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MCA’s ‘Vernissage’ kicks off EXPO Chicago
MCA Trustee Lois Eisen, of Winnetka, and trustee and Vernissage gala co-chairman Jennifer Aubry, of Chicago. | Lee A. Litas~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: October 18, 2012 3:10PM
The Event: Navy Pier’s legendary Festival Hall was THE place on Sept. 19 if you wanted first look at EXPO Chicago. “Vernissage” was the opening-night benefit organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.
The party, supported by the MCA Trustees and Women’s Board, and hosted by the Women’s Board, offered an exclusive first look at artworks presented by more than 120 international galleries, along with an evening of entertainment, food, and drinks.
Co-chairs Jennifer Aubrey and Marilyn Fields, welcomed some 3000 visitors for the evening.
Cause Célèbre: The MCA presents exhibitions, performances and educational programs on thought-provoking art created since 1945. Much of that work can be challenging.
“Sometimes contemporary art can be off-putting,” conceded women’s board member Kristin Stevens. “And the role of the museum is changing (to be) much more a place for engagement, for community, with social and political ramifications.”
MCA exhibitions and educational programs serve a broad swath of Chicago and the Midwest, noted former board chairman Mary Ittelson. The museum is, she said “a place where the art is daring and the people are inquiring, and love to be challenged. (The artists here) are fascinated with contemporary society and deal with issues that are relevant to all of us.”
Bottom Line: “Vernissage” kicked off EXPO Chicago by raising more than $375,000 for MCA programming.~.
