Fundraisers

The James Beard Foundation fund-raiser gala returned to the Four Seasons, where the restaurant's iconic pool was surrounded by pillar candles.

LMac Events put extra effort into the look of the silent auction display, which included a table of cookware items donated by Victorinox, Le Creuset, Wüsthof, Anolon Nouvelle, and Mario Batali by Dansk. On the mezzanine, Joelle & the Pinehurst Trio played live jazz tunes.

During the cocktail reception, passed hors d'oeuvres included fried oysters with chipolata sausage, a personal favorite of James Beard's.

Organica created the gala's centerpieces, which featured purple Vanda orchids and red roses in mirrored vases.

Host chef Alfred Portale of New York's Gotham Bar & Grill contributed his take on French charcuterie to the gala dinner. The dish included duck rillettes, saucisson sec, foie gras torchon, and pheasant ballantine with truffles, served with garnishes and Eric Kayser bread.

The event took place at a new venue, the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel. Signage was prominently displayed on the exterior and also inside the space.

Guests previewed the silent auction's 200-plus lots in thick programs, and placed their bids on new handheld devices from IML.

Lots were divided into sections, labeled with chalkboard signage. Sections included Home & Family, Travel and Hotel, Fashion and Jewelry, Sports, and more.

The dinner and program was from 7:20 to 10:30 p.m., and took place in the hotel's Atlantic ballroom.

Rishi Patel of HMR Design Group created a decorative scheme meant to channel beach houses in Cape Cod and the Hamptons. Blue and white hydrangeas and candles in hurricane glasses added to the summery, East Coast vibe.

Patterned napkins held menus. The three-course dinner started with a salad of poached Maine lobster, quail eggs and sturgeon caviar, roasted baby corn, Mache lettuce and Frisee, caramelized pecans, apple cider, and Vermont cream drizzle. The entree was seared Neiman Ranch cut beef tenderloin and roasted Amish chicken breast with spinach flan, glazed Thumbelina carrots, and Yukon potato crisp. For dessert, guests got salted-caramel-and-chocolate tartlets, miniature crème brûlées, chocolate glazed eclairs, and fresh strawberries and whipped cream—more desserts filled sweets tables at the after-party.

One of the live-auction prizes was an 8-week-old silver labrador retriever named Sterling. The hard-to-resist prize went for $35,000, and came with a "Puppy Kit" that included a leash, collar, bowl, food, DVD and training book, and grooming and vet checkups.

Guests bid on vacations, jewelry, and sports tickets in a live auction.

Blue uplighting and overhead twinkling lights echoed the starry-sky theme seen in signage, invitations, and programs.

Event sponsors who donated at least $10,000 for a table sat in the ballroom for a speaking program.

The entrance to the event was marked by a bright pink carpet and gold "Reflect" sign.

Overhead lights lit hanging chandeliers and created gold reflections in the foyer.

Using Kinect, interactive art installation "Heart of Stars" showed guests' figures mapped into the constellations. The installation was projected onto a screen in the rear of the foyer.

"Heart of Stars" used Microsoft Kinect. Guests went behind the screen to participate in the installation.

Items in the silent auction's "luxe collection" were valued at more than $2,000 and included a necklace, handbag, and clutch from Kate Spade. A mirrored mannequin displayed some of the pieces.

The C.F.C. raffled off four David Yurman pieces as three prizes, on display in the foyer as part of the "luxe collection."

Located in the Round Room, the "collection" featured items and packages valued at less than $2,000, including a watch and messenger bag from Fossil. The items were displayed on mirrored tables.

In the Concert Hall, a gold chandelier lighting installation hung from the ceiling. The space was uplit in pink.

To match the reflect theme, a mirrored surface covered the tables. San Remo created pink flower centrepieces. Daniel et Daniel served beet and goat cheese napoleon for the first course.

Jackie Richardson performed onstage after dinner.

Photoboothless recently launched Instaboothless, a photo system that prints out physical copies of photos taken on Instagram at an event. Guests take photos on their smartphones, then tag them with a specific hashtag which automatically uploads them to the Instaboothless printer. Designated event photographers also roam the crowd taking pictures of guests with the Instagram app and sending them to the printer. The prints include space for custom graphics and messages. Pricing starts from $650, and the system is available nationwide.

As a contemporary interpretation of the Streamline Moderne style of the 1930s, the event team behind Sunday's Screen Actors Guild Awards designed the ceremony's stage with elements like a broken proscenium arch and vertical steel tubing that evoked the organ pipes of vintage movie theaters.