André Georges, the Alpinist-Painter

Some men spend their lives climbing, then learn to look. André Georges, a son of the village of La Sage, was one of the great alpinists of his generation before setting down the ice axe to take up the brush. The Grand Hôtel & Kurhaus had the honour of hosting an exhibition of his canvases, in its great hall.

A life of summits

His career commands respect: a Dent Blanche climbed some two hundred times, often by its formidable north face, and solo enchaînements in the Valais Alps reputed to be all but impossible. A high-mountain guide until 2013, he knows these walls as few others do.

From action to contemplation

Stepping back from guiding was the start of another adventure. Self-taught, André Georges began to paint, moving “from action to contemplation.” From his home nestled in the rocks of Évolène, he set down on canvas the mountains he had so often walked — the Dent Blanche, above all, which returns like a haunting motif.

A tribute at the Kurhaus

Hosting this exhibition was, for the hotel, a symbolic gesture. A witness to the golden age of alpinism, the Kurhaus offered a natural setting for the work of a local legend. Admission was free and open to all: an invitation to look at the mountain differently, through the eyes of one who climbed it so long.