Art For Sale, Auctioned To Benefit the Homeless

I interrupt this blog for a non-commercial, commercial message:

This Friday, the Partnership for the Homeless in New York is holding an art auction at Gagosian Gallery on W. 21st Street in Chelsea to benefit its Brooklyn-based Family Resource Center. The pitch calls it unprecedented — whether it is or not is immaterial; it’s a good cause.

This “first-time” event was proposed by Richard Serra and his wife Clara (above) to the Partnership and they offered to chair it. Almost everything has been donated — the space, the auctioneering by Tobias Meyer of Sotheby’s, a performance by Jessye Norman from the American songbook, and art works from more than 70 artists. They include Richard Artschwager, John Baldessari, Matthew Barney, Louise Bourgeois, Cecily Brown, Chris Burden, Vija Clemins, Chuck Close, Mark di Suvero, Jenny Holzer, Roni Horn, Jasper Johns, Joan Jonas, Ellsworth Kelly, Jeff Koons, Vik Muniz, Takashi Murakami, Bruce Nauman, Richard Serra, Kiki Smith, Hiroshi Sugimoto, and Lawrence Weiner.

You can view their works here, and you can leave absentee bids for them. Or you can go to the event; tickets cost $175, and information about reserving tickets is on the same website as the art works.

The Family Resource Center, btw, helps homeless children keep up with their education and remain connected to their community and helps their parents deal with health, housing and other financial issues.

UPDATE, 2/3: The auction raised $2,075,000.