Time Bomb, the 25th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction, will pay tribute to Pierre Bergé, the late co-founder of Yves Saint Laurent who was also a founding benefactor of The Watermill Center and dear friend of Robert Wilson.
Taking place on Saturday, July 28, the evening is expected to attract over 1,000 attendees who will be invited to traverse through the Foundation’s 10 plus acre Water Mill site, which will be transformed into an eclectic “enchanted forest” sprinkled with performance art and mesmerizing exhibitions. The benefit will also serve as a retrospective, exploring a collection of Watermill alumni work – in a multitude of artistic disciplines – from the past quarter-century.
“This year, we consider the work and life of The Watermill Center, rather than individual artists, in retrospective,” reflected Ivan Cheng, who is curating the gala installations and performances alongside Noah Khoshbin.
The fundraiser’s theme, “looking to the future,” will be highlighted by installations and performances from current International Summer Program participants. The Program is open to young and up-and-coming artists who come to the Center to not only study Robert Wilson’s approach to performance and his collaborators, but to create bonds with artists who specialize in different disciplines and reflect upon what it means to be a “global artist.” Over 70 artists were selected to take part in this year’s Program, with artists residing in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Lithuania, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States of America.
 |
|
Susan Levinn and Robert Downey Jr. attended last year’s benefit. (Photo: Rob Rich/SocietyAllure.com) |
“Time Bomb stages extensions, excavations, prostheses and transformations, inviting past Artists-In-Residence, Inga Maren Otto Fellows, Summer Participants, and newly invited artists to create work throughout The Center’s grounds,” Cheng added.
Time Bomb will commence at 6 p.m. with cocktails, performances, a silent auction, and art installations. Dinner, the live auction, and performances will follow at 8 p.m., and dessert will be served at 10 p.m.
Featured artists will include Oliver Beer, Bianca Casady and Sierra Casady of CocoRosie, Dawn Kasper, NoodleRice, OSGEMEOS, Reynolds Reynolds, and Georgia Sagri, and Tassy Thompson, as well as Laurie Anderson, Jenny Holzer, Carrie Mae Weems, and Wangechi Mutu who are joining forces to present Word on the Street.
Tickets to Time Bomb start at $650.
Watermill Center is located at 39 Water Mill Towd Road in Water Mill. For more information, visit www.watermillcenter.org.
