From clever uses of unusual items like space blankets and plastic sheeting to acrobatic performers and porcupine petting, here are the best ideas, themes, and trends from benefits held across North America this spring.
For this year’s annual benefit, which took place June 1, the Museum of Modern Art’s lobby and atrium area were once again transformed into a chic garden party. Drum-shaped chandeliers covered in greenery hung above the dining space, which was outfitted with primarily gray furnishings.
Event designer David Stark and his team designed the sixth annual event, which took place April 20 in the museum’s Beaux Arts Court. Inspired by Constantin Brancusi’s sculptures, particularly the “Endless Column,” and the party’s white-hot theme, Stark transformed the space with towering totems made from stacked rolls of household and industrial paper goods, which rose from the dining tables in varying heights, up to 21 feet. The paper goods will be used by the museum throughout the rest of the year.
Taking inspiration from a French garden, New York-based Tyger Productions transformed the Four Seasons' ballroom for the event, which was held May 20 in Boston, with saturated fuchsia lighting, bright pink napkins, and custom-printed gold foil programs. Manicured boxwood topiary centerpieces adorned with hand-crafted feather butterflies proved to be the guests’ favorite decor item of the night.
After dinner at the Unicef Hope Gala, which was held April 9 at the Geraghty in Chicago, guests hit the dance floor under a canopy of neon Slinkies as the Ken Arlen Evolution Orchestra played.
Event designer Bronson van Wyck raided the High Line’s construction supply shed and wrapped the entire interior of the former Tunnel nightclub (now the Waterfront venue) with thousands of yards of semi-transparent construction plastic for the May 23 dinner event. The evening started with cocktails on the Spur—the High Line's final, unfinished portion.
At this year’s Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute benefit, which celebrated the “Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology” exhibit and was held on May 2, a 65-foot double helix rose to the top of the Great Hall’s ceiling. One strand was made of 250,000 silk roses, while the other featured laser-cut off-white lace. "This was my first time using artificial roses and my first time hanging something rigged from the ceiling," said Raul Avila, the Met Gala's long-standing producer.
Held April 9 at the Duke Energy Convention Center, the annual fund-raiser honored the Cincinnati Reds with a custom set design built to feel like the team’s original stadium, Crosley Field. Table centerpieces featured baseball-shaped pomanders on top of striped linens, while the V.I.P. areas included mix-and-match vintage furniture. Plus, the carnival-like after-party included a nostalgic candy bar, mini milkshakes, corn dogs, and tater tots, along with games like skee-ball, caricature artists, and a baseball card photo booth.
At this year’s annual fund-raising gala, held April 30 at the Brookfield Zoo outside of Chicago, Event Creative created a look inspired by an African sunset with bright oranges and graphic prints. Guests could also interact with animals—including a two-toed sloth, a small anteater, a porcupine, and more—during the cocktail hour.
This year, the Lyric Opera celebrated its newest production with a pre-performance dinner in the theater, as well as an onstage after-party with the cast on May 7. The table decor reflected the Asian setting of the musical with details like gold elephant accents.
Tampa, Florida-based event planner ShoWorks created a winter wonderland based on the Disney hit Frozen for the black-tie gala, which was held May 21 at the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel. A large icicle-like chandelier that was hung from the truss framework above the dining space added to the icy atmosphere.
On June 9, environmental group Heal the Bay hosted its annual Bring Back the Beach Gala at the Jonathan Beach Club in Santa Monica, California. The evening included acrobatic and dance performances as well as a musical performance by the band Venice. The crowd of more than 1,000 guests participated in live and silent auctions to raise money to help the nonprofit clean and maintain the coastal waters of Southern California.
For the deYoung Museum’s Bouquets to Art annual design showcase in San Francisco, florists created arrangements inspired by work in the museum’s permanent collection. The opening night gala, which took place April 4, featured food and cocktails by McCalls Catering & Events.
The annual black-tie event was held at Morgan Manufacturing in Chicago’s Fulton Market district on April 16. The James Bond-theme night featured Bond girls, casino-style games, and a sit-down dinner with clever dishes like the Lady Luck Salad with “dice”—watermelon cubed, fontina wrapped in salmon, and cantaloupe wrapped in prosciutto.
For the Blaffer Art Museum’s annual gala in Houston, creative studio Matter designed a gilded meteor shower ceiling installation using NASA space blankets—an idea inspired by the space theme of the April 1 event, as well as the metallic trends seen on recent fashion runways. The creative team also created custom floral centerpieces, using the blankets and dianthus plants, that floated above circular mirrors for an anti-gravity effect.
To celebrate the hairy Ice Age mammals synonymous with the La Brea Tar Pits, partygoers wore highly stylized hair and costumes to the site’s benefit, which took place June 4 at the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Los Angeles. Concierges also led groups on torch-lit tours of excavation sites, and guests enjoyed Ice Age-themed cocktails, dessert, and dancing before a runway show.
At this year’s Scrubs in the City London-inspired fund-raiser, which was held June 2 at the Evergreen Brick Works in Toronto, the Hospital for Sick Children foundation introduced hospitality lounges for sponsors, which included private banquettes decorated in a British punk or posh theme with food, drink, and an attendant.
At this year’s gala, which was held May 9 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York, guests entered by walking through an oversize keyhole, a visualization of the evening's theme of "Unlock the Future." The keyholes then gave way to a series of large neon-painted unlocked doors that continued throughout the cocktail space.
The party’s multicultural theme was inspired by the journey of the ET-94—the last space flight-qualified external tank in existence—from New Orleans through the Panama Canal and into Los Angeles. At the event, which was held on the Marina Del Rey waterfront on May 20, a birdcage suspended over the dance floor held a feathered aerialist.
The event, which took place on May 3 at the IAC building in New York and honored more than 40 artists whose works are represented in the Tate’s permanent collection, featured decor and architectural centerpieces by David Stark that were inspired by the sharp geometry and twisting shape of the Tate Modern’s new building, which was soon to open.
Thought-bubble placemats inspired by Hank Willis Thomas' exhibition, "The Truth is I See You," served as tabletop decor at the arts organization’s fund-raiser, held April 19 at Metropolitan Pavilion West in New York. The messages morphed into different languages thanks to the optical illusion design.
For the March 12 event at the New World Symphony in Miami, Shiraz Events designed a gold, black, and white color scheme. The Miami-based event company celebrated the symphony’s alumni members by creating the NWS logo using all 1,000 of their names on a step-and-repeat.
At the seventh annual Amfar Inspiration Gala New York, which took place June 9 at Skylight at Moynihan Station and was produced by Josh Wood Productions, sponsor Moët Hennessy brought an on-site champagne vending machine to the event.
