Midsummer Magic at Parrish Art Museum: Dinner, Dancing and the Sagaponack Sculpture Field Donation

16.07.2024 22:05

New York Observer

More than 650 art enthusiasts from all walks of life descended upon the landmark East End institution to see and be seen this past weekend.

Parrish Art Museum’s two-day Midsummer Dance and Dinner is a major highlight of the summer season for the cultural set. Benefit it may be—and indeed, this year raised more than a million bucks for museum community partner program “Access Parrish”—this annual fête is generally a must-attend event for art collectors, curators, artists and patrons of the arts, along with sundry actors, musicians, socialites and Hamptonites. Admittedly, Friday’s Midsummer Dance Party and Saturday’s Midsummer Gala Dinner were somewhat more subdued than last year’s (which had a Max Mara flower crown station and Naracisisster popping balloons while dressed as a demonic clown) because the museum’s 125th anniversary has passed. But that didn’t stop more than 650 art enthusiasts from all walks of life from descending upon the landmark East End institution.

The dance, co-chaired by Parrish Trustee Laurence Milstein and talent manager Kendall Werts, saw a multigenerational crowd get down on the terrace dance floor with DJs Angel + Dren after performances by Anna of the North (aka Anna Lotterud) and members of the Parsons Dance troupe. In between, guests clad in everything from gowns to boat shorts and sheer shirts nibbled on hors d’oeuvres and desserts by the event specialists at Canard.

Not twenty-four hours later on Saturday, the museum was again beset by revelers who came to Water Mill to help the Parrish’s executive director Mónica Ramírez-Montagut honor philanthropists Susan Pear Meisel and gallerist Louis K. Meisel and artists KAWS, Shirin Neshat, and Sean Scully—the latter of whom will present exhibitions at the Parrish next year. KAWS (aka Brian Donnelly) premiered his first survey in the East End, “KAWS: TIME OFF,” that very evening.

As dinners go, it was an energetic one. Rachael White Young of Christie’s led a paddle raise in support of the museum’s exhibitions, programs and educational initiatives. And partway through the evening’s festivities, it was announced that the Meisels—whose name you might recognize from the Louis K. Meisel Gallery in SoHo—are donating Sagaponack Sculpture Field to Parrish Art Museum. If you haven’t been, the field covers two acres in Sagaponack upon which you’ll find twenty sculptures, including works by artists Audrey Flack and Kenneth Snelson.

The gala dinner’s noteworthy guests included artists Alice Aycock, Tony Bechara, Sanford Biggers, Julia Chiang, Arcmanoro Niles, Liliane Tomasko, Ralph Gibson, Eddie Martinez, Sam Moyer, Jose Parla, Hank Willis Thomas, Enoc Perez, David Smalling, Jeremy Dennis, Futura and Nina Yankowitz—an immensely talented lineup if ever there was one. Also in attendance were arts patron Veronica Atkins, actress Stephanie March, entrepreneur and founder Nina Sarin Arias and Wölffer Estate Vineyard’s Joey Wölffer.

It wasn’t all honoring and auctioneering and handshaking, however. The gala dinner’s second act was yet another evening of dancing, this time to music by DJ M.O.S.