“People here come from all walks of life, but one belief is shared: our community should represent who we are and what we believe. Sundance is an arts community, a recreational community, a community of people who appreciate the beauty of nature and feel the responsibility to preserve it.”
~ Robert Redford
In 1969, Robert Redford bought the land now known as Sundance envisioning the careful growth of a community committed to the balance of art, nature and community. The atmosphere of Sundance is steeped in cultural heritage: from the Ute tribes that first inhabited the canyon to the early 20th-century Scottish immigrant family, the Stewarts, who homesteaded the area and later developed the mountain into a small ski resort called Timp Haven.
Investors began eyeing the picturesque Utah setting for its development potential, but Redford wanted “to develop a little and preserve a great deal.” Rejecting advice from New York investors to fill the canyon with an explosion of lucrative hotels and condominiums, Redford saw his newly acquired land as an ideal locale for environmental conservation and artistic experimentation.
In 1981, the Sundance Institute was founded, followed by the Sundance Catalog in 1988. Many writers, directors, actors and artists have been inspired by the beauty of this canyon; years of experimentation and refinement ultimately resulted in Sundance.
Sundance is committed to art and outdoor activities working together in harmony, while keeping the land beautiful and pristine for generations to come. It’s this ability to blend process and place that makes Sundance so dynamically unique.
Fifty years later, this vision has not changed: under the leadership and direction of founder Robert Redford, they strive to create an unspoiled and authentic experience at the intimate mountain resort where art, nature and commerce unite…to inspire and develop people, voices and ideas.
