PHOTOS: The Kitchen’s Annual Spring Gala at City Winery

Legacy Russell, Olivier Berggruen, Rachael Louise Elliott and Porfirio Figueroa. Deonté Lee/BFA.com

Last week at City Winery, The Kitchen hosted its annual Spring Gala—a vibrant convergence of artists, patrons and cultural luminaries that honored the legendary choreographer Lucinda Childs, visionary filmmaker, artist and MacArthur “Genius” Fellow Wu Tsang and patron Jamie Singer Soros, joined by her husband Robert Soros.

For those not in the know, The Kitchen is best described as a crucible for boundary-pushing art. “My hope for the future of the art world is that institutions continue to commit to holding space for artists for risky play and the discovery of new directions,” executive director Legacy Russell told Observer in 2023. With more than 50 years of exhibitions, performances and provocative dialogue under its belt, The Kitchen continues to do exactly that.

This year’s gala, co-chaired by Sarah Arison, Olivier Berggruen and Michi Jigarjian, with honorary co-chairs Charles Atlas, Philip Glass, Jacqueline Humphries, Simone Leigh and Fred Moten, was a true reflection of the institution’s avant-garde roots.

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The benefit committee, a who’s who of deep-pocketed art-world commitment, included Larry Gagosian, Jody and John Arnhold, Philip and Shelley Aarons, Agnes Gund, along with a lineup of artists: Rashid Johnson, Julie Mehretu and Cindy Sherman among them. Institutional support came from a formidable lineup—Hauser & Wirth, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Keith Haring Foundation, Glenn Ligon Studio, FLOX Studio and others—all adding ballast to The Kitchen’s mission.

The guest list, meanwhile, reflected a cross-section of the art world’s most visible powerbrokers and iconoclasts. Patrons Sarah Arison, Carla Shen, Bernard Lumpkin and Carmine L. Boccuzzi mingled with low-key, high-impact tastemaker A.C. Hudgins. Artists in attendance included Joan Jonas, Baseera Khan, Miles Greenberg, Naudline Pierre and Rhea Dillon exchanged ideas with curators Jordan Carter, Robyn Farrell, Isolde Brielmaier and Jasmine Wahi. Ebony Haynes (director of 52 Walker) and chair founder of CARA Jane Hait were among the other artsy notables in the room. Also spotted was Kickstarter CEO (and passionate art collector) Everette Taylor.

An artist in a black hat and jacket with a dramatic red feather arrangement speaks into a microphone on stage at The Kitchen’s Spring Gala. — Serpentwithfeet. Deonté Lee/BFA.com

Actor and choreographer Angela Trimbur emceed the night with wit and warmth, bolstered by remarks from Russell, Moten and kinetic force-of-nature choreographer Elizabeth Streb. The evening’s program included a propulsive drum-driven dance by Alysia Johnson of A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, followed by a hauntingly elegant spoken-word set by serpentwithfeet.