The CLARE foundation provides crucial services to people recovering from often debilitating addictions to alcohol and drugs. Why not help the life-saving non-profit continue in their healing mission by purchasing a new piece of art? This Sunday, June 7, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm, the third annual ART for CLARE event will give art lovers a chance to purchase new works while supporting a good cause. More than 300 attendees are expected to show up for the Bergamot Station soiree. And this year, it’s being billed as a “fun-filled stimulus event.”
“We are well aware of the economic environment, so the theme of our event is transformation,” said Linde Caughey, co-chair of ART for CLARE. “The recession is causing a transformation in our country in all kinds of ways.”
Bergamot Station’s courtyard will morph into a modest street scene for the occasion, complete with food stalls providing “gourmet recession food” donated by Joe’s Restaurant, Chaya Venice, El Cholo, Global Cuisine by Gary Arabia, Urth Café, Le Chef Bakery, All That is Good Catering by Mary Gilmer, and other restaurants that know how to serve up budget-friendly fare without skimping on quality. It’s a stimulus package of sorts, one designed to bring community together for an uplifting reminder that creativity blooms even in the face of financial hardship. The artists also are getting into the spirit of frugality by offering pieces this year with slightly lower price tags.
“We asked the artists for pieces that were on the less expensive side,” Caughey said. “We are so thrilled at their follow through.”
More than 60 artists are participating, including Ed Ruscha, Andy Moses, Joe Goode, Mark Dutcher, Kim Abeles, Mark Steven Greenfield, Suzan Woodruff, and actor Anthony Hopkins.
When asked why there is so much support for the event, Meredith Baxter, a board member and co-chair of ART for CLARE, said the outpouring comes from the fact that people are catching on to the transformative work the CLARE foundation does for the community.
“More than twenty five thousand people a year turn to CLARE for help and no one walks away without a bed,” Baxter said. “Addiction is tricky. It can be seen as a personal choice as opposed to a disease or a disorder, but it is a terrible disease.”
CLARE’s 11 programs located throughout the Westside provide a continuum of care to homeless and low-income men, women, and children. CLARE Foundation has been serving the community since 1965.
Ashley McLean Emenegger, the curator for ART for CLARE, summed up the mix of charitable sentiment and outright fun at the core of the fundraiser.
“ART for CLARE is a very welcoming event for art enthusiasts and others who want to be introduced to the art world in a non threatening environment under the auspices of a great cause,” Emenegger said.
Tickets to ART for CLARE are $25 and can be purchased at www.clarefoundation.org. To view the artists and artwork visit http://www. artslant.com/la/events/show/46348-3rd-annual-art-for-clare
