The annual art auction for Miami's Lotus House was held on Saturday. Lotus House, a shelter for poor, homeless women in Overtown, was founded by Constance Collins-- a former real estate entrepreneur. Ms. Collins' husband, art collector Marty Margulies, sponsors the annual event at the building housing his art collection in Wynwood.
For Lotus House, Ms. Collins brings art patrons together with the needs of the poor. Through the auction of items contributed by collectors, art dealers, and generous patrons, Lotus House raises a significant part of its budget. In only a few years, Ms. Collins has made a tremendous contribution to MIami, corralling some of the city's wealth to helping give hope to homeless women in Overtown.
On Saturday night, the glitter of recent years' auctions was altogether absent. Ms. Collins, in remarks preceding the live auction, made note of the dire times; the dinner itself was being catered on paper table cloths by the staff of Lotus House in the form of a soup kitchen line. Judging the mood of the audience for bidding on art, most attendees seemed happy to gather together and share, in a way, the visible shadows of crashing real estate and financial markets.
If Saturday night is an indicator, Art Basel Miami Beach, opening in a few weeks, will also be a much more somber affair.
On the other hand, hard times are when art proves its high purpose: calling observers to the collective values of humanity however they are expressed by individual artists. It is similar to the call Ms. Collins made on behalf of the homeless on Saturday evening: that in desperate times the quality of a culture and society proves itself most by its response to those most in need. For that, we are thankful for Ms. Collins' contribution.
2 comments:
We should have more like Collins/Marguiles in Miami. It would be a better place.
You know, if you tell people with a lot of money who probably aren't affected by the bad times that times are bad and you hold a gala with paper plates, don't you think they feel guilty about contributing a lot of money?
It would have been far better to welcome them, not talk about the economy and let them give from their hearts.
Geez all this doom and gloom perpetuates itself, doesn't anyone realize that????
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