Modern Garden Party

The arrivals backdrop—featuring the Cartier and MoMA logos rendered in neon and marquee lights—echoed the dense arrangements of tropical greenery found inside the dinner space.

Before heading into the museum for dinner, guests gathered in the sculpture garden for a cocktail reception. Neon tubes lined the ceiling of the clear-top tent.

Neon tubes—interspersed with tropical foliage and ferns—also covered the front of the garden's elevated stage.

Inside the lobby and atrium, the museum’s planning team delivered a streamlined, modern affair that showcased exotic, lush greenery and pops of neon against a stark white background.

Slabs of neon green Lucite seemed to glow atop the clear rectangular dinner tables, while potted plants in green ceramic vases served as minimalist centerpieces.

Overhead, dense arrangements of tropical plants were suspended between white pillars, creating a jungle-like canopy effect.

Lighting company Bentley Meeker projected images of greenery onto the museum's walls. Clear Victoria Ghost chairs provided by Taylor Creative Inc. added a modern edge to the look.

Guests dined on a first course of salamis and prosciutto, heirloom tomatoes and burrata, shrimp in lemon sauce, and roasted peppers, as well as bowls of Parmesan reggiano. The main course included sliced grilled marinated hanger steak, grilled summer vegetables, and pommes gaufrettes. For dessert: lemon squares, cheesecake brownies, carrot cupcakes, pecan sandies, macarons, and strawberry tartlets.

After-party guests began streaming into the sculpture garden around 9 p.m., where Bentley Meeker set the tone with colorful, graphic lighting projections.

At the after-party, the previously plain white bar façades began glowing with a rainbow of colors. Taylor Creative Inc. provided the bars and highboys.

Like last year, the walls in the garden featured projected images tagged with #PITG2013 from guests’ Instagram feeds.

Buzzy band Fun hit the stage at 10:30 p.m. to give an energetic performance that included crowd-pleasing hits like "We Are Young" and "Carry On."