The Untermyer Gardens Conservancy presented its inaugural Samuel Untermyer Award to Christiane Amanpour on Sunday, September 16, during its annual celebration of Mehregan, the ancient Persian harvest festival. The event took place at Untermyer Gardens in Yonkers, which is home to the finest Persian garden in the Western Hemisphere. Traditional Persian music filled the air as late-afternoon cocktails in the garden culminated in a performance by the Vancouver Pars National Ballet in the outdoor amphitheater beneath the twin sphinxes sculpted by Paul Manship.
Guests enjoyed lavish Persian cuisine in an open tent with spectacular views of sunset on the Hudson River. Vartan Gregorian presented the award to Christiane Amanpour; both are Iranian-born. Violin virtuoso Oliver Hakim dazzled the crowd of 250 with his performance in the Temple of the Sky against the night sky as guests threw esphand seeds into the ceremonial fire pits to ward off the evil eye. The Gala co-chairs were Nazee Moinian and Victoria Sakhai.
The event raised funds to support the Conservancy’s efforts to restore Untermyer Gardens and its once grand ruined Persian Pool. Built a century ago by Samuel Untermyer, a pioneering lawyer and reformer, and designed by famed architect William Welles Bosworth, it was once called the most spectacular garden in America. Since 2011 the Conservancy has worked to restore the gardens’ lost beauty after decades of neglect. It now welcomes 70,000 visitors a year and is the only great public garden in America that is free to the public.
Women Artists: Reshaping The Conversation, the series founded by Toni Ross and dedicated to her mentor, Elaine de Kooning, had its final panel of the season on Saturday, September 22 at LongHouse Reserve in East Hampton. Moderated by Barbara Toll, it was devoted to sculptors with artists Alice Hope, Sheila Pepe, Brie Ruais, and Kennedy Yanko participating.
Introducing the panelists, Toni Ross said, “This has been an amazing journey since starting these conversations last summer. It was unforeseen what has transpired with women in the workplace.” Sheila Pepe wryly observed, “Gender and economics are still tied in what I’ll call an unusual way … Can you image a year from now where we’ll be taking about the intersection of feminism and racism?” Although the Hamptons summer season was over, more than 100 guests arrived promptly at LongHouse and lingered long after the talk.
LongHouse founder Jack Lenor Larsen and Peter Olsen were there with guests Diana Diamond and John Alschuler; Sherri Donghia and Barbara Butler; Phyllis Hollis, Susan and Ronald Kaufmann, Eileen O’Kane Kornreich, Laurie Lambrecht, Americk Lewis, Patricia Margulies, Beth and George Meredith, Bonnie Munchin, Steve and Sandy Perlbinder, Hala and James Salomon, Sheri Sandler, Bastienne Schmidt and Philippe Cheng, Suzanne Slesin and Michael Steinberg, Diane Sabesin Tepper, and Almond Zigmund. Also in attendance were LongHouse Executive Director Matko Tomicic and Associate Curator Wendy Van Deusen.
The Cooper Hewitt recently kicked off its popular Design by Hand series, celebrating the importance of craftsmanship in contemporary design and generously sponsored by Van Cleef & Arpels. For this year’s installment, the Cooper Hewitt recognized renowned Dutch industrial design studio Scholten & Baijings, who led hands-on workshops, focusing on form, color, and materials at the Cooper Hewitt.
To commence this year’s programming, the Cooper Hewitt invited an intimate group of guests to preview the museum’s new installation, Scholten & Baijings: Lessons from the Studio, alongside Carole Baijings of Scholten & Baijings. It was followed by a reception and talk with Baijings.
The installation is now open to the public until March 2019. It delves into Scholten & Baijings’ singular design philosophy and working methods informed by their research into traditional craft practices and commitment to working by hand to develop new forms and materials.
“We are proud to continue our support of the Design by Hand series,” said Helen King, President & C.E.O of Van Cleef & Arpels, Americas. “Our collaboration is inspired by our common mission and passion for the sharing and preservation of craftsmanship and superb design.”
For further information regarding Design by Hand, visit Cooper Hewitt’s website at www.cooperhewitt.org or call (212) 849-8400.
Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) hosted the second annual HSS Golf Benefit supporting sports medicine research, on October 1, 2018 at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, NJ.
Through research, HSS sports medicine physician and surgeons are developing breakthrough technologies and techniques to customize treatments, optimize non-surgical intervention, and for those patients who require surgery, improve outcomes. Guests enjoyed a round of golf followed by a cocktail hour and dinner reception. The event was chaired by David W. Altchek, MD, chief emeritus of HSS Sports Medicine; John P. DiFiori, MD, FACSM, chief of HSS Primary Care Sports Medicine; Joshua S. Dines, MD, sports medicine surgeon at HSS; Brian C. Halpern, MD, chief emeritus of HSS Primary Care Sports Medicine; and Bryan T. Kelly, MD, chief of HSS Sports Medicine.
This year, Golf HSS raised $500,000.
Photographs by Ralph Gabriner, Jessica Norman, & Rebecca Smeyne (Untermyer Gardens Conservancy); Richard Lewin (Longhouse); Terri Diamond Photography (HSS)
