For decades, St. Moritz has been synonymous with glamour: winter sports, society gatherings, and a seasonal influx of international visitors. Now, cultural producer Giorgio Pace is proposing a different rhythm for the Alpine destination—one that extends well beyond the ski season and roots itself in long-term cultural exchange. His latest initiative, Der Pavilion, launches January 29, 2026, positioning itself as a year-round cultural platform designed to engage artists, collectors, and the local community in equal measure.
Pace brings deep institutional experience to the project. Before founding Giorgio Pace Projects and co-founding Nomad—an endeavor he departed in June 2025—he worked across some of the world’s most influential art institutions, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Venice Biennale, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Dia Art Foundation, and the Bard Graduate Center. That background informs Der Pavilion’s ambition: not as a temporary cultural moment, but as a sustainable ecosystem embedded in place.
A Living Cultural Ecosystem
Courtesy of Der Pavilion.
Courtesy of Der Pavilion.
Rather than operating solely during peak winter months, Der Pavilion is conceived as a living, evolving platform active throughout the year. It unfolds across multiple sites in St. Moritz, presenting a network of exhibitions, performances, and experiences that respond to the seasons—from snow-covered winters to verdant summers in the Engadin Valley.
Central to this vision is a four-week residency-style exhibition model. Artists are invited to remain onsite for extended periods, allowing for deeper engagement with the place, its audience, and its collectors. This structure offers sustained visibility—private appointments, evolving presentations, and the opportunity to shape programming organically as it unfolds. In contrast to the fleeting nature of art fairs and pop-ups, Der Pavilion prioritizes presence, continuity, and dialogue.
For collectors visiting St. Moritz to unwind, the model creates space for unhurried encounters with art and artists alike. For artists, it provides something rarer: time, access, and the chance to build relationships in an environment removed from the pressures of major art capitals.
Beyond the Winter Season
Photo by Andrea Klainguti. Courtesy of I.C.E. St. Moritz.
While winter remains St. Moritz’s peak season, Der Pavilion seeks to broaden the town’s cultural and economic horizons. By merging exhibitions with performance, craftsmanship, and gastronomy, the platform encourages year-round visitation—including audiences less drawn to skiing but deeply engaged with culture and design.
Equally important is its role in building networks. By connecting local artisans with international artists, galleries, and institutions, Der Pavilion strengthens the region’s cultural infrastructure and amplifies voices that might otherwise remain peripheral to the global art circuit. It establishes a cyclical rhythm without becoming repetitive, resisting the stasis often associated with seasonal programming.
The Inaugural Edition
©The Upper Engadine Cultural Archives Courtesy of NOMAD St. Moritz.
The inaugural edition will take place in the former Hotel Eden, currently slated for redevelopment. While plans are underway for a permanent architectural structure in the future, the use of existing sites underscores the project’s adaptive, site-responsive nature.
Programming will include exhibitions by international artists, design presentations, and a dedicated focus on contemporary jewelry. The city itself becomes a backdrop for performances, culinary encounters, and special projects that weave Engadin’s local culture into a broader international dialogue.
Early highlights include an intimate opera performance at Badrutt’s Palace Hotel’s private theater, as well as a flower and garden presentation developed with local artisans, florists, and horticulturists—celebrating early summer and encouraging visitors to return beyond winter.
Courtesy of I.C.E. St. Moritz.
“Der Pavilion is the natural evolution of what I’ve been building over the past fifteen years,” says Pace. “St. Moritz needs something that extends beyond the winter season. This is a movement—one that grows all year, in dialogue with the landscape, yet open to the world.”
Following its winter debut, Der Pavilion will continue with seasonal programming rooted in community-based cultural events. In doing so, it proposes a new model for St. Moritz—one where cultural excellence, authenticity, and place converge, and where community is not an afterthought, but the foundation.
