Sundance Catalog

The Sundance catalog is an incidental byproduct of an entirely different enterprise.  It began in 1969 when Robert Redford, the Hollywood icon who had made his name known around the world, purchased a chunk of land at the foot of Mount Timpanogos which is a breathtakingly majestic mountain reaching 12,000 feet into the sky and is part of the regal Wasatch Mountains in the State of Utah.  With its abundance of nature’s best — grand pine and aspen trees, babbling brooks and pristine fields of wildflowers filling the air with intoxicating aromas, this became known as the Sundance Village.

From its very beginnings, it was Robert Redford’s dream to turn Sundance Village into a joint community for art and nature which would promote and cultivate artistic pursuits and leisurely endeavors even as its native magnificence is preserved and protected.  A very small shop was set up on the periphery of the Sundance Village and it offered an eclectic assortment of goods for the guests at the Village.  At first, many guests would write to request special items which they happened to have noticed there.  However, the word spread rather rapidly and requests began to pile in from people who knew other people who knew guests who visited the Sundance Village and purchased something that they too wish to have and so on.  For twenty years similar requests can in from many more people from more and more remote areas, until Robert Redford met with a handful of his colleagues and suggested starting a mail order catalog to fulfill all the requests that continued to pour in, as well as to make their unique products more easily available to a more extensive audience.

Taking the first baby steps, the first Sundance catalog was mailed out in the fall of 1989 to a small group of the shop’s regular customers, family and friends.  It took a while, but the Sundance catalog eventually gained popularity and enthusiastic responses from loyal customers.  To add an extra touch to the Sundance catalog, Robert Redford’s personal notation is printed inside the front cover of every one of its editions.  The following is his first message within its first issue:

“In 1969, we founded Sundance.  The next year the General Store was established.  In the beginning for us there was no end.  Now, it’s hard to remember the beginning.  One of the more insane journeys any business could make.  We built things we shouldn’t have, tried things that were beyond us, and planned things that were merely impossible.  But happily, it has turned out.  And along the way have been many varied and exciting moments.  Today, 20 years later, we’re celebrating that “spirit” with this first edition of the Sundance Catalog.  Our General Store has established relationships with many special artists from across the U.S.  This catalog offers the kind of things that we have been privileged to collect, many of them handcrafted exclusively for Sundance.  When you purchase something from this catalog, we appreciate the fact that the prime reason is enjoyment for yourself.  But you are also supporting American craftspeople, the Sundance Institute for development of new artists in film, music, dance and theater, and efforts to enhance and preserve the environment.  There is richness and diversity still in the American experience.  I hope you enjoy the collection.”

Currently, the Sundance catalog is also available online and continues to offer a wide range of unique products while advocating environmental sustainability issues.