Spring Soirées

Lunch in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life for the American Museum of Natural History's 24th annual Spring Environmental Lecture and Luncheon.

Last Wednesday lunchtime over at the American Museum of Natural History, they hosted their 24th annual Spring Environmental Lecture and Luncheon and celebrated the AMNH’s 20th anniversary of the Museum’s Center for Biodiversity and Conservation.

Lynn Sherr, former correspondent of ABC News’ 20/20, who now reports for a wide range of media including PBS, was in regular role of moderator of this series. Her panelists on the subject were Dr. Eleanor Sterling, director of the Museum’s CBC; Dr. Armando Valdés-Velásquez, associate professor at the Cayetano Heredia University (UPCH) in Lima, Peru; and Andrew Revkin, who has been covering environmental sustainability for more than three decades, mainly for The New York Times.

Panelists Andrew Revkin and Eleanor Sterling, Moderator Lynn Sherr, and panelist Armando Valdés-Velásquez

Chairs Claire Bernard and Connie Spahn, Museum President Ellen V. Futter, and Chairs Catherine Sidamon-Eristoff, and Kitty Kempner

After the lecture, guests moved to the Milstein Hall for lunch where they honored Connie Spahn, who has been organizing the Lecture Luncheon for the past twenty years. Connie has a long affiliation with the museum having served on its board for more than two decades and participating in many of the museum’s projects and events. In her honor, they’ve named one of the coral reef displays in the Milstein Hall after her.

All proceeds from the Spring Environmental Lecture and Luncheon support the Museum’s scientific research and educational initiatives, including important work in biodiversity conservation.

Cash Baxter, Chair Catherine Sidamon-Eristoff, Ana Porzecanski, Chair Kitty Kempner

Missie Rennie Taylor and Chair Connie Spahn

Chair Connie Spahn and Katama Eastman

Stephen and Kirk Spahn with Chair Connie Spahn

Erika Matt and Chair Kitty Kempner

Karlie Kloss, Chair Claire Bernard, and Derek Blasberg

Jacquie Garrett and Anne Sidamon-Eristoff

Valerie Bolster, Kirk Spahn, and Meredith Melling

Vivian Donnelley, Heather Chaet, and Aidan Donnelley Rowley

Museum President Ellen V. Futter announces the naming of the Coral reef ecosystem after Chair Connie Spahn

Museum President Ellen V. Futter, Emily Fisher, and panelist Director of the CBC at the Museum Eleanor Sterling

Chair Catherine Sidamon-Eristoff and Museum Curator Mark Norell

Marlene Hess and Margaret Hess Chi

Karlie Kloss and Derek Blasberg

Museum President Ellen V. Futter, David Patrick Columbia, and Chair Connie Spahn

Panelist Armando Valdés-Velásquez, Ana Porzecanski, Theodore Roosevelt IV, and panelist and Director of the CBC at the Museum Eleanor Sterling

Karlie Kloss and panelist Director of the CBC at the Museum Eleanor Sterling

Derek Blasberg, Elisa Lipsky-Karasz, Angela Stone

Lesley Schulhof, Alison Draper, Zani Gugelmann, and Hilary Rosenman Koyfman

Chairman of the Museum's Board of Trustees Lewis Bernard, Chair Claire Bernard, and Jill Bernard

Suzanne Cochran and Chair Connie Spahn

Kevin Frey, James and Pat Frey, and panelist and Director of the CBC at the Museum Eleanor Sterling

Elizabeth and Anne Sidamon-Eristoff with panelist and Director of the CBC at the Museum Eleanor Sterling

The Versailles Foundation hosted its annual New York City Black Tie Benefit Dinner last Thursday, April the 24th, at The Pierre.

Guest of honor was Their Royal Highnesses Prince and Princess Karl Friedrich of Hohenzollern.

Among the Foundation’s patrons who were escorted into the dining room by cadets from Valley Forge Military Academy were Mrs. Camila Koenig, International Committee Member, Mrs John Dorrance III; the Foundation's Royal International committee members: TRH The Prince and Princess George Frederick of Prussia and HRH The Princess Elizabeth of Bavaria. These happen also to be cousins and neighbors of Prince Karl Friedrich.

Foundation Director Gillian Fuller with Their Royal Highnesses Prince and Princess Karl Friedrich of Hohenzollern

Foundation President Barbara de Portago, Her Royal Highness The Princess Elizabeth of Bavaria, and Foundation International Committee Member Gundel Dorrance

As is the custom at this dinner, the guest of honor spoke briefly (fifteen minutes) about the history of his family whose public reputation goes back almost a millennium. He told us that historic name Hohenzollern is the family name of the House of Prussia; that "ZOLL" translated is a TOLL as in a TAX levied for the liberty of crossing a bridge for example, country border, selling goods in a market etc.

The Prince's three children are from his first marriage to Count von Stauffenberg's daughter. The same Count who tried to blow up Hitler in a coup that failed. As an Officer he was executed; his children (whence the daughter of Hohenzollern's first wedding) were thrown into the anonymity of orphanages and his brothers hung from meat hooks.

