Lessons Learned

Guests at #mfaNOW Overnight Launch Party lining up to see “The Clock” by Christian Marclay at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

On Tuesday September 20th, Tony Cointreau celebrated the publication of his new book, "A Gift of Love - Lessons Learned from My Work and Friendship with Mother Teresa" with a party at Michael's. In his second book, the author, singer, humanitarian, and scion to the French liqueur family reveals what he gained from working so closely with Mother Teresa during their 12 years together at the NYC AIDS charity, A Gift of Love. Tony’s partner of 50 years, Jim Russo helped greet guests including Mary Higgins Clark, Cece Cord, Francine LeFrak and Rick Friedberg, Julie Hayek, Nancy Pearson, Henri Kessler, JD Thompson, Maria Cooper Janis, Joan Benny, and Eric Bottcher.

Click to order A Gift of Love.

Midway through the event, Tony made a short speech first thanking his partner Jim for his support over years. He then spoke about “Mother” and how much of a friend she was to the “dying, destitute and diseased.” He went on to say, how it was “scary to be with her in public, as people did not treat her like a human.” He then toasted the late Sister Jean Marshall, who was the Founder of St. Ritas Refugee Center in the Bronx, and “one of the unsung saints of the world because of her work with Vietnamese children displaced by war.”

Maria Cooper Janis, Tony Cointreau, and Cece Cord Angel Chizzoniti and Jim Murphy

JD Thompson and Erik Bottcher Julie Hayek, Krystofer Kimmel, and Nancy Pearson Lorito Bard

Stacy Schneider and Wayne Fisk Rick Friedberg and Francine LeFrak

Richard Johnson, Maria Cooper Janis, Roosey Khawly, and Jimmy Russo Mary Higgins Clark

Earlier this month, The Denver Art Museum hosted a VIP opening gala and for "Shock Wave: Japanese Fashion Design, 1980s–90s." The exhibition features 70 looks by powerhouse designers Issey Miyake, Kenzo Takada, Kansai Yamamoto, Yohji Yamamoto, Comme des Garçons, and Junya Watanabe, whose impact on fashion still resonates today.

Entering "Shock Wave: Japanese Fashion Design, 1980s–90s."

VIP opening guests enjoy the exhibition.

"Shock Wave" is the inaugural exhibition organized by Florence Müller, the Avenir Foundation Curator of Textile Art and Curator of Fashion, who joined the museum in 2015. It includes 20 recent acquisitions for the DAM's collection and also spotlights important loans from the fashion collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the de Young Museum in San Francisco, as well as from local and national private lenders.

Consul General to Japan Makoto Ito; Florence Müller, Denver Art Museum Avenir Foundation Curator of Textile Art and Curator of Fashion; Alessandra Schulein; and Denver Art Museum Frederick and Jan Mayer Director Christoph Heinrich.

Denver Art Museum Board Trustee Cathey Finlon with two of her Yohji Yamamoto looks that she lent to the Denver Art Museum for the Shock Wave exhibition

Joan Agajanian Quinn with her daughter (Amanda Quinn Olivar) and Alison Tomlinson.

Dennita Sewell, Curator of Fashion Design at the Phoenix Art Museum, with Florence Müller

Clockwise from top left: Joan Agajanian Quinn and Florence Müller; Rachel Robinson (granddaughter of Marcia Robinson, Denver Art Museum trustee); Consul General to Japan Makoto Ito and Joan Agajanian Quinn.

Dr. Tianlong Jiao, Joseph de Heer curator of Asian art at the Denver Art Museum, Alessandra Schulein, and Jane Buke, curatorial assistant of textile art and fashion at the Denver Art Museum

Arlene Hirschfeld, Florence Müller, and Barry Hirschfeld

Elaine Holoboff and Chris Leary

Cathey Finlon and Dianne Vanderlip, Curator Emeritus at Denver Art Museum

Zoe Larkins, Curatorial Associate at MCA Denver, Mariette Moore, and Kati Woock, Denver Art Museum Curatorial Assistant Architecture, Design & Graphics

Tim Gallagher, Trudy Turvey, Sammy Lee, and Bobby Kang

Monty Rifkin and Rella Rifkin

Renee Albiston, Hugh Grant, Founding Director & Curator of the Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, and Arpie Chucovich, Chief Development Officer

Nearly 7000 attended the Museum's #mfaNOW Overnight Launch Party (starting at 6 pm, Saturday, September 17 through 9 am Sunday, September 18), the first of four this fall. Crowds began lining up at 5 pm and didn't wane until after 3 am. The party featured exhibition openings for "UH-OH: Frances Stark 1991-2015" and Christian Marclay's "The Clock," live graffiti painting outside by MerkThose, music and sound performances by Substructure, food trucks, drawing in the galleries, and even 3 a.m. "Insomniac Olympics" under the moonlight in the MFA's Calderwood Courtyard.

Graffiti artist MerkThose

Visitors in the exhibition “UH-OH: Frances Stark 1991-2015”

The MFA will host three more overnight events (all 9 pm - 9 am) on October 14-15 (College Edition); November 4-5 (State of the Party); and December 9-10 (Last Call). More info: http://www.mfa.org/programs/series/mfanow-overnights

Pete L’Official, Liz Munsell (the MFA’s Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Special Initiatives), Verena von Pfetten, Bobby Jesus, Nick Donofrio, and Maggie Gram

Matthew Teitelbaum (the MFA’s Ann and Graham Gund Director) with artists Frances Stark and Christian Marclay John Geoffrion and Al Miner (Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art at the MFA)

Lee Perry, Cassandra Johnson, Frederick Ilchman (the MFA’s Chair and Mrs. Russell W. Baker Curator of Paintings, Art of Europe) Cokie Perry, and Katie Hanson (Assistant Curator of Paintings, Art of Europe)

Dietmar Offenhuber, Wendy Jacob (artist), Azra Akšamija (artist), and Robert Pietrusko Frances Stark and Ann Philbin (Director of the Hammer Museum, LA)

Frances Stark and Rodney Nonaka-Hill

Jen Mergel (the MFA’s Beal Family Senior Curator of Contemporary Art) and Julie Burros (Boston’s Chief of Arts and Culture) Nick Follett, Patricia Sakata, and Peter L'Official

Tory Bullock (guest host of #mfaNOW) DJ Dee Diggs (Substructure)

Anthony Pratt, Executive Chairman of Pratt Industries, hosted an intimate “friendraiser” on Monday, September 19th to celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of two young women working to change the lives of millions of people in Africa. Eudoxie Bridges was born in Gabon, a country in West Central Africa, and founded Unspoken Angels, a global organization determined to support, educate, inspire and empower young women in Africa and the United States. Hannah Godefa is a 19-year-old Canadian of Ethiopian descent, who now serves as UNICEF National Ambassador to Ethiopia. She founded the heralded Hannah Godefa Project. Guests included Ludacris (Eudoxie Bridges’ husband), Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Turnbull and Lucy Turnbull, Barbara Bush, Kevin and Erika Liles, Carol Alt, Alek Wek, Paul Haggis. Paul Singer, Francine LeFrak, Vice’s Katherine Keating, Forbes’ Randall Lane among others.

Randall Lane, Hannah Godefa, Eudoxie Bridges, and Anthony Pratt Eudoxie Bridges and Barbara Bush

Hannah Godefa, Anthony Pratt, Eudoxie Bridges, Ludacris, Claudine Revere, Kevin Liles, Erika Liles, and Sarah-Elizabeth Langford

Hannah Godefa, Eudoxie Bridges, Anthony Pratt, and Carol Alt Paul Haggis, Eudoxie Bridges, and Ludacris

Malcolm Turnbull, Lucy Turnbull,Hannah Godefa, Claudine Revere, and Eudoxie Bridges.

Photographs by Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images (Pratt); Natasha Moustache (MFA); Custom Creations Photography & Jeff Wells (Shockwave)