2nd Annual Masquerade Gala (Image by: David Alvarez)

The 2nd Annual Masquerade Gala was held at the Gallery 2110 and Sacramento Art Complex this past Saturday night.

The event brought art aficionados to a masquerade gala evening where guests enjoyed a wonderful evening of fine food, beer, wine and friends. Live fire dancing featuring Gina Rossi and an art gallery auction were also featured. Proceeds from the auction are split between the artists and the Sacramento Artists Council who, among other things, provides scholarships and grants to young artists.

Sacramento Art Complex artist Marbo Barnard (Image by: David Alvarez)

In contrast to the rain that fell during last year’s masquerade, this year’s event was held under sunny skies. The Sacramento Artists Council (S.A.C.) presented the masquerade gala and many of its board members were at the event.

The S.A.C. supports local artists, musicians, photographers, filmmakers and other artisans. It also helps cultivate and inspire high school students while partnering with local business for a greater sense of art community throughout the Sacramento area with an emphasis in the Midtown and Downtown areas.

Second Annual S.A.C. Masquerade Gala (Image by: David Alvarez)

The 2nd Annual Masquerade was also sponsored by the Midtown Business Association.

A no host cocktail reception was held at the Gallery 2110 sculpture garden and complimentary appetizers were available. Both floors of the art complex were open for viewing and a few resident artists were on hand to greet visitors. The hosts for the evening were Susan and Mark Rabinovitz. 

2nd Annual Masquerade gathering at the sculpture garden (Image by: David Alvarez)
Out in the sculpture garden, a performance featuring a Creative Spirit Fire Dance by Rossi thoroughly entertained guests. Rossi has art in the garden and also donated an art piece for the evening’s art auction.

Rossi addressed the audience during the performance.

“I want to thank you all for being a part of this evening and supporting the arts. It’s amazing to have all of us here together for something that is positive for our community.”

Gina Rossi (Image by: David Alvarez)

Rossi talked about her role at the gallery and introduced her dance. She indicated that most of her performances are basically improv performances and the reason is because, as she said in a true artistic spirit, “I like to do what comes instinctively since we all move through life with our heart and minds and sometimes there is no rhyme or reason for what we do. Life just carries us on and wonderful things come out of that.”

Nick Rosenthal (Image by: David Alvarez)

An impressive performance was given by Rossi, paired with Nick Rosenthal. After the fire dance, performance guests were ushered into the main gallery where several dozen pieces of art, all up for auction, hung on the walls or served as center pieces for the dining tables.

Gallery art (Image by: David Alvarez)

A delicious vegan or poultry dinner was provided and served by Classique Catering with Carvalho wines. Classique Catering also provides services for weddings, corporate parties, balls, galas, events, festival and holiday parties in the Sacramento area.

Classique Catering (Image by: David Alvarez)

Mark Rabinovitz took the opportunity to thank guests as they enjoyed their dinner.

“This is our 2nd Annual Masquerade. The first one was a huge success and I think it’s safe to say that this will be too. Thanks to the people who are here. Thanks also to the board, the Sacramento Artists Council and all the artists whose work you see hanging on the walls.”

Mark Rabinovitz (Image by: David Alvarez)

He noted the partnerships that are being developed through this and other events in the area.

“I think we have years to develop this partnership and there’s more to come, this is just the beginning.”

Rabinovitz mentioned that he noticed a lot of familiar faces at the event, including members from the Sacramento Artists Council. He mentioned the mission of S.A.C., which is to create venues for local artists and to provide grants and scholarships. He thanked all the artists for donating pieces of their work.

A portion of the proceeds from each art piece will be given to S.A.C., who will then give back to artists and help young artists follow their passion.

Molly Brown's In Bloom II art (Image by: David Alvarez)

“It’s one thing to have a community donate money to support artists, but seeing artists support other artists is something incredible and that’s exactly what the S.A.C. hopes to accomplish here,” said Rabinovitz.

“Thank you for coming out as a community. Enjoy the night and enjoy sitting with the people you’re sitting with. Have a cocktail or two, make sure you bid on some art later and enjoy your meal.”

To top off the sit down dinner, Music a Dué serenaded guests as they enjoyed their meal and each other’s company. Guests enjoyed several pieces from the harp and flute duo.

Music a Dué (Image by: David Alvarez)

As guests ate dinner they were able to chat with old friends and mingle with several of the artists who had donated art.

Each piece of art had a starting price along with its actual value. Any piece could also be bought before it went up for live auction. Each artist specified an amount that would be donated to S.A.C. and the donations ranged from 20 to 100 percent of the final bid price.

As dinner wound down, Mark Rabinovitz once again addressed the audience to introduce the S.A.C. board and say a few words.

Enjoying food, drinks and friends at the 2nd Annual Masquerade (Image by: David Alvarez)

“I want to introduce our Founder and Executive Director, Susan Rabinovitz; our President, Scott Mitchell; I am Vice President, Mark Rabinovitz; Secretary, Wendy Mitchell; our Treasurer, Dylan Swann, could not make it… Thanks also to our board members Jodie Kerhlikar and Karen Dukes. Karen Dukes is also a resident artist in this building and is kind enough to donate 100 percent of her auction proceeds. Our newest member is Denise Coleman, she joined our crew in the last couple of months and she’s been a huge asset. She’s a great vocal person and has a lot of connections as far as art, music and community.”

