Museum Autumn Art Auction is Saturday
The North Dakota Museum of Art, the state's official art museum, will hold its 10th annual Autumn Art Auction Saturday, Oct. 25. This year’s co-chairs are Becky Sefcovic Uglem and Amy Lyste, directors of the Third Street Gallery on Kittson Avenue in downtown Grand Forks. The evening begins at 6:30 p.m. with live music and appetizers donated by Whitey’s, Bronze Boot, Suite 49, Rhombus Guys, Museum Café, and Blue Moose. The live auction starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $30 for members, $35 for non-members in advance and $40 for non-members at the door. The 51 pieces of art are now on display at the Museum or online at www.ndmoa.com.
This Autumn Art Auction and its catalog is dedicated to Sanny Ryan, whose on-going financial gift of $60,000 annually supports museum staff salaries. The North Dakota Museum of Art is also very grateful to our dedicated sponsors who have given generously to guarantee that the arts flourish. The 2008 Autumn Art Auction is underwritten by Karen Stoker who developed North Dakota’s first art hotel in Fargo: Hotel Donaldson.
Of the auction, Museum Director Laurel Reuter writes, “Landscapes and ideas about landscape seem to dominate this year’s auction. Clearly, this reflects the influence of our climate and topography upon we who live here. In many parts of the world days go by with no mention of the weather. We, on the other hand, open endless conversations with the weather. It is our bridge to everywhere. Over the years the auction has grown into the venue where you can find the very best of what our own artists are making, and this includes art about life on the northern plains and woodlands.”
“The overriding goal of this auction is to build a buying audience for the artists who live among us. For decades, the only artists who could stay in northern Minnesota and North Dakota while continuing their professional careers had to find a different way to make a living —usually teaching on the college level. Our mantra became, ‘If we don’t support them, who is going to.’ Art has also become an accepted part of younger people’s lives. They participate, they buy, they live with art — and all of our lives become richer.”
“Not all of the artists live locally but they all have some relationship with either the Museum of Art or the region. And, given that Winnipeg is our closest large city — and a hotbed for artists — we consider the Manitoba art community our own.”
Absentee bidding is possible by mail or telephone. Call the Museum at 777-4195 to order tickets, receive an auction catalog, or register for absentee bidding. Ticket price includes wine and hors d'oeuvres beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The Museum is located on Centennial Drive in Grand Forks. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 1 to 5 p.m. weekends. Call 777-4195 for information on current exhibitions, the Museum Café, or the Museum Gift Shop.
-- Brian Lofthus, Assistant to the Director, North Dakota Museum of Art, blofthus@ndmoa.com, 777-4195 |