The Appleton Museum of Art pulled out all the stops at its November 16th “Feast Under the Stars” fundraising dinner to celebrate the museum’s newest exhibit Across The Atlantic: American Impressionism Through the French Lens. The exhibit, which highlights some truly enchanting works by both American and French painters, is on loan from the Reading Public Museum collection in Pennsylvania.
The link between French and American Impressionism is at the heart of the exhibit and among the more than 65 pieces on display are works by such legendary artists as Degas, Renoir, John Singer Sargent and Mary Cassatt. The show examines the somewhat complex relationships of French Impressionism of the 1870s—telling the story of the “new style” of painting that developed at the end of the 19th century. This special exhibition runs through January 5th and was generously sponsored by Marion Cultural Alliance, Fine Arts for Ocala, Art Bridges and CAMPUS USA Credit Union.
Although chilly weather kept the feast from actually being hosted under the stars, the evening was a glittering affair, just the same. Guests were encouraged to dress either in black tie attire or period-specific finery, which helped to create a dazzling scene just inside the museum’s front doors, where College of Central Florida theatre students, who were also dressed in period costume, mingled with guests and waltzed to the musical stylings of Marina Tucker and the Imperial String Quartet.
The culmination of the evening came in the form of an elegant, multi-course, 1890s-inspired dinner, complete with era-specific food and wine pairings. The cuisine was prepared and served by La Casella Catering, with wine pairings by Dave Lewis of Republic National Distributing Company.
After dinner, guests were treated to a chance to visit the exhibit with The Appleton’s curator Patricia Tomlinson on hand to answer questions.
For more information, visit www.AppletonMuseum.org
