Artists create works for museum benefit

 
Photos by Zach Mazur, Museum of Art/WSU
 
 
PULLMAN, Wash. – Art, music, wine, friends, food, garden. FUN! These images come to mind when you view the photos from the Museum of Art/WSU benefit hosted by Living in the Garden earlier this summer.
 
Combining the garden backdrop with fine wine, food from the Black Cypress and South Fork, music by local performers and art, the event is destined to become a yearly favorite among patrons of the fine arts on the Palouse.
 
Museum staff began planning a benefit to support the museum as part of the capital fundraising campaign. Knowing that people who love art also have an appreciation for fine wine and gardening, museum staff were thrilled when Suzanne St. Pierre and Scotty Thompson from Living in the Garden approached them wanting to help.
 
Determined to have a one-of-a-kind, high quality event, museum staff approached several well-known and well-patronized local artists, asking them to create works of art for the garden. The pieces were displayed on either side of the pathway winding through the garden, and attendees could bid on the art throughout the evening.
 
Floral arrangements crafted by St. Pierre also were auctioned, and the museum displayed works of art from the permanent collection.
 
The evening was a success, and museum staff members already are planning for next year, said Debby Stinson, museum public relations manager.
 
The evening literally gave people a three-dimensional experience of how art can enrich their lives, she said. All five senses were engaged through fine wine, food, art, music – and the appearance of a rainbow as the evening began.
 
Next year’s event is scheduled for 7-9 p.m. Saturday, July 14.