Harry Belafonte and Alan Cumming Join the Dallas Community to Raise More Than $4 Million for amfAR and the Dallas Museum of Art
Eleventh Annual Two x Two for AIDS and Art Presented by Sotheby's
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Bennah Serfaty, amfAR Senior Director of Communications, 212-806-1607, bennah.serfaty@amfar.org
Natalie Jacobs, amfAR Coordinator, Media Relations, 212-806-1694, natalie.jacobs@amfar.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dallas, October 25, 2009—Legendary musician and human rights activist Harry Belafonte, Tony Award-winning stage and screen performer Alan Cumming, and amfAR Chairman Kenneth Cole joined the Dallas community last night to raise more than $4 million at the eleventh annual TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art. The black-tie dinner and auction of contemporary art and luxury goods jointly benefited the Dallas Museum of Art’s contemporary art acquisition fund and amfAR’s life-saving AIDS research initiatives. Sponsors of the event included Sotheby’s, Aston Martin of Dallas, Flexjet, The Joule, A Luxury Collection Hotel, Tolleson Wealth Management, Waldman Bros./Chubb, Moët Hennessy USA, Todd Fiscus for todd.event design.creative services, Kristina Wrenn for twentyandseven, Neiman Marcus, the Snoring Center, Artemis Fine Arts Services, and Unified Fine Arts Services.
Cindy and Howard Rachofsky, who earlier this year were presented with amfAR’s Award of Courage for their tireless commitment to the fight against AIDS, once again hosted the TWO x TWO gala at their Richard Meier-designed home. The mother and daughter team of Jan and Elizabeth Showers served as chairs of the event.
amfAR Trustee Harry Belafonte opened the evening by speaking about the power of artistic voices to inspire positive change, which he has witnessed as an AIDS activist and during his years in the civil rights movement.
“I know first-hand the impact of creative imagination, of inspired expression, of the arts to inform, agitate, and transform society,” Belafonte said. He then encouraged the attendees to contribute in any way they could.
Alan Cumming, a devoted amfAR supporter, gave an electrifying musical performance that ranged from original songs to Broadway classics such as “Mein Herr” from Cabaret and “Wig in a Box” from Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Cumming and his band, led by musical director Lance Horne, received multiple standing ovations from the sold-out crowd of nearly 500 guests.
Sotheby’s Chairman Jamie Niven conducted the live auction, which included works by Francesco Clemente, Brice Marden, and Peter Doig, TWO x TWO’s 2009 honored artist. Doig’s painting was a highlight of the live auction, selling for $300,000; Marlene Dumas’s The Placeless Man earned the highest bid of the night, selling for $450,000.
The weeklong schedule of festivities surrounding Saturday night’s gala kicked off with an exclusive party for DMA associates on Tuesday, followed by the First Look preview party on Thursday evening. Entitled “Music X Fashion,” First Look included a presentation of designer Christian Siriano’s Spring 2010 collection and a special performance by Gavin Rossdale. To close out the week, Christen and Derek Wilson hosted a brunch at their Dallas home on Sunday. During the Sunday brunch, a private event held for major TWO x TWO supporters, amfAR CEO Kevin Robert Frost presented artist Peter Doig with amfAR’s Award of Excellence for Artistic Contributions in the Fight Against AIDS.
To date, TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art has raised $25 million for amfAR and the DMA.
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, is one of the world’s leading nonprofit organizations dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of sound AIDS-related public policy. Since 1985, amfAR has invested nearly $290 million in its programs and has awarded grants to more than 2,000 research teams worldwide.
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The Dallas Museum of Art, established in 1903, has an encyclopedic collection of more than 23,000 works spanning 5,000 years of history and representing all media, with renowned strengths in the arts of the ancient Americas, Africa, Indonesia, and South Asia; European and American painting, sculpture, and decorative arts; and American and international contemporary art. Revenues from TWO x TWO are directed by the Museum to its Contemporary Art Acquisition Fund.
amfAR and the Dallas Museum of Art recognize and thank American Airlines for its commitment to the fight against AIDS and its generous support of amfAR’s mission as well as its continued devotion to the DMA.