Old ski chairlifts electrified for charity | Buzz Blog
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Old ski chairlifts electrified for charity

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Kimball Art Center is upping their stamina with a glitzy auction tonight, fueled by powerful community effort and modified historical emblems.---

It all started when the Canyons began their “incredible face lift,” as Robin Maroucche, director at the Kimball Art Center likes to call it. Along with other improvements, the old Golden Eagle ski lift was demolished and replaced with the Bubble, a turbo speed lift complete with weather protection and seat warmers.

Whilst enraptured with the new lift, the Canyons were additionally concerned with the preservation of the Golden Eagle, a relic of great powder days. So rather than fruitlessly tossing the chairs in a landfill to rot, they called Maroucche with a proposal to flip-flop the chairs for bidding at a charity auction.

And now, may I introduce to you the Chairity Lift project, auctioned through eBay and reaching out globally. Forty local artists, corporations and charities were chosen to each renovate an antique chairlift with limitless creativity, and the results have blown everyone away. The chairlifts range from a Family Tree Peace Garden or twinkling pine cones, to a log cabin chair and a mobile disco lounge.

Fischer Productions, Park City producers of “Expedition Great White,” the second most watched show on National Geographic channel, also designed a chairlift. Slung from the top of the fly-fishesque chairlift is a massive replica of a great white shark.

Another admirable feature apart from the artist’s esteemed creativity and%uFFFDthe chair's%uFFFDaesthetic pleasure, is the legend of the Canyons history bleeding through the designs.

But what really cues an “awww” is the charity money that will be raised and donated. 75 percent of all proceeds will go to Kimball Art Center, sustaining their mission to engage their community in inspiring exhibits and events. The remaining 25 percent will go back to the artists and organizations involved in the designing.

Television celebrity and local resident Scott Wolf is the MC for the auction, and is thrilled that people abroad are traveling here for the auction in these tough economical times to support the community. He noted the worth while charities involved, such as the Wounded Warrior organization devoted to nurturing all wounded troops returning to SLC.

Although the event tonight is sold out, don’t hold back from checking out the vibrant chairlifts here, and maybe even smile at the wonderful support our community generates.