Kansas City Art Institute presents Art and Design Auction 2007

“Come for the party, stay for the art!”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (June 1, 2007) — The new Lawrence and Kristina Dodge Painting Building on the campus of the Kansas City Art Institute, 4415 Warwick Blvd., will provide the backdrop for the college’s sixth annual art and design auction. The event is set for 6 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. June 23.

“The campus will be like an art gallery that opens for one night only,” said Kathleen Collins, president of KCAI. “It will be a magical place you can only visit once before it vanishes, but while you are there you can obtain one-of-kind works by established artists as well as up-and-comers.”

Objects offered at the auction will include artwork by KCAI faculty and alumni; work by students will be on display but not included in the auction. Organizers expect more than 200 items will be available. Several classic 20th and 21st century design pieces, acquired with assistance from local design and architectural firms, will be included in the auction. A variety of special auction packages, such as travel opportunities and access to exotic locales, also will be offered. Live and silent auctions will take place at the event, which includes a gourmet dinner, entertainment and art-making demonstrations by KCAI students.

Jeannette Nichols, community volunteer and a longtime supporter of the Art Institute, is the honorary chair of the event, which raises funds for student scholarships. Event co-chairs are Kirk and Joan Gastinger and Pat and Beth McCown. Kirk Gastinger, an architect with Gastinger Walker Harden Architects, designed the Dodge Painting Building, and Pat McCown’s firm, McCownGordon Construction, built it. The building opened in August 2006, in time for the start of the current academic year.

Held every other year, the auction will be the sixth to benefit student scholarships at KCAI. More than 90 percent of students attending KCAI receive financial aid. “By increasing the accessibility of an Art Institute education, KCAI can effectively compete for the best and brightest students from across the country,” said Kathleen Collins, president of KCAI. General admission tickets are available at $125 per ticket and up. “Young guest” tickets (age 35 and under) are available for $100 per ticket.

A party for auction-goers who participate at the patron level or above will be held June 7. For couples, this means a donation of $750 or more, and for individuals, $375 and up. Hosted by Mark Sappington and David McGee, the patron party will allow guests a rare opportunity to experience the hosts’ architecturally distinctive home, which dates to the mid-1960s and was designed in an unusual geometric style by renowned architect Bruce Goff.

Dozens of volunteers work tirelessly to make the auction possible, the college’s president noted. “We are so grateful not only to those who generously donate works of art and design, but also to those who selflessly contribute their time,” she said. In addition to the  honorary chair, event co-chairs and patron party chairs listed above, committee chairs include: Clyde and Katie Wendel, patron solicitation; Gary Sutton, dean of faculty, and Michael Wickerson, chair of the KCAI sculpture department, faculty co-chairs; Robert ParkeHarrison (’90 photography) and Holly Swangstu (’94 fiber), alumni co-chairs; Steve Metzler and Brian Williams, special items chairs; Herman Weist and Jay Tomlinson, design co-chairs; Rick and Mindy McDermott, ambiance chairs; Richard and Mary Wetzel, volunteer chairs; Martha Immenschuh, publicity chair; and Hal Brent, finance chair.

A highlight of the auction will be the sale of a large sculpture created by Reilly Hoffman, a senior sculpture major at KCAI. Hoffman won the opportunity to have a design fabricated and finished through a collaboration between A. Zahner Company, Architectural Metal of Kansas City and Rock Cottage Glassworks of Merriam, Kan. Entitled “Oculus” and standing 8 feet tall, Hoffman’s sculpture will be made of copper, glass and steel. The work calls for 144 panels of glass, all of which will be supported on two points. Hoffman was one of 18 sculpture students who competed for the opportunity to have their sculptural concept turned into reality. At the college’s previous auction, in 2005, the winning student was Rachel Thomas, whose sculpture sold for $30,000.

The Kansas City Art Institute is a private, independent, four-year college of art and design, awarding the bachelor of fine arts degree with majors in animation, art history, ceramics, fiber, graphic design, interdisciplinary arts, new media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture and studio art with an emphasis on creative writing. The college also offers evening, weekend and summer classes in art, design, multimedia studies and desktop publishing for children, youth and adults. Founded in 1885, KCAI is Kansas City’s oldest arts organization.