May the art be with you: Plains Art Gala celebrates with sci-fi theme

Arts | April 18th, 2024

By Sabrina Hornung

There’s no exaggeration when we say that this year’s Plains Art Gala is going to be out of this world, with a sci-fi theme inspired by a painting housed in the Plains Art Museum’s permanent collection called “Toward the Sun”by John Berkey. Berkey was an acclaimed North Dakota born sci-fi artist. