The Test of Time
Celebrating 25 years of Mountain Living + our inaugural Legacy Award winners
In the early ’90s I worked for Pat Wiesner as publisher of Colorado Homes & Lifestyles magazine. Noticing many submissions coming from mountain communities, I wondered, “Is there a market for a design magazine focused on mountain living?” I wrote a business plan and when I left the company to pursue another opportunity, then vice president of Wiesner Publishing Eliza Cross pursued the idea, hiring Loneta Showell as art director and launching Mountain Living in 1994.
Eliza remained publisher of Mountain Living for eight years, leaving when she adopted a baby and wanted to spend more time with her family. Holly Scott eventually took the reins, steering the magazine through the 2009 recession, when many publications closed their doors, and providing the vision that has resulted in the magazine’s success. She also assisted in the transition through new ownership by national media company Network Communications Inc. and later through a sale to WiesnerMedia, where, following in the footsteps of his father, Pat, Dan Wiesner had started his own company publishing Colorado Biz and Pittsburgh Magazine, then purchasing Mountain Living and Colorado Homes & Lifestyles.
When ML’s editor-in-chief position opened three years ago, I jumped at the chance to rejoin a Wiesner team and immerse myself in the mountain lifestyle I’m passionate about. Plus, I’d be working with the legendary Loneta, still shaping the magazine’s distinctive look after 25 years.
In addition to celebrating Mountain Living’s 25th anniversary, we are presenting the Legacy Awards for the first time, recognizing individuals with long-standing careers in architecture, interior design, landscape architecture and lighting and furniture design in the Rocky Mountain West.
Coincidentally, two of the Legacy Award winners have featured projects in this issue. Jim McLaughlin designed a beautiful Arts & Crafts-style home on the banks of Ketchum’s Big Wood River. And Paul Bertelli is part of a group of friends who purchased and redesigned a villa in Italy—a different kind of mountain than we typically feature, but hey, it’s our anniversary, we can stretch the boundaries.
Recently I received an email from a Mountain Living fan who has read the magazine since the first issue. “I just extended my subscription again … I never want it to lapse,” she wrote.
From all of us at ML, thank you to our loyal readers—we wouldn’t be here without you. And it’s an honor to work with such talented architects, designers and artisans every issue. Here’s to another 25 years!
