Before launching into the art world with his book and film project Winter’s Children, Jim Mangan served as creative director for Park City in Utah—literally moving mountains in order to shape the terrain. Having also enjoyed a career as a professional snowboarder, Mangan is intimately acquainted with the world’s finest slopes. We asked the newly minted artist, whose book has been selected for the collection at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, for his top five riding destinations. “It’s all in Utah,” he says. “The mountains are in a high-mountain desert so that’s why it’s so light and fluffy—it’s dry. Utah has the best snow in the world. ”

Park City
Obviously I am very intimate with the mountain. It has the best parks and some of the best tree lines on a powder day.

Powder Mountain
It’s a total mom-and-pop resort, so three days after it snows, when all the powder is tracked out, you can go there and find unbelievable stashes. I recommend heading to the top of James Peak. You can pay extra and take a heli that will drop you off at the top or you can take a short cat ride and hike most of the way. The hike is better—you feel like you've earned it.

Brighton
Each time I’m on these mountains I learn something new. Brighton has the most fun and diverse terrain of anywhere I've ridden. Hook up with someone who knows the mountain.

Snowbird
As far as natural terrain, they have every type you can imagine. The drops, the cliffs—there is nothing like it on Earth. Combined with the two-foot powder days, forget it.

Snowbasin