à Table!

Dinner in the Cotillion Room

The Foundation continues the mission of Ms. Portago’s mother and stepfather, Florence and Gerald Van der Kemp, for The Chateau de Versailles and the Home and Gardens of Claude Monet at Giverny. There are also foundation projects of French origin such as the restoration of Thomas Jefferson'sGeorges Jacob Mobilier at Monticello, the performed revival of Versailles XVIIth century Court Music by William Christie's "Les Arts Florissants." At Giverny, the Foundation underwrites garden Volunteers culled from all over the world, an Artists in Residence Fellowship Program and the current restoration of Claude Monet's Greenhouse.

VFMA Cadet Color Guard

Kimberly Rolland and Cadet

Madeleine Desmarais and Cadet

Foundation Director Camila Koenig and Cadet

Her Imperial and Royal Highness The Princess Sophie of Prussia and Cat Jagger Pollon

Ali and Monica Wambold

Lisa and Ronald Oliver

Joe Pacettie and Susan Gutfreund

Stonington and Laura Cox

Elizabeth Thieriot and Lee Robinson

Melanie Lazenby and John Royall

Chetin Durak, Foundation Junior Director Russell Grant, Shaikh Khalifa al Khalifa, Alana Parry, and Julie Heath

Margo Langenberg, Geoffrey Bradfield, and Denise Wohl

Tom Leddy, Juliet Teller, Henry and Sophia McLoughlin, Frank Spano III, and Mr. and Mrs. Philippe Marchal

Chevalier Richard and Dame Donna Soloway

Tatiana and Gerret Van S. Copeland

Mike Reinoso, Kaleta Johnson, Gordon Huddleston, and John Royall

Dr. Susan Krysiewicz and Cadet

Tinu Naija

Barbara and Donald Tober

Chetin Durak, Heide Hüttl Canellopoulos, Justin Javaherian, and Foundation Junior Director Russell Grant

Bob and Lauren Roberts

Barbara Regna and Melissa Morris

Cassandra Seidenfeld with Cadets

Taittinger Nocturne Champagne

On April 30th, Stephen S. Lash, Chairman Emeritus, and Marc B. Porter, Chairman, of Christie’s, and Susan Lasker Brody, Board of Directors, of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, hosted a dinner and private viewing of Christie’s Spring Sales celebrating the Foundation’s work.

The event honored Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Thomas R. Insel, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and singer Judy Collins, a longtime advocate for mental health and suicide prevention.

Francis S. Collins, M.D. and Judy Collins

The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation is committed to alleviating the suffering caused by psychiatric disorders that affect one in four adults in the United States by funding cutting-edge research for the understanding, early detection, treatment, prevention and cure of mental illness.

Among the many studies supported by the Foundation’s NARSAD Grants, recent breakthroughs include rapid acting antidepressants; deep brain stimulation; psychiatric genomics consortia; the humane connectome project; and early prediction and prevention of psychosis.

Herbert Pardes, M.D.

Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., and Lisa Borenstein

Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D. and Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.

Since 1987, the Foundation has awarded over $300 million in NARSAD Research Grants to more than 3,700 scientists around the world. Research projects are selected by the Foundation’s Scientific Council, comprised of 146 leading experts across disciplines in brain and behavior research, including two Nobel Prize winners. Funded through private contributions, the Foundation invests 100% of donor contributions for research directly into its grants.

The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation raises funds to invest in cutting-edge research projects to understand, treat, and ultimately prevent and cure mental illness. Since 1987, the Foundation has awarded over $300 million in NARSAD Research Grants to more than 3,700 scientists around the world. Funded through private contributions; the Foundation invests 100% of donor contributions for research directly into its NARSAD Grants. For more information, visit bbrfoundation.org.

Bruce Cohen, Gabriel Catone, and Marc B. Porter

Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Susan Lasker Brody, M.P.J., Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D. and Lisa Borenstein

Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., Lisa Borenstein, and Jack Barchas, M.D.

Judy Collins and Susan Lasker Brody, M.P.H.

Thomas R. Insel, M.D., Judy Collins, Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., and Susan Lasker Brody, M.P.H.

Thomas R. Insel, M.D., Myrna Weissman, Ph.D., and Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.

The 4th Annual SCO/Family Dynamics Art Auction on April 28th was the most successful yet, successfully raising funds to support and expand the Family Dynamics after-school art program for children in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

“New Knowledge,” a painting featuring the neon palate and wildly inventive architecture of Williamsburg artist Erik Parker, drew the largest bid. The benefit drew 200 attendees who participated in a live and silent auction including works by artists Robert Szot, Ron Diorio Ron Agam, Ryan Keeley, Jim Plunkett and Dan Rizzie, all of whom donated their work. The children in the art program created and donated “Carousel Horse Collage,” a collage representing one of the horses on Jane’s Carousel in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Family Dynamics Governing Board member Alexandra Alger and Honorary Chair artist Erik Parker

The auctioneer was Benjamin Doller of Sotheby’s, who volunteered his time. The event was co-chaired by Jeremy FitzGerald and Joni Grossman. Erik Parker was this year’s Honorary Chair; previous honorary chairs for the Auction have included Julian Schnabel in 2011, Dustin Yellin in 2012 and Donald Sultan in 2013.

