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Selt Portrait in a Velvet Snowboard by Skida Khalo is inspired by Frida Khalo’s Self Portrait in a Velvet Dress. Photo courtesy of ROAM

REVELSTOKE’S SECRET ART MOVEMENT REIMAGINES THE SKI HILL

REVELSTOKE OUTDOOR ART MOVEMENT, A SECRET SOCIETY OF ARTISTS, CREATES PUBLIC ART TO CONNECT A COMMUNITY.

By Nora Hughes.

Few people know the origin story of Revelstoke Mountain Resort’s mascot, Gnorm the Gnome, but that’s the way artist Jess Leahey wanted it to be. Jess’s husband, Troy, was the very first avalanche forecaster when the new resort opened in 2008, back when Revelstoke was one of the first destinations to receive an automated weather plot with a live webcam. Someone used to have to drive a sled up at 5 a.m. and take the results by hand.

“My sister had got us a gnome for our garden, and Troy picked it to place in front of the webcam as a visual height reference,” recalls Jess. “He was almost perfectly a foot tall. He was old and faded, so I painted him to look like a ski patroller … and the rest is history.”

Jess wasn’t an artist back then and was unaware of the significance Gnorm would have 15 years later.

“That little gnome got me a front-row seat to see the impact and reach of public art,” she says. “I learned that art could connect people with their environment in incredible ways … now everyone in town is a weather person on a 20-centimetre powder day.”

“I also learned that by giving physical presence to otherwise physically intangible things, you can connect a community. Public art does a lot of things. It creates gathering places, spreads joy, and contributes to a culture that is uniquely our own, one that belongs to everyone,” explains Jess. “My dream is to do that again with this project.”

The project she’s referring to has been secret until recently. There is no press release, no website or social channels. You don’t talk about ROAM.

ROAM stands for “Revelstoke Outdoor Art Movement.” The creative team behind the project consists of Jess, Rob Buchanan, and Lindsay and Rodney Payne.

Rob describes their not-so-secret goal to reimagine the ski hill with their ‘gravity galleries’ as a run-naissance in how the mountain is used — where art meets sport.

The team has installed several art pieces at RMR. The Mountaineer can’t disclose where they are; you’ll have to find them for yourself, or maybe you already have. In addition to Jess’s Cocoon, which debuted at LUNA Arts Fest this year, French Fries, the Wheel of Bad Advice, Tree Gnorms, and the Masterpiste Gallery are part of ten separate installations that will appear on the hill this season.

The paintings in the Masterpiste Gallery are all made from recycled skis, snowboards and climbing skins destined for the dump, Rob says. Le Reve Le Stoke by Pablo PaCatski was inspired by Pablo Picasso's Le Reve, Blue Nudeski by Henri MaPiste was inspired by Henri Matisse's Blue Nude, Selfski by Vincent van Snow was inspired by Vincent van Gogh's Self Portrait, and Self Portrait in a Velvet Snowboard by Skida Kahlo was inspired by Frida Kahlo's Self Portrait in a Velvet Dress.

The gravity galleries are designed so patrons can do a ‘highbrow snow plow’ through a selection of fine art.

“There's this great Andy Warhol-Banksy quote, Andy Warhol says, in the future, everyone will want to be famous for 15 minutes. And Banksy says, in the future, everyone will want to be anonymous for 15 minutes,” says Jess. “I think we just wanted to get away from social media. We wanted to be anonymous for a bit just to work the way we want to work with no deadlines, no pressure and feedback.”

ROAM intends to bring on more of Revy’s talented artists, and they can choose to put their names on their pieces or not, said Jess. The BIG goal, as Jess calls it, would be to be on-hill-curators for resorts across B.C.

“I feel like a lot of celebrity comes with this kind of stuff, and I’d rather give the energy to the participant, so they feel like they’re a part of something,” she says.

Secret art installations on ski hills have always been there if you know where to find them. If you know where the red phone is or the Easter eggs stashed around RMR, you’ll know the feeling these secrets inspire. It feels like it’s art for the locals. You only learn about it because somebody brought you there; you’re in on it.

“And that's the feeling I want people to feel — that belonging through this. And all happy to discover it,” says Jess. “Feel like they have some ownership in it.”

The Wheel of Bad Advice. Photo courtesy of ROAM

REVELSTOKE BUSINESS BUZZ

ELEVEN EXPERIENCE MOVES INTO EXPLORER’S SOCIETY HOTEL, SEOUL STREET CELEBRATES SOFT OPENING, AND A NEW BOARD SHOP IN TOWN.

By Revelstoke Mountaineer staff

Top: The Explorer’s Society Hotel has been bought by Eleven Experience. The hotel will soon be renamed Eleven Revelstoke Lodge; the building will cater to all-inclusive experiences for guests. Photo Courtesy of Eleven

Bottom: Rize Boardshop owner Trevor Smith at his First Street West location. Photo: Aaron Orlando/Revelstoke Mountaineer Magazine

Welcome to the Revelstoke Mountaineer Magazine’s business column. Revelstoke changes fast, and we’re keeping in stride with the business buzz about town.

ELEVEN EXPERIENCE BUYS EXPLORER’S SOCIETY HOTEL AND QUARTERMASTER EATERY

Eleven Experience, an experiential travel company that started 11 years ago on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, just purchased their eleventh location at 111 First Street West in Revelstoke, formerly known as the Explorer’s Society Hotel.

Soon to be renamed Eleven Revelstoke Lodge, the family that owns the company purchased the building because they love the intimate vibe of the hotel.

“The family that owns Eleven really loves outdoor activities and everything that Revelstoke has to offer. And so skiing is a big passion of theirs,” says North American Operations Manager Molly Minett. “They also like staying in intimate places, so they started with this company in Crested Butte, Colorado, and it just has grown from there.”

Molly says that among their 11 locations across the globe, Revelstoke is the most urban place they operate.

Right before COVID consumed the world, Eleven Experience purchased Kingfisher Heliskiing, a heli-ski company that formally operated near Nakusp. Together the businesses will operate out of the hotel and provide all-inclusive experiences to customers in the winter. Molly says they will likely operate like a regular hotel during summer.

Nina Frohlicher, Eleven’s Canada General Manager, lives in Revelstoke and says the community can expect to see the same friendly faces staffing the hotel. Any new hires, she says, will be people that live in Revelstoke.

The hotel’s established restaurant, the Quartermaster Eatery, will keep its name and normal operation. The restaurant will be open to the public Thursday through Monday and closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

“Meeting a part of Eleven through our restaurant staff is definitely something that we're really stoked to be able to offer to the local community,” says Nina.

Nina and Molly welcome the community to come and say hello to the team at Eleven Experience. “We just want to be very open for people to come up and see who we are and not just hear or read about us, but actually come by and connect with us,” says Nina.

Molly echoes her sentiments by saying, “We don’t just want to be partners in the community. We want to be part of it.”

RIZE BOARD SHOP MOVES IN WITH MOUNTAIN MADE STUDIO

Trevor Smith, owner of Rize Board Shop, opened his doors in June 2022. Going into his first winter season of sales, he says he opened the shop to provide a level and standard of service, knowledge and support not seen anywhere else in the core snowboard industry.

Hailing from Kamloops originally, Trevor moved to Revelstoke following a 16-year stint in Whistler working in the ski and snowboard industry.

“I was able to gain high-level experience within the boot fitting world as a snowboarder, which is rare, and over many years was able to perfect and create a standard of snowboard boot fitting not found at any other core snowboard shop,” he says.

The shop shares a space with Mountain Made Studio owner Kelly Hutcheson, a stained glass artist. After some light construction this summer, their space is equipped with a fully functional mini-ramp, which adds a unique board shop atmosphere.

Friendly faces you can expect to see working at Rize include Trevor and his staff member Scott Campbell.

“Our Rize philosophy is simply that we are as invested in your enjoyment, comfort and quality of your day on the mountain as you are, so you can always expect the absolute best knowledge, service and support so that you can enjoy your day on the hill to the utmost,” says Trevor.

SEOUL STREET’S SOFT OPENING

A new Asian-themed pub opened in late December in the former location of the Grizzly Sports bar. The new restaurant Seoul Street is owned by three sisters, Emily, Iris, and Eunice. After renovating the pub, the space looks unrecognizable from its former self.

Their soft opening took place on December 22, 2022.