Canyons Village will open the 2025-26 ski season with three access points to the upper mountain, alongside the Red Pine Gondola and the Orange Bubble Express lift, as the Sunrise Gondola extends access from the Pendry plaza to the Red Pine area.
As Park City Mountain spends the summer replacing the former double Sunrise lift with the 10-person, 6,500-foot gondola, the old chairs will be painted and auctioned to support 12 of Park City’s local nonprofits.
The Sunset on Sunrise auction will be at the Canyons Village Forum stage from 3 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday for a celebration of local art, nonprofit collaboration and Park City Mountain’s history.
The 12 auction chairs were designed with the theme “what community means to me” in mind, with the artists’ work representing the mission of their corresponding nonprofit.
For Seth Ehrlich, chief executive officer of SOS Outreach, a local youth nonprofit dedicated to offering mentorship and access to winter sports, the auction is more than just a fundraiser, but an impressive expression of community and connection.
“There are a lot of ways that you can get rid of chair lifts. The impact that Park City Mountain is offering here is real and significant, and doing it as a public event that then gathers community,” said Ehrlich. “It is just really cool that they said, ‘Hang on, before we send it to a scrapyard or otherwise, let’s do something creative that also has a deep impact that aligns with our goals of community engagement.’”
Artist Lamont White, whose work has been featured previously in the Park City Mountain gondola gallery, partnered with SOS Outreach to create a chair emphasizing access and belonging.
“We reached out to White because of who he is and what he has been leading in the outdoor industry. The art that he brings forward is so deeply connected to what we do at SOS outreach and the work that we are committed to, which is about really engaging kids and their families from mountain communities who are, whether explicitly or implicitly, told that they do not belong up on the mountain, and we are deeply committed to this work,” said Ehrlich.
The connection between SOS Outreach and White’s art has always come naturally, and this collaboration offered an opportunity to build on that connection and share it with the wider community.
“Lamont had full creative license, because there wasn’t any direction to give because who he is as a person and artist is so deeply aligned with what we do,” said Ehrlich.
White’s work often centers on themes of belonging and outdoor access, and imparting those characteristics onto an unconventional canvas of the chairlift was a freeing process, he said.
“I really enjoyed the process of developing this. There was a lot that needed to be cleaned, and I felt like I was more a part of the prep work of getting it done,” said White. “It was a lot of fun for me working with the different colors and the techniques I chose. I felt very free.”
From cleaning and designing to hand-painting the finishing touches, the piece, “Soaring,” took White two to three weeks to complete.
“To me, it’s another way to express accessibility. I think that there are a lot of traditional looks and behaviors in ski towns. And I think for me to authentically introduce other looks is part of just another way that I can hope to help encourage access through design. Belonging is very personal to me, and in my opinion, it’s central to the work of SOS as well,” said White.
SOS Outreach engages over 550 kids across Summit County and the Wasatch Back from fourth grade through 12th grades. With the proceeds from the chairlift auction going directly to collaborating nonprofits, SOS intends to keep all of the funds local within the Park City area.
“This funding will support us in expanding the depth of what we do and support more kids in mentoring relationships. It is to really foster belonging for individuals who have been excluded from the mountains,” said Ehrlich.
The event was developed in collaboration with the Park City Summit County Arts Council and Vail Resorts EpicPromise, the nonprofit that provided artists with materials, transportation of chairs, and assistance with other related expenses.
“We wanted to make sure that we were using the old lift in a way that was really going to benefit the community as well. We looked at ways to engage the community and really look at community values as a place that cares about skiing, about the nonprofits and the giving space,” said John Kanaly, senior manager of communications at Park City Mountain.
See more about the other nonprofits and artists involved and how to participate in the auction here.