SCO Executive Director Gail Nayowith called the auction a “huge success” and said: “We are very grateful to everyone who supports our programs. Thanks to all of you, our children at Family Dynamics are getting a rich exposure to creativity, a critical doorway to dreaming and self-expression.”

Family Dynamics Art Auction at Site 109

Family Dynamics, a program of SCO Family of Services, is committed to protecting children and strengthening families. Based in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Bushwick, and Brownsville, Brooklyn, Family Dynamics reaches thousands of children, youth and adults with after-school & summer school activities, workforce readiness, family support services and the arts.

SCO Family of Services provides human services for 60,000 children, youth, families and adults each year in New York City and on Long Island. For more info, go to www.sco.org

Family Dynamics Governing Board member Derek Schuster and Ryan Dudley

Alex Alger and Jack Geary

Contributing artist Vadis Turner and Blyth Browne

SCO Board member Benjamin Bram and Committee member Sharon Zambrelli

Art Auction Committee members Lesley Dryden, Nancy McCormick, and Kysa Englund

Robert Jaffe and Committee member Natasha Prince

Contributing artist Ryan Keeley and Family Dynamics Governing Board member Natasha Prince

Artist Robert Szot, Kari Buzewski, and Annie Kwon

On Tuesday, April 22nd, The Joyce Theater Foundation held its 2014 Spring Gala honoring David Herro and Jay Franke for their extraordinary support of American dance and, especially, arts education. The Joyce’s Gala took place on the Promenade of the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center. Cocktails, dinner, dancing and special performances by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Jessica Lang Dance, doug elkins choreography Etc., Momix and the talented young performers of Dancing Classrooms Youth Dance Company made for a real celebration of The Joyce’s commitment to arts education.

This year’s Spring Gala served as a kick-off to The Joyce Theater’s presentation of the highly anticipated New York premiere of Ballet Preljocaj’s magnificent production of Snow White, choreographed by Angelin Preljocaj and featuring costumes by Jean Paul Gaultier.

The Honorable Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago, Jay Franke, and David Herro

The Joyce Theater's Board of Trustees includes Chairman J. Kerry Clayton, Vice Chairman Steve M. Pesner, Secretary Anh-Tuyet Nguyen, Treasurer Stephanie R. Breslow, Chair Emeritus David D. Holbrook, Chair Emeritus Stephen D. Weinroth, R. Richard Ablon, Gerald M. Appelstein, Rob Ashford, Theodore S. Bartwink, Ajay Bhandaram, Torrence S. Boone, Stephanie R. Breslow, R. Britton Fisher, Jane E. Goldberg, Nina Wiener Gross, Ronald Gumbaz, James H. Herbert, II, Toni Hoover, Virginia A. Millhiser, Dr. Meryl Rosofsky, Saul Sanders, Linda Shelton, Susan Fawcett Sosin, Alex Stanton, and Amit Wadhwaney.

Daniil Simkin and Sara Mearns

Kana Kimura, Jessica Lang Dance

Jennifer Chicheportiche, MOMIX

Johnny McMillan and Emilie Leriche, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

Co-chairs of The Joyce Theater’s 2014 Spring Gala were Paige Royer and J. Kerry Clayton and Michèle and Steve Pesner.

The Joyce Theater Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization, has proudly served the dance community and its audiences for three decades. The founders, Cora Cahan and Eliot Feld, acquired and renovated the Elgin Theater in Chelsea, which opened as The Joyce Theater in 1982. The Joyce Theater is named in honor of Joyce Mertz, beloved daughter of LuEsther T. Mertz. It was LuEsther's clear, undaunted vision and abundant generosity that made it imaginable and ultimately possible to build the theater. One of the only theaters built by dancers for dance, The Joyce Theater has provided an intimate and elegant home for more than 320 domestic and international companies.

Dancing Classrooms Youth Dance Company Dancer and Joan Harris

Susan Calhoun Moss and Jay Franke

The Joyce has also commissioned more than 130 new dances since 1992. In 1996, The Joyce created Joyce SoHo, a dance center providing highly subsidized rehearsal and performance space to hundreds of dance artists, as well as special residency opportunities for selected choreographers to support the creation of new work. In 2009, The Joyce opened Dance Art New York (DANY) Studios to provide affordable studios for rehearsals, auditions, classes, and workshops for independent choreographers, non-profit dance companies, and the dance/theater communities. New York City public school students and teachers annually benefit from The Joyce's Dance Education Program, and adult audiences get closer to dance through informative Dance Talks, and post-performance Dance Chat discussions. The Joyce Theater now features an annual season of approximately 48 weeks with over 340 performances for audiences in excess of 135,000.