Simple touches mixed with grand statements at the Sculpture Center’s winter gala. A crowd of 250 guests headed to the institution’s home in Long Island City, Queens—a raw industrial space once used as a trolley repair shop—for the event, which honored artist Jeff Koons.
Bryan Langston, the event’s producer and designer—who worked with the center’s executive director, Mary Ceruti—knew from the start the decor would be “grand and larger than life—tied to Jeff Koons’ stature as an artist and his often large-scale work.” To that end, the concept started with the invitation—a text-covered piece that unfolded into a poster (something simple that evolved into something grander than expected—get it?) that read “Drink & Mingle” and “Eat & Celebrate.”
Those words reappeared at the benefit, where projections showing “Drink” and “Mingle” covered the tent set up for pre-dinner cocktails. While imbibing, guests could also take in the experimental sounds of Miguel Frasconi, who performed short, pretty melodies with glass instruments, and Ricardo Arias, who created noises by sliding his hands and objects like sponges over his balloon kit. When it came time for dinner, “Eat” and “Celebrate” projections—motifs that, along with the cocktail directions, Langston had screen-printed onto waitstaff’s T-shirts—instructed guests to head into the soaring gallery for dinner.
The centerpiece of the dining area was a nod to materials Koons has used—400 silver Mylar balloons assembled to form a chandelier that dominated the gallery. Another nice touch, and a tie-in to the invitation, was at the evening’s end, when volunteers climbed up into the heights of the space and tossed large
confetti—in this case 4- by 4 1/4-inch thank-you notes.
—Mark Mavrigian
Photo: Patrick McMullan (thank-you notes)
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Bryan Langston, the event’s producer and designer—who worked with the center’s executive director, Mary Ceruti—knew from the start the decor would be “grand and larger than life—tied to Jeff Koons’ stature as an artist and his often large-scale work.” To that end, the concept started with the invitation—a text-covered piece that unfolded into a poster (something simple that evolved into something grander than expected—get it?) that read “Drink & Mingle” and “Eat & Celebrate.”
Those words reappeared at the benefit, where projections showing “Drink” and “Mingle” covered the tent set up for pre-dinner cocktails. While imbibing, guests could also take in the experimental sounds of Miguel Frasconi, who performed short, pretty melodies with glass instruments, and Ricardo Arias, who created noises by sliding his hands and objects like sponges over his balloon kit. When it came time for dinner, “Eat” and “Celebrate” projections—motifs that, along with the cocktail directions, Langston had screen-printed onto waitstaff’s T-shirts—instructed guests to head into the soaring gallery for dinner.
The centerpiece of the dining area was a nod to materials Koons has used—400 silver Mylar balloons assembled to form a chandelier that dominated the gallery. Another nice touch, and a tie-in to the invitation, was at the evening’s end, when volunteers climbed up into the heights of the space and tossed large
confetti—in this case 4- by 4 1/4-inch thank-you notes.
—Mark Mavrigian
Photo: Patrick McMullan (thank-you notes)
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For the Sculpture Center’s winter gala, event producer Bryan Langston designed a chandelierlike structure out of 400 Mylar balloons, a reference to the work of honoree Jeff Koons.
Simple projections signaled different parts of the event—like the “Drink” and “Mingle” projections in the tent for cocktails.
To entertain guests, Miguel Frasconi created soothing sounds with a variety of glass vessels.
At the end of the evening, hundreds of thank-you notes dropped from the ceiling and billowed over guests.
