Bruce Museum’s 31st Annual Gala Is All About “Jewels of the Jungle”

The Bruce Museum’s signature fundraising event of the year – the 31st Annual Gala – took place at Greenwich Country Club. The creative black-tie event featured cocktails, dinner, live and silent auctions, and dancing. Auctioneer David Pollack of Sotheby’s led the live auction with an array of exciting lots which included exclusive travel destinations and unique experiences.

Open to Gala patrons as well as those who could not attend in person, the silent auction featured special one-of-a-kind experiences, including travel and sports packages and shopping and spa packages.

The spring season’s premier social charity event Gala was themed “Jewels of the Jungle,” in tribute to the recent exhibition of world-class minerals from the Robert R. Wiener Collection and highly anticipated National Geographic Photo Ark exhibition of large-scale photographs of endangered animals.

Guests joined in celebration and support of the Bruce, and in special honor of Lucile and Richard J. Glasebrook and Gale and Robert H. Lawrence, Jr., who were recognized for their longstanding commitment, leadership, and generosity to the Bruce Museum.

The event was organized by committee members and museum staff. The Gala was led by Co-Chairs Katie Fong Biglin, Kim Kassin, and Shelly Tretter Lynch. The Honorary Gala Chair was Avril Graham, Executive Fashion & Beauty Editor at Harper’s Bazaar.

The silent auction provided guest the opportunity to purchase original works of art from highly collectible artists, including Andrea Bonfils, Paige Bradley, J Henry Fair, Richard Haas, Clement Kamena, Felicity Kostakis, Sasa Mahr-Batas, Dan Miller, Malcolm Moran, and Rafael McKenzie Soares, Michael Richard Thron and Susan Williams.

Shown (below) is Still Waters, a 20 by 24-inch oil on canvas painting by Felicity Kostakis. Born in Sydney, Australia, Kostakis has been heavily influenced by the sea. Where the horizon meets the shore, where land, sea, and sky come together, and the ever-changing moods of the water are all images in her paintings evoking various moods, from tranquil to ominous.

The event sponsors were Aman, Amica Insurance, National Geographic Expeditions, Saks Fifth Avenue, Sotheby’s International Realty, Steven Fox Jewelry, and media sponsor Moffly Media/Greenwich magazine.