Makenzie Phelan, Alexander Hankin and Sterling McDavid are shown at last year’s Aspen Art Museum Slopeside Soiree. This year’s event will be held Saturday evening.
Alexander Hankin is at the forefront of a movement to engage younger collectors and donors with the art world.
For almost a decade, Hankin has led a youth movement at the Aspen Art Museum. He first joined the board at the museum at the age of 23 and since then he has spent more than a decade helping shape the museum’s fundraising events and donor strategy.
Now 38, Hankin finds himself the eldest of the six co-chairs for the Aspen Art Museum’s “Slopeside Soirée” which happens Saturday. The youngest co-chair is 24.
Joining Hankin as co-chairs of the event are Lauren Allday, Elizabeth Chung, Kelcee Corwin, Makenzie Moon Phelan and Ernie Poma.
“Events like Slopeside Soirée power the Aspen Art Museum’s work to bring world-class art and programming to our community, and we’re grateful for the support from leaders of the next generation of arts philanthropists,” said Jaclyn Carr, deputy director of advancement at museum.
With a younger group leading the way, the emphasis on the party has gone from fancy to fun. It’s a cocktail-style gathering, featuring caviar and martinis, and is designed to feel playful, social and accessible.
This year’s starting time has moved from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and features DJ Chromeo, which off the bat suggests less sit down and more get down.
Hankin said the event will lean into the Valentine’s Day theme this year.
“It’s gonna be very sexy because it’s Valentine’s Day, so we’re kind of going for that boudoir sort of feeling, a lot of reds,” Hankin said. “I really love the idea of exploring the museum at night and the current Jacqueline Humphreys exhibit is perfect for that, very colorful, very open for interpretation, and some great neon colors on the basement floor. It’s a show that I think people are really going to enjoy.”
Engaging young people has been a deliberate move toward cultivating younger supporters and patrons at the Aspen Art Museum. Hankin said it reflects a larger movement happening in the art world everywhere.
“There’s a real rise in young collectors,” Hankin said. “There’s this great synergy between emerging artists and young collectors. The artists are making themselves more accessible, but what I see is that young collectors are investing in these artists and really nurturing their careers, getting to know them, going to their studios and really championing them to becoming a lot bigger artists. Most of the contemporary artists that I collect, I know personally and it’s very special to see them blossom and their careers grow.”
Alexander Hankin is a well-known figure in the art world, serving on art museum boards in the U.S. and Europe. He also is a cultural, fashion and art columnist, working as an editor-at-large for Avenue Magazine.
Hankin grew up immersed in the arts. Raised in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, he was exposed early to art and cultural institutions through his family. His parents helped found the James A. Michener Art Museum, known for its collection of George Nakashima furniture and Bucks County impressionist works.
Hankin earned his undergraduate degree at George Washington University, completed his law degree at Rutgers and later received a legal master’s degree in real estate development law from the University of Miami. Today, he works alongside his father and sister in their third-generation family real estate development company based in Philadelphia.
Hankin’s engagement with the arts deepened during law school when he joined the Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In New York, he became active with the Whitney Museum of American Art and later broadened his participation to institutions including the Fricke Collection, Serpentine Gallery in London and the Aspen Art Museum.
Cutting such a wide swath in the art world, Hankin has become a cultural and fashion influencer. He contributes as a columnist for Avenue Magazine, Philadelphia Style Magazine, Gotham and Quest Magazine, all while cultivating a vibrant online presence through his handle @HRH_Alexander.
Hankin believes AAM occupies a unique position in the art world. Despite its small-town setting, the museum produces exhibitions and programming on par with institutions in far larger cities. He attributes that success to a committed base of patrons, a sense of community and the strong leadership of Executive Director Nicola Lees.
“The museum has really changed for the better under Nicola,” Hankin said. “She brings people in who are really invested and she’s expanded the public outreach of the museum by providing access to art for the entire western slope of Colorado in the public schools. And we have things like the Youth Art Expo where public schoolers get to display their art in the museum every two years. It is so unique to any museum, it’s what’s great about Aspen being a small place and having this big outreach that makes such a huge impact on the greater community.”
More than anything, Hankin wants tonight’s event to be a celebration of the museum and what it has accomplished.
“First off, I want people to have fun,” he said. “But my ultimate hope is that people will see what we’re doing and want to get involved and become members and maybe even donors.
“We’re producing high-class shows, Art Crush and AIR are at a world-class level, we’re providing access to art for the schools, we have an amazing sense of community. By being a member or donor, you really get to know the people who are involved and it’s an incredible group. And you’re in Aspen, so what could be bad?”
Tickets are available at aspenartmuseum.org.
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