Every home has a story, but few are as storied as the home of Sharon and John Hoffman. Built in 1888, the six-bedroom West End Victorian is one the first five original homes built after the silver boom and was first owned by the founder of The Aspen Times. It’s best known as “The Observatory House” for the rooftop observatory Mrs. Elizabeth Jones, a former owner, had installed for her teenage son in the early 70s. Not only is the house a historical Aspen landmark, its legacy continues in the hands of the current owners, Sharon and John Hoffman.
In addition to bringing the Victorian’s exterior back to its original glory when the Hoffmans purchased the home in 2001, the couple also completed an extensive remodel with Aspen architect Heidi Hoffmann the on the interior in order to modernize the space and open up the space to make it more suitable for family (Hoffmann won the Colorado Award for Remodeling Excellence in 2002 for the project).
The Kansas City based couple also wanted to make the home a showcase for their collection of contemporary art. That will certainly be the case on Friday August 5, when the Hoffmans open their home for a tour of their contemporary art collection as a VIP event for Art Aspen, a weekend-long modern and contemporary art exhibition hosting galleries from around the world at the Aspen Ice Garden August 4-7, 2016. The Sharon and John Hoffman art collection includes paintings, drawings, photographs, sculpture and ceramics from artists like Frankenthaler, Christo, Starns, Plensa, Enrique Martinez Celaya, Leonardo Drew and Richard Mosse. Ceramic artists include Voulkos, Autio, Ferguson and Gustin.
Learn more about the “The Observatory” or book your stay there today!