Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies
The Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies is an exhibition space and center for the study of art and culture located on the Aspen Institute campus in Aspen, Colorado.
The Bayer Center preserves the art and legacy of Herbert Bayer (1900–1985), an influential modern artist and designer who studied and taught at the Bauhaus before emigrating from Germany to the United States in 1938. After relocating to Colorado in 1946, Bayer helped lead the postwar revitalization of the city of Aspen, shaped the early artistic and programmatic vision of the Aspen Institute, and designed the historic Aspen Meadows campus between 1953 and 1973.
The Bayer Center promotes a fuller understanding of Bayer—one of the leading figures to translate the Bauhaus movement into an American context—and his contributions to art, design, and architecture. It anchors the Aspen Institute’s campus-wide visual arts program, which includes over 9,000 square feet of gallery space and multiple site-specific outdoor art installations. The vision is intended to honor Bayer’s interdisciplinary perspective by promoting an understanding of art and design through exhibitions, public programming, and educational initiatives.
Our Mission
The Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies preserves and honors the art of Herbert Bayer, who designed the iconic campus of the Aspen Institute and whose multifaceted work represents the fullest expression of the Bauhaus movement in America. The Center celebrates the interdisciplinary nature of Bayerʼs legacy by promoting understanding of his art and design through its collection, exhibitions, public programming, community engagement, research, and educational initiatives.
About Herbert Bayer
Widely recognized for his innovative graphic and advertising design work, Herbert Bayer was a polymath who explored a great variety of media, including painting, sculpture, environmental and interior design, architecture, and photography. After studying and then teaching at the Bauhaus, he became one of the most important graphic and advertising designers in Berlin. He moved to the United States in 1938, where he enjoyed a richly varied career until his death in 1985. His mastery of an extraordinary range of disciplines is most stunningly evident on the campus of the Aspen Institute. Over a period of 25 years, Bayer developed a masterplan for the Institute and oversaw the execution of its every element, creating a total work of art (Gesamtkunstwerk) in the amazing setting of Aspen. Concurrently, he produced work in diverse media ranging from architecture, graphic design, corporate identities, paintings, and sculpture to earthworks. Rarely has a single individual contributed to so many disciplines at such a highly creative level.
Visit Us
Contact Us
970.544.7899 | bayercenter@aspeninstitute.org
Location
610 Gillespie Ave, Aspen, CO 81611
Hours and Admission
Tuesday – Saturday | 12-5pm.
Free and open to the public.
Getting Here
The Bayer Center is located on the southeastern edge of the Aspen Meadows Campus, at the intersection of Gillespie Avenue and North 5th Street.
We are less than one mile from the heart of downtown Aspen, and steps away from the Benedict Music Tent and Harris Hall.
We recommend taking the Downtowner or the free RFTA Crosstown Shuttle.
Parking
Free, designated parking is available on the south side of the Music Festival parking lot, adjacent to Gillespie Street.
Tours
Free tours of the current exhibition and the Aspen Meadows campus are offered on Tuesday and Thursday at 12:30pm, and Saturday at 3pm, and select Wednesdays.
the bauhaus implanted in me such a sense of duty, you see, not just to go and paint for my own pleasure, but to devote myself to dealing with the design problems of our time.
Herbert Bayer, 1979
Our Team
Events
Bauhaus Typography at 100: Open House
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Richard Carter’s Observable Universe
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