Words NICOLE CORDINGLEY Art and Captions LEXI DOWDALL A hundred-inch storm sat draped like a blanket over Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT, in January 2021, causing an infamous “interlodge.” After 60 hours confined inside, the town of Alta was let loose to an open ski area and a closed highway. Fondly referred to as “Country Club,” it was an Alta skier’s dream. If you had the good fortune to be stuck in the canyon, near-empty slopes were yours for the taking. Lexi Dowdall was there and skied some of the deepest snow of her life. “It was a flawless day, and I wanted to preserve that blissful feeling,” she recalls. “I scooped up some snow in a Nalgene water bottle with plans to incorporate it into some of my watercolor paintings.” CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT At home in my studio, a.k.a. the dining room table, which receives the best light in my home. Photo: Re Wikstrom Back when I was helping to run the Interna-tional Freeskier & Snowboarder Association Freeride competitions, I would often ride the 7 a.m. “work car” with Snowbird’s ski patrollers and event staff to prepare the competition venue. This painting depicts a photo I took on one of those special mornings at The Bird. There is no feeling quite like being on an empty mountain before dawn. Gathering dense spring snow with my friend Claire underneath Deer Valley’s infamous Daly Chutes. Photo: Claire Bensard Ferda girls. Sending it wide, spread eagle style, for my pal Meaghan at Alta Ski Area. Photo: Re Wikstrom Getting to know James Niehues, a ski industry legend, has deeply shaped my path as an artist. He taught me that there is demand for ski-themed art and I continue to be inspired by his productivity and excitement. Photo: Iz La Motte With skis, boots, poles and empty milk jugs, Lexi’s ski day checklist is a little unique. Three years after that infamous Alta interlodge, she’s amidst a project to paint all 15 of Utah’s ski resorts, using snowmelt from each resort. She calls it Paint by Powder, a multi-year project to both docu-ment her love for skiing in Utah, as well as bring awareness to the threats of climate change to skiing these mountains. Scooping up snow midslope, in lift lines and behind base lodges, Lexi has gotten more than a few pull-the-goggles-up looks while on her journey turning snowflakes into art. When you run into Lexi, her inviting smile is the first thing you see, whether in the lift line on a powder day or a coffee shop in downtown Salt Lake City. She’s quick to clarify that she’s a skier-artist, not an artist-skier. “The act of skiing is what inspires me to paint,” she says, reflecting on the relationship between her two life pursuits. Throughout a winding career path, Lexi has refused to compromise her skiing—friends, boyfriends, interests and jobs all connect back to the Wasatch. That flawless Country Club Day at Alta doesn’t stand alone—Lexi skis more Utah powder in a season than most do in a lifetime—but it was one of the first times she had bottled up a small piece of the magic. Painting, especially with the very water molecules she’s just spent the day blasting through on skis, has become a way to extend those moments. “With my art, I want to share a place that has affected me,” she says. “I aim to create something that resonates, whether or not you have a personal connection to the place.” 090 The Ski Journal
The Ski Journal Volume 18, Issue 1: Page 90
