“Friend-raiser” for the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design: by Stephen Kaplan

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St. Patrick’s Day, Saturday, March 17th, was a magical evening, filled with the purple light of dusk and two hundred members of the Casa de Campo community enjoying friendship and art. The second villa-based fundraiser—or “Friend-Raiser”—cocktail for The Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design Scholarship Fund was a resounding success. The setting couldn’t have been better: the Casa de Campo villa, La Favorita, nestled on an inlet in the Punta Águila neighborhood of Casa de Campo, was magnificent, full of orchids and beautiful decor. The event drew a wonderfully convivial mix of art lovers and friends of the 33-year-old school in Altos de Chavón, Casa de Campo. A component of The Altos de Chavón Cultural Center Foundation, a U.S. 501(c)(3) public charity, the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design has been graduating students from its two-year associate-degree program, affiliated with New York City’s prestigious Parsons “The New School For Design” since 1983.

This last year was especially important and successful for the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design. A large number of the juried entries in the Museum of Modern Art Biennial in Santo Domingo were by Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design graduates, many of whom took significant prizes (click here to read more.) The senior runway show of last year’s Fashion Design majors was invited to participate in the highly respected Dominican Fashion Week (click here for photos) – the first time a school has been invited. The E. León Jimenes Biennial had more than its share of Altos de Chavón school graduates, and the Brugal rum company awarded the Altos de Chavón Cultural Center Foundation the coveted “Brugal Believes in Its People Award” for excellence in culture and art.

At the fundraiser, School of Design students sported black T-shirts exclaiming that they were “serious, dedicated, intuitive, skillful, talented, expressive, curious.” In their baggy black harem pants, they busied themselves talking about their experiences at Altos de Chavón, showing the artwork, and helping to sell it. About RD$400,000 (more than US$10,000) of art was was sold during the two hours, some in the hotly contested bidding wars of the silent auction.

The event bustled with supporters of the Altos de Chavón School

Most important is that many of the young artists and designers at the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design come from families with very limited resources. The School’s mission is to provide art and design education to talented, qualified applicants despite any economic constraints they may have. The scholarship program, completely underwritten by donations, is what allows the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design to fulfill this mission and enables graduates to go on to become professionals who help meet the country’s design needs. The evening at La Favorita was as delicious as the hors d’oeuvres and wine. Everyone had a great time admiring the art, the scenery, and the spectacular villa, and all returned home with a packet of materials on the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design, a tangible souvenir of that gracious evening – a beautiful hand-silkscreened print by La Romana−based artist and Altos de Chavón graduate, Fernando Tamburini.

Art aficionados left the event thrilled with their purchases

Special thanks go to Dominique Bluhdorn for hosting the event, and to Bryn and Arnold Cohen, Patti Rambasek and Rik Laird, Renata and Peter Winterstein, and too many more to mention, who made it happen. Thank you!

Thank you Stephen! This article was contributed by  Stephen D. Kaplan, dean of the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design.

A Toast to the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design, March 2010

The first “friend-raiser” for the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design was hosted by Renata and Peter Winterstein, who affectionately call the project their “baby” and whom are both thrilled to see the continued development and success of the project. Click here to see photos and read about the 1st “friend-raiser”