The Dorsky celebrates 20th Anniversary Gala Benefit

The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art at SUNY New Paltz hosted a sold-out 20th Anniversary Gala Benefit on Oct. 9, 2021, raising critically important funds to support the expansion of the museum’s permanent collection and education programs.

“For two decades, The Dorsky has created exceptional art exhibitions and programs to enrich and inspire SUNY New Paltz students and the Hudson Valley community,” said Anna Conlan, the Neil C. Trager Director of the Dorsky Museum. “We are beyond grateful to our incredibly generous community of friends and champions, whose support of the museum means we can continue to serve our students and the diverse communities of our region. We truly couldn’t do it without them.”

Fall 2021 marks 20 years since The Dorsky opened its doors, thanks to a gift from founding philanthropist Samuel Dorsky. More than 150 artists, tastemakers, museum patrons and friends were in attendance to commemorate the landmark anniversary, including honorees Andrew Lyght, an artist who has been featured in multiple exhibitions including “Andrew Lyght: Full Circle,” and the co-founders of Chronogram Media, Amara Projansky and Jason Stern, both of whom attended SUNY New Paltz.

“Bringing our annual fundraiser home to The Dorsky to celebrate the Museum’s 20th Anniversary felt really special,” said Conlan. “For me, honoring Andrew Lyght and Amara Projansky and Jason Stern was a real highlight of the evening—we are so fortunate to be part of such a vibrant and creative community in the Hudson Valley!”

Guests were given exclusive access before and after the event to the exhibition “The Dorsky at 20: Reflections at a Milestone,” as well as the short film “People of the Dorsky,” which features artists, patrons, educators and program participants.

New Paltz students also contributed to the festivities, with performances by Culture Shock Dance Troupe and by Roan Martin ’22 (Computer Science), a musician and Dorsky Museum Gallery attendant.

The Dorsky Museum is grateful for the unwavering and enthusiastic generous support of Titanium Sponsor Michael S. Nelson and Platinum Sponsors Floyd Lattin and Ward L.E. Mintz, Janine Tramontana and Gareth Old, and West Strand Art Gallery.

Additional major sponsors include Mary ’70 and Jim Ottaway Jr. ’18 HON, Linda Sweet, William Burback and Peter Hofmann, The Cahn Clan, Penny and David Dell, Johanna Hecht and Raymond Sokolov, Alanna Iacono and Joseph Bywater, Dani Korwin ’73 and Anthony DiGuiseppe, Karen Roberts, Marjorie N. Shelley, Mary Elizabeth Bannon ’81, Bruce and Barbara Esmark, Erica Marks and Dan George, Olivia Georgia, Jeni Mokren, Jill Moser, Daniel Sager and Brian McCarthy, Jessica Sillins & Rebeca Quintanilla, Kevin Zraly, and other generous individuals.

The Dorsky also thanks business sponsors, including R&F Handmade Paints, Inc., the SUNY New Paltz Foundation, Verifone, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, Anna Zorina Gallery, Bailey Pottery Equipment, Carolyn’s Transport, Federal Heath, Rondavid & Carol Super Gold, Green Cottage, Robibero Winery, RUPCO, Inc., Lowery Stokes Sims, SUNY New Paltz School of Fine & Performing Arts, and Whitecliff Vineyard and Winery.

“None of this would have been possible without our community of students, artists, local partners, professors, campus colleagues, staff members, supporters, volunteers, and visitors,” said Anna Conlan. “We want to thank everyone for being part of our story; we look forward to the next 20 years together.”

 

About the Gala’s 2021 Special Honored Guests

ARTIST ANDREW LYGHT:

Andrew Lyght lives and works in Kingston, New York, and has been a part of The Dorsky community since its 2016 major retrospective exhibition of his work. His art, which combines drawing, painting, sculpture and installation, is included in prestigious museum collections around the world including the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the Jewish Museum, New York; the World Bank Art Program, Washington, D.C.; the Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; and the Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, Massachusetts. Through matching industrial elements with vibrant colors and smooth geometric shapes, Lyght transforms hard-edge, functional construction objects into artworks that are graceful and lyrical. The Dorsky Museum is honored to celebrate Lyght as an innovative and important artist of our region.

AMARA PROJANSKY AND JASON STERN:

Amara Projansky and Jason Stern are co-founders of Chronogram Media. They started the company and launched the flagship magazine in 1993, with the aim of nourishing and stimulating the creative and economic well-being of the Hudson Valley. Since then, Amara and Jason have led the launch of numerous magazines, websites, and custom publications and were founding members of An Institute for the Discovery and Fulfillment of Human Potential, Inc. Amara now leads Chronogram as CEO and Jason is board president and emeritus publisher. They both attended SUNY New Paltz and live in New Paltz, New York, where they grew up, with their two teenage children. Their contributions since starting Chronogram magazine have defined the Hudson Valley as a center of culture and creativity, and we are proud to celebrate them as cultural leaders in our community.

ABOUT THE DORSKY:

The Dorsky Museum creates art experiences that spark curiosity, critical thinking, and delight, connecting and serving the College and the diverse communities of our region. The Dorsky is a hub for the art and artists of the Hudson Valley-free, open, and accessible to all.

Located at the State University of New York at New Paltz, The Dorsky Museum comprises more than 9,000 square feet of exhibition space distributed over six galleries. The museum was launched more than 65 years ago by a dedicated committee of faculty members to enhance the teaching mission of the university. Originally known as the College Art Gallery, The Dorsky Museum was dedicated in 2001. The opening of The Dorsky Museum transformed the original College Art Gallery into one of the leading art museums in the region.

The Dorsky Museum’s permanent collection comprises more than 6,000 works of art from around the world and spans over a 4,000 year time period. While encyclopedic in nature, areas of focus include American art, with an emphasis on the Hudson Valley and Catskill Mountain region, 19th-century American prints, photography and contemporary metals. The museum also has a strong World Collection that includes outstanding examples of both two and three-dimensional objects from diverse cultures, dating from classical to modern times.

The museum’s temporary exhibition program has been hailed as one of the best in the region and features exhibitions, installations, and projects by internationally recognized artists as well as annual thematic exhibitions of work by regional artists. “The Hudson Valley Masters Series” is one of the unique exhibitions that the museum periodically hosts which focuses specifically on a body of work by an internationally acclaimed artist who resides in the area.