S.A.C. Director, Denise Coleman (Image by: David Alvarez)

Rabinovitz also mentioned some of the council’s 2011 accomplishments, which gave guests an idea as to where the money goes. Art Happens, an event held earlier this year, included approximately 10 bands that showcased their talents in front of Sacramento community guests. Nevada Union High School held an art exhibit at Gallery 2110 and Sacramento Art Complex was able to raise $250 that went back to their school art program. Sutter Middle School also had an exhibit there that lasted for about a month and they raised $1,200. Rabinovitz mentioned they were able to help raise about $2,300 with the Art Happens event. As a side note, one of the items for bid was a piece by Sutter Middle School art teacher, Kelly O’Neill.

Following dinner, Music a Dué continued to play for a short while longer and guests were encouraged to take a break and view the art that would be auctioned.

During the break, I took a little time to chat with S.A.C.’s newest member, Denise Coleman. Coleman had worked for the Sacramento Press and indicated that she brought some of the art that was up for auction.

“These four pieces are part of my uncle’s estate. He was an artist and he left 50 years worth of art.”

Mark Lifvendahl and Marcus Cayson purchased a couple of Robert Coleman's art pieces (Image by: David Alvarez)

Coleman’s uncle was Dr. Robert Coleman and Denise explained that she’s trying to put together shows to sell and donate his work. The four pieces from the Coleman Family Estate gave 80 percent back to the Sacramento Artists Council. The Coleman Family Estate art goes back to the 1950’s and Denise is hoping to put together chronological shows in the near future. Her uncle was a prolific artist and the four pieces of art were a great value. A couple of the pieces were later bought by artist Mark Lifvendahl and his partner Marcus Cayson.

Susan Rabinovitz ushered guests back to the main gallery after the break. To encourage competitive bidding, Rabinovitz joked, “I hope everyone has a cocktail or a beverage of their choice on hand.” She also noted that some silent auction items were available.

Susan Rabinovitz (Image by: David Alvarez)

Rabinovitz noted that money was being raised for “art scholarships, art grants and also helping artists put art in public places. Funds are also put aside to work with some of our children in the city that don’t necessarily get a chance to have an art experience. It’s really good art therapy and gives them a sense of community. It also makes them feel included and helps happy hearts.”

Rabinovitz’ sense and desire to help Sacramento’s art community is very commendable. It is easy to see how she’s able to attract artists and others to become involved in art, family and community.

The first item for auction was a Gina Rossi recycled steel piece called “Absolutely Delicate.” Other work for auction during the first segment included works by Clare Bailey, Karen Dukes, Susan Rabinovitz, Molly Brown, two pieces by Robert Coleman and ceramics from Elizabeth Wocasek.

Susan Rabinovitz describing the first item for bid; Gina Rossi's "Absolutely Delicate" (Image by: David Alvarez)

The first round went by smoothly and brought some entertaining moments when bidding increased on several pieces. Others did not make it to its perceived value.

After a short break, the works of Monica Lunardi, resident artist Marbo Barnard, Kristen Hoard, Christine Conklin, Michelle Brunmier, John Huerta, Paul Oester and Michelle Mackenzie were auctioned off. Several of these pieces did not receive bids.

As the evening went on, pieces by Mark Lifvendahl, David Arnold, Laura Caron, Paul Oester (his piece sold before the auction) and two more acrylic paintings by Robert Coleman went up for bid. Robert Coleman’s “Vacation” brought the most bidding action of the evening and Mark Lifvendahl won the bidding war. Susan Rabinovitz’ enthusiasm during the bidding could not be hidden and although husband Mark did not win the bid, she was happy to watch the bid go up from $75 to $155.

The last set of auction pieces were works by Kelly O’Neill, Cherys Jenkins, Angela Ridgway, Margaret Arnold, Michael Shane, Judith Monroe and a photo package by Carrie See.

Scott Mitchell, President S.A.C. (Image by: David Alvarez)

The conclusion of the auction came and guests who remained socialized or started packing their new items. Susan thanked all those who attended.

“You guys are awesome! Thanks for bearing with us and we enjoyed seeing everyone here. Thank goodness it was not a rainy day. Hopefully we’ll see you again next year. Thank you for participating and have a good night.”

After the auction I talked with Mark Rabinovitz to get his impression of the event. Rabinovitz shared that the event this year seemed much more relaxed.

Masquerade table decorations (Image by: David Alvarez)

“This year’s event was very nice and easy going. There were about 20 less people bidding and I think the auction was well received.”

Rabinovitz continued, “The food was exceptional. For some reason everyone was very pleasant, I was very relaxed speaking. I felt like I was speaking to family and friends and since this was our second annual masquerade, a lot of the people knew what to expect. The harp and flute musicians seemed to fit right in.”

As he reflected on the evening, Rabinovitz said, “I think experiencing the fire show gave some excitement to the mellow classical music and the auction and I think that was great. Everybody had a good time; everyone was smiling and laughing. Everyone seemed to be having a good conversation. It worked out nice.”

Mark and Susan Rabinovitz are great ambassadors for the art community and the artists S.A.C. promotes. They also appear to be very involved in the Sacramento art community.

The S.A.C. and those individuals and organizations that it partners with are making a difference in the community and are helping to build the future.

The inspiration and cultivation of the Sacramento art community is encouraged by the S.A.C and similar organizations. They arouse interest in art and inspire many to become involved and support local artists.