Picture employees taking turns swinging a bat at the C.E.O.'s head during your company's upcoming summer picnic. Don't worry, it's not as brutal as it might seem: Visual artist Jing Yu creates custom piñatas in the likeness of the person of your choice, whether it's the boss, a V.I.P., or a fictional character. To top it off, she also stuffs her papier-mâché creations with treats fit for the occasion. For example, a recent piñata resembling pop singer Katy Perry was filled with brightly colored lip gloss, hair extensions, and nail decals.
"I made my first piñata for a friend's birthday because I wanted to give her a unique gift versus something store-bought," says Yu, who is currently working on her M.F.A. at Rutgers University. "What's even more important to me than making a beautiful art object is that the experience of receiving and breaking what is essentially a custom portrait helps make an event unique and tremendously memorable." Yu's piñatas start from $250.
![For the after-party, Event Eleven built three 30-foot pagodas and hung 300 lanterns from the ceiling. They also brought in a 20-foot-tall bonsai tree and a variety of 30-foot red maples, along with other greenery and foliage. '[It all] helped create the organic atmosphere and helped transport guests into a gardenlike room,' said Schubert.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2024/02/Shogun.41_f.65dba8f23433b.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
