

In Road to a Miracle, Shaw accepts blame for his mistakes. “I went through a tough time. I was addicted to fame and got carried away,” he says. Shaw went back to Colorado to cover the Kobe Bryant case in Eagle in 2003 and knew that once again, Aspen was where he needed to be to sort things out.

“This time I was beginning a spiritual journey, one that would lead me to the miracle, to discovering a daughter and two grandchildren I never knew existed and who thought I was dead,” Shaw says. He got involved with the church and did some serious soul searching. “I began thinking seriously about what I wanted to do with my life. I was sitting on a rock by the Roaring Fork River east of town one day when I decided I wanted to go seminary.”

Shaw says it was the “spiritual leanings” of the mountains that stirred a readiness for discovery that would eventually lead to the miracle. “In many ways, Aspen prepared me for that, for becoming a father when I never believed that would happen in my life.”

Shaw now lives near Boulder with his wife Wen-Ying Lu and comes to Aspen whenever he can. “There’s something about it, for me anyway, that’s very spiritual. Aspen has meant so much to me in my life.”

 

 

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In the eye of the beholder

Posted in Blog by People's Press on July 13, 2011

When Daniel Joseph “DJ” Watkins talks about Benton’s work, he sounds like someone who has discovered a buried treasure—and in many ways he has. In his new book Thomas W. Benton: Artist/Activist, Watkins catalogs over 150 images of Benton’s artwork that tells a larger story of his political anti-war activism and his collaboration with Hunter S. Thompson.

We caught up with Watkins in the midst of the book’s release hoopla to get his take on some of the book’s most significant images.

This poster was created by Benton in 1969 to protest the Vietnam War. Benton and a number of local Aspenites marched to the home of Robert McNamara, then secretary of defense, who lived in Snowmass Village at the time. While Benton’s work was obviously artwork, it was also meant to be art in action, art that people could see out in public. These posters were affixed to pickets and people marched with them. They tacked them to the walls and put them wherever they wanted to send a message. Benton was a peace activist, and this was a big part of his anti-war efforts. This is the way he created his message, and this image really illustrates that.

 

 

 

 

This was one of Benton’s favorite poems of all time. One of the great things about Benton’s work was his ability to combine a visual symbol with text to create a beautiful work of art. This is a piece that encompasses a lot of skill in terms of the color, the dove, and the way he’s integrated it with the words.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was the first poster I ever saw of Benton’s. It was a real source of inspiration and how I first became connected with his work. I had created my own political/anti-war artwork in college, so seeing this piece resonated with what I believed and where I was going with my own work in terms of the graphics and the message. It was what I wanted to say with my own artwork, so seeing this image is what sent me on a path to discover more of Benton’s work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is by far the most iconic, most famous piece Benton is known for. It’s a double-edged sword because I want to expand people’s horizons and expose them to his other work. There is so much breadth in terms of silkscreen techniques and fine art composition. But Benton was friends with Hunter S. Thompson for forty years and they collaborated a lot over that period. The book is the first to catalog and document that collaboration. I’m hoping that’s the hook that will grab people and hook them in to the larger project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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