18 Art Installations Yield a Strong Sense of Place

Montage Big Sky, Montana

The details: Nestled within Montana’s bucolic landscape, Montage Big Sky melds the spirit of the American West with the nature and heritage of Big Sky. To complement the neutral color palette and timeless materials used by San Francisco-based firm BraytonHughes Design Studios throughout the public spaces and 150 guestrooms and 39 residences, Farmboy Fine Arts curated an art collection of more than 150 unique works. Sourced from a mixture of local, emerging, and preeminent international artists, the pieces span mediums. American sculptor Jessica Drenk’s Bibliophylum upcycles pages from old books into feather-like pieces, individually pinned in an elliptical shape above the reception desk. In the guestrooms, original black and white photography by Anouk Masson Krantz tells the story of the American West, while the pool area is enhanced by Carson Fox’s Big Sky Meditation, which comprises three circular installations of rock-like formations made from resin, diamond dust, Swarovski crystals, and steel pins. “[The hotel’s] art collection celebrates diverse artistic practices that tell a range of stories reflective of Big Sky’s precious natural surroundings and the important lifestyles, cultures, and histories of the local community, adding visceral new ways for guests to create more meaningful connections to Big Sky during their visit,” says Ariel Grue Lee, vice president of business development for Farmboy Fine Arts.