Lino Tagliapietra, Borneo, 2009. Blown glass, cane. H 19 1/4, D 12 in. Retail value: $37,000.
UrbanGlass, the New York nonprofit arts institution that publishes GLASS magazine, is gearing up for its annual auction and gala that will take place this Friday, April 16th. Timed to coincide with the 2010 SOFA New York art fair, the event formerly known as the “Glassblowers’ Ball” has been reimagined as a “Fellini-esque fantasy” and renamed “Fête de Verre.” The event’s organizers are seeking to distinguish their event from the many other glass art fundraisers around the country, but some things will not change. Like last year, the event will include the presentation of UrbanGlass Awards with April Surgent to be recognized for New Talent, the Glass Art Society for Service to the Field, and a special posthumous award to Dan Klein for Lifetime Service.
April Surgent, City Nights, 2010. Cameo-engraved glass. H 17, W 12 3/4, D 2 in. Retail value: $3,400
“This year, we changed the vision of the event to be a celebration of the myriad ways of working with glass,” UrbanGlass associate director Becki Melchione told the Hot Sheet. “In addition to an auction of fabulous artwork, there will be glass represented in video, fashion, music, and conceptual art. We wanted to make the event fun and different than any other glass auction.”
With 200 guests expected to attend, the turnout is on track to match last year’s. But UrbanGlass has changed venues, moving the fundraiser from its longtime home at the riverfront Chelsea Piers event space to Capitale, a grand former bank building in a hip section of downtown Manhattan near New York’s Chinatown.
UrbanGlass is anticipating it will exceed the 2009 event in terms of fundraising. “We expect to be above last year’s results,” says Melchione. (The 2009 event grossed $326,759). Key to achieving those results will be how bidding goes on the wide range of artworks to be offered at auction. Asked to pick the five most exciting offerings from the more than 70 artworks and experiences going under the gavel, Melchione cited Lino Tagliapietra’s 2009 work Borneo (pictured above), Hank Murta Adams’ 2008 work Ocupatto’s (pictured below), Toots Zynsky’s 2008 work Alzarsi, Jeff Zimmerman’s untitled work from 2007, and April Surgent’s 2010 work City Nights.
Hank Murta Adams, Ocupatto's, 2008. Glass and Steel. H 37, W 34 1/4, D 12 in. Retail value: $14,000
“Hank’s anthropomorphic alter egos look fun at first glance, but hint at a darker concern about humanity,” says Melchione about the raw glass and steel installation by Adams, who is also the creative director of the Creative Glass Center of America at Wheaton Arts.
Toots Zynsky, Alzarsi, 2009. Fused and Thermoformed color glass. H 14 1/2, W 9 3/4, D 9 3/4 in. Retail value: $18,500
About the Zynsky work, Melchione said: “This is a spectacular piece by Toots where the red emerges from the vessel like flame.”
Jeff Zimmerman’s organic dark glass forms are a muted contrast to his bright white or silvered glass elements in his recent New York exhibition. “I love Jeff’s organic forms that morph and bend,” says Melchione. “They remind of sculpture Tanguy would have made.”
Though only a few days away, the event still has last-minute tickets available. More information on how to order tickets is available through the Fête de Verre website. Tickets will also be available at the UrbanGlass booth at SOFA New York during the event’s opening night on Thursday, and during the first full day of the show on Friday, April 16th.
Jeff Zimmerman, Untitled, 2007. Blown-glass installation. H 15, W 8, D 8 in. (tallest). Retail value: $16,000
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