AVENUE

Last Wednesday evening, the Olana Partnership bestowed the Frederic E. Church award to Morrison H. Heckscher, Chairman of the American Wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and our favorite do-it-all craftswoman, Martha Stewart, for her commitment to American culture, decorative arts, and landscape design. Chaired by Lucy Waletzky, MD and Lulu Wang, the gala took place deep in the vast vaults of knowledge ot the New York Public Library. The 260 or so guests raised upwards of $670,000 for the foundation.

The honor was especially timely, as it coincided with the Met Museum’s completed development and expansion of the American wing, a project that Mr. Heckscher – a member of the Museum staff since 1969 – has overseen.

Throughout the evening, notables the likes of Olana Partnership President Sara Griffen, Met Museum Director Thomas Campbell, Museum President Emily Rafferty, Jacqueline and Mortimer Sackler, and Phoebe Gubelmann were dazed and delighted by fanciful food courtesy of Daniel Boulud and a live auction conducted in the grandest manner by Sotheby’s own C. Hugh Hildesley.

Frederic E. Church was a true American treasure whose work in the arts will be celebrated for generations to come. His greatest work of art is Olana, his Hudson Valley come which is considered one of the most important artistic residences in the United States. The Olana Partnership supports the conservation, preservation, and development of this historic site, which is open to the public throughout the year. The evening’s honorees are shining examples who exemplify artistry in this grand tradition.