Oprah Winfrey, Agnes Gund & Miss Porter’s School Celebrate By Women, For Tomorrow’s Women at Sotheby’s in New York

Oprah Winfrey, Agnes Gund & Miss Porter’s School Celebrate By Women, For Tomorrow’s Women at Sotheby’s in New York

Last night in New York, Oprah Winfrey, Agnes Gund, members from Miss Porter’s School and Sotheby’s celebrated By Women, For Tomorrow’s Women – the first-ever all-women artist benefit auction, which will take place at Sotheby’s on 1 March.

Forty-three works of art by more than 40 pioneering women artists have been donated to create this distinct offering of modern and contemporary works, with full proceeds to support financial aid that enables emerging female leaders to attend Miss Porter’s School and go on to shape a changing world.

Agnes Gund, who graduated from Miss Porter’s in 1956, and Oprah Winfrey, a longtime supporter of the school, are Honorary Co-Chairs for the sale. Gund is one of the most important patrons of the arts in America and exemplary in her support of women artists. Winfrey is a strong believer in the power of youth education and is the founder of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG) in South Africa, which was modeled after Miss Porter’s. The OWLAG Board is chaired by Miss Porter’s Head of School, Dr. Katherine Windsor.

Chair Jill Spalding, Artist Vice-Chair Jenny Holzer, and Vice-Chair Adam Sheffer of Pace Gallery led the auction initiative. Chrishaunda Lee Perez ’94, Miss Porter’s Trustee Dr. Sunnie Evers ’71, and Miss Porter’s Art History Instructor Dr. Anna Swinbourne were the Event Co-Chairs, as part of the ongoing celebration commemorating the school’s 175^th anniversary in 2018.

The evening began with a private reception in Sotheby’s York Avenue galleries, where guests of Sotheby’s and Miss Porter’s School enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, as well as remarks from Agnes Gund, Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Katherine Windsor. DJ Zuri Marley provided ambiance as attendees viewed highlights from the all-female-artist auction, alongside works from our Contemporary Curated and Contemporary Art Online auctions. As an extension of their roles in the Miss Porter’s sale, Gund and Winfrey will also serve as the co-curators for the bi-annual Contemporary Curated sale.

Following the reception, the honorary co-chairs joined members of the school’s auction and event committees, as well as many of the artists whose works will be on offer, in Sotheby’s iconic salesroom, which had been transformed for an intimate dinner prepared by award-winning chef, Missy Robbins.

Works from By Women, For Tomorrow’s Women and Contemporary Curated are now on view in Sotheby’s York Avenue galleries, which are free and open to the public through 28 February, alongside works from their Contemporary Art Online sales.