A Movable Feast
Saturday, August 23
Salem Art Works' Annual Fundraiser Offers Gourmet Outdoor Dining, a Live Auction, Glassblowing, Iron Pouring, and Performances by Local and International Musicians and Artists
This year, Salem Art Works will hold its fundraising event, A Movable Feast, on Saturday, August 23 from 4pm to 9pm. Catered by Pangaea Restaurant of Bennington, VT, the three-course dinner will be served outdoors at different locations among the rolling blue-hills of SAW's 120-acre public sculpture park at 19 Cary Lane. All proceeds from the event will be dedicated to supporting SAW's programming and artists residencies in 2009, as well as making improvements to the grounds and facilities of the arts center.
Appetizers will be passed near the botanical labyrinth of morning glories and sunflowers created by Brooklyn/Woodstock, NY-based artist Peter Barrett. The first course will also feature live glassblowing demonstrations by Marc Barreda and Leif Johnson, both of whom regularly instruct glass workshops at SAW. Barreda, who was born in Peru and grew up in Vermont, exhibits his work internationally and has also assisted in instructing students at Pilchuck Glass School in Washington, and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine. Johnson's anamorphic hot-glass and welded steel sculptures have been exhibited nationally and he has a number of pieces in SAW's continually evolving collection. Johnson is also the Director of SAW's Glo Glass Studio.
The entrée will be served on the lawn near SAW's newly inaugurated visitor's center, where diners will be served prime rib and Thai curry made with local, seasonal vegetables. Guests will be able to watch cast iron artists from around the country pour molten metal into handmade sand molds. Scratch blocks will be available before the event for guests to create their own sculptures. Handmade and blown glass objects made at Glo, and newly made cast iron toast will be auctioned off during the second course while artist John Umphlett demonstrates one of his interactive sculptures. Umphlett is a professor of sculpture at Bennington College where he received his own Masters of Fine Arts in Sculpture in 1999. He has been the recipient of numerous fellowships and awards and exhibits his work regularly throughout Vermont.
At sundown, guests will be transported to the top of Cary Hill for the last course of the evening. At dusk, the internationally venerated singers Mary Chen, Yong Li with piano accompaniment by Isabelle Williams will bring in the night with a performance of traditional Chinese Opera Music. Chen has studied at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China and Queens College, and NYU, and has received glowing reviews from the New York Times and several other international news sources. Li also studied voice in Beijing and has been a bass soloist for the Tienjin Opera House for 14 years. He has been the recipient of numerous accolades including third place in the Chinese International Voice competition in 2007. Dr. Williams is a highly respected pianist who has received a Masters degree in Piano and a Ph.D. in Musicology from the University of Michigan, and has performed nationally and as a soloist with the Tampa Symphony Orchestra.
Tickets for this event can be reserved by calling the SAW office at 518-854-7674 and the cost is $35-$100 per person on a sliding scale dependent upon each individual's ability offer support. Salem Art Works is a 501(c)3 non-profit arts center and public sculpture park situated on a 120 acres of rolling pasture and hillside in Washington County. Dedicated to providing artists with the space, time, and supportive community in which to experiment and develop their artistic practices, SAW offers workshops, artist residencies, independent study for undergraduates and internships. SAW also hosts rotating exhibitions in their galleries and a summer concert series that features internationally touring and acclaimed musicians, poets and radio transmissions.
Exhibition Opening
"FERROSCITY, Welcome to the Land of Cast Iron Sculpture"; a group show of contemporary cast iron sculpture curated by Coral Lambert (UK) will be opening in SAW's Barn II Gallery, a new installation by Theresa Smith (MI) will open in Barn III, and monoprints, collages, and drawings by Nolan Grunwald (NJ) and Zach Noel (MA) will open in SAW's Visitors Center. All Works will be on display until through September 2008.