Read More - Rowland + Broughton

ART
OF
TOWN
EMERGING ARTISTS
ELEVATED CULTURE
ENLIGHTENED PHILANTHROPY
aspenpeak-magazine.com
NICHE MEDIA HOLDINGS, LLC
COVER ARTIST: LINDA GIRVIN
PEOPLE View from the Top
photography by billy rood; Styling by Faye power; Makeup by elizabeth Mcguire oF bizzy lizzy’S one Stop Shop;
hair Styling by rita bellino oF Queen b Salon
Queen
Midas
A principAl At the AwArdwinning rowlAnd+Broughton
design firm, stArchitect Sarah
Broughton is determined to
pAve Aspen’s ArchitecturAl
future with gold.
by christine benedetti
With so many contracts about town,
architect Sarah Broughton, along with
husband John Rowland, is remaking
Aspen in her image.
Top, A.L.C. Pitkin County Dry Goods;
pitkincountydrygoods.com. Skirt, Burberry
London. burberry.com. Necklace, Anna
Trzebinski. annatrzebinski.com. Watch,
Vacheron Constantin. Meridian Jewelers;
meridianjewelers.com
Everything Sarah Broughton touches turns to
gold—that and quarried marble and reclaimed
wood. The 41-year-old is a principal architect in her
design firm Rowland+Broughton, along with her
husband, John Rowland, whom she met while
studying architecture at the University of Colorado.
Together, they’ve taken their company on a
meteoric rise from working out of their condo at the
base of Aspen Mountain in 2003 to running one of
the state’s top award-winning firms, with 32
full-time staffers split between their Aspen base
and Denver outpost. Still, says Broughton, “There’s
more to do. That’s what we work on every day.”
Since launching, R+B has completed 385
projects and won 50 awards. Glance around Aspen
and you are likely to find a structure their firm has
influenced, if not created. In 2012, they renovated
Aspen’s crown jewel, the Hotel Jerome, and
received several awards—and sweeping praise
continued on page 72
aspenpeak-magazine.com 71
PEOPLE View from the Top
clockwise: The R+B-renovated “living
room” at the Hotel Jerome; Broughton
sketches elevation concepts in a design
charrette for an Aspen-based project;
sketches for the new 7,800-square-foot
Matsuhisa restaurant in Denver, set to
open later this year, which hired R+B as
its architect and interior designers.
Broughton’s Besties:
alfresco dining spot:
“Ajax Tavern—rosé, truffe fries, and the doubledouble cheeseburger; life is good!”
outdoor activities:
“Cruiser biking to dinner parties, mountain
biking the Government Trail, and hiking in the
backcountry.”
summer festivals:
“i’m inspired by
nature and
great art, and
i’m constantly
out there
looking for it.”
— sarah broughton
72 aspenpeak-magazine.com
from the community—for paying homage to the
property’s historic roots while embracing modern
luxury. Upon their debuts, Element 47, inside The
Little Nell; BB’s Kitchen; and the Crandall
Building, home to Sandy’s Office Supply and a topfloor penthouse, all turned heads, too. Basalt’s
Woody Creek Distillers, a 10,700-square-foot production facility and tasting room, also received
nods from two Colorado chapters of national
design associations. Though Broughton is the creative brain behind an impressive list of projects,
one of the most public is yet to come: the complete
rebuild of the Sky Hotel, set to be razed and
replaced with a 114,000-square-foot, chalet-style
lodge, beginning next spring. But R+B’s scope is not
just about resorts, and it is not just in Aspen.
The firm started an office in Denver to propel it to a
national level—and it’s working. With 35 projects in
the Denver International Airport alone, the company
has expanded to developments in Park City, Utah,
and Ketchum, Idaho. But Broughton is conscious of
the growth, both within her company and in Aspen.
Before trading in her boardroom experience for
something more light in the toes—she now sits on the
board of the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet and the public
policy committee of the Aspen Chamber Resort
Association—she served for eight years on Aspen’s
Historic Preservation Commission. “Historic preservation is really important to me in maintaining our
historicism but allowing for growth and allowing for
change,” she says. “Both can coexist.”
She recalls standing on top of the Little Nell run
in her skis when she first got to town, in 2000, looking down at Aspen pre-St. Regis and pre-Hyatt.
Since then, much has been built, but her forecast
includes less up and out, and more in. “I see Aspen
very much the same from a mass and scale standpoint in the future,” she says. “I’m a proponent of
density. With that comes fun design challenges.”
And fun is part of her ethos.
Broughton works hard and plays hard. On weekends that means skiing, hiking, and biking. During
the week, she loves to “break bread” with her husband and clients after a day at the office. And in
between it all, hopping on a plane to recharge is just
as much vacation as it is a muse for future work. “I’m
inspired by nature and great art, and I’m constantly
out there looking for it,” she says.
She makes sure that culture of innovation trickles
down by having an “inspiration” meeting every other
week with staff. On the off weeks, the team has project meetings. “Everyone in the office should feel safe
to try, to dare, and to design,” she says. If their risk
turns out anything like Broughton’s, then Aspen—
and the country—can expect a lot more gold. AP
PhotograPhy by barbara Kraft (hotel Jerome); Caitlyn gembarowiCz (worKing); illustration by sarah broughton (sKetCh)
“Food & Wine kicks off the summer season, and
it is a blast because so many locals are there. And,
with the Aspen Music Festival—we just built a house
across the street, so we can now hear music from the
tent from our front porch!”