Tommy Hilfiger and Vanity Fair along with Free Arts NYC, Simon De Pury and Todd Eberle celebrated American photography with a chic soiree at the Raleigh Hotel during this year’s Miami Art Basel. More than 600 artists, designers, socialites, and art and fashion enthusiasts including Katie Lee Joel, Ingrid Casares, Donald Baechler, Marc Jacobs, Esteban Cortazar, Glenn O’Brien, Eric Shriner, Stefano Tonchi, Kipton Cronkite, Vincent de Paul, Sanford Ziff and Cynthia Rodriguez enjoyed beats by Paul Sevigny, passed hors d’oeuvres, champagne and cocktails.

On display at the event were two video montages celebrating 10 Years of Free Arts NYC Portraits & Polaroids and TH Inside artists. The installations showcased influential artists including Adam Fuss, Alex Katz, Christopher Wool, Chuck Close, Donald Baechler, Elizabeth Peyton, Kehinde Wiley, Laurie Simmons, Ross Bleckner, and Sarah Charlesworth. Upon departure, guests received a limited edition canvas tote bag featuring works by Jeremy Blake created exclusively for Free Arts NYC 2007. In Jeremy Blake’s honor, 100 percent of the proceeds go to Free Arts.

To kick off the holiday season, we threw a party to recognize all the hard work and dedication of our fantastic volunteers. The event was hosted at the downtown Bowery Bar and Grill and over 100 of our volunteers were able to enjoy wine, beer and tasty snacks while mingling with the Free Arts NYC Staff.

Cookie Magazine’s first annual Kidsfest for Free Arts NYC was a huge success. The event was hosted by Kim Raver and Mary Alice Stephenson and drew a crowd of over 500 people.

Children and their families spent the afternoon at the Urban Zen Center at the Stephan Weiss Studio painting, sculpting, drawing, and decorating cookies and t-shirts. They even had a chance to hear a live performance by The Music For Aardvarks Band while snacking on mini grilled-cheese sandwiches and fresh fruit smoothies.

Guests had the chance to interact with artists such as Donald Baechler, Nigel Barker, Michael De Feo, Will Ryman and Patrick McMullan while exploring their individual creativity at this one-of-a-kind celebration of art, culture and giving. After the event, Cookie generously donated all remaining supplies and furniture to the Free Arts NYC children who need it most.
Click to view event photos.

Saks Fifth Avenue held an event in honor of Escada’s new Creative Director, Damiano Biella. The evening was hosted by Free Arts Board member Amy Sacco and the President of Saks, Ronald Frasch. Over 500 guests enjoyed a special performance from British pop star Duffy while they sipped on cocktails and previewed Escada’s new collection on live models. The event was held in support of Free Arts NYC.

Luxury Italian shoe designer, Cesare Paciotti, celebrated their Madison Avenue flagship store re-design with a party to benefit Free Arts NYC. DJ Donna D’Cruz provided music while hosts Mary Alice Stephenson, Amanda Ross, and Annabel Tollman sipped champagne and mingled with over 200 guests. Other attendees included Lipstick Jungle star Kim Raver who stopped by to check out the shoes and support Free Arts!

The Elixer Opera is a select group of classical vocalists who perform beloved Broadway hits and soaring operatic arias with a modern. They held their most recent performance in support of Free Arts NYC.

Free Arts NYC Board members Jacques Roizen and Daniel Ehrmann hosted their 3rd annual fundraiser at Mansion nightclub along with Board member Mathias Guerrand-Hermes and other co-hosts Victor Alvarez, Aurelie Dauphin, Monica Mitchell, Tracy Oliver, Remy Roizen, Hervé Sawko, Stephane Siboni & Matt Turck. Over 120 guests enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres provided by Brenton Catering and Mansion. The event raised over $58,000 for Free Arts NYC’s creative arts and mentoring programs for underserved children in New York City! Click to view event photos.

The New York Anime Festival is an annual anime convention held at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan. It features exclusive and extensive anime screenings, video games, live-action Japanese cinema, and fashion. Free Arts NYC was thrilled to receive over $4,000 from the proceeds of the charitable auction from the weekend.

Janovic brands Benjamin Moore and Hunter Douglas co-sponsored five family-friendly events that featured performance art and interactive elements at street fairs and other locations close to their NYC stores. A partner in the event, artist Brian Olsen, created a series of works that were auctioned online and raised $3,500 for Free Arts NYC programs.

This year’s Art Auction Benefit at Phillips de Pury & Company was our most successful ever! Special thanks to all those who supported this event and helped us raise over $775,000 for Free Arts NYC’s programs! Along with Benefit chairs Amy Sacco and Mary Alice Stephenson, guests included Benefit Committee members Michelle Monaghan, Kim Raver, Lindsay Price, Erin Fetherston and Donna Karan, as well as Timothy Busfield, Ed Westwick and many of our generous contributing artists like Spencer Tunick and Todd DiCiurcio. A very special thanks to all of our sponsors, including Vanity Fair and 7 for All Mankind. Click to view event website.

Vanity Fair Agenda: Step onto the red carpet with Jessica Latham, Vanity Fair’s special events correspondent, as she takes a behind-the-scenes look at the Free Arts NYC Annual Art Auction Benefit. Click to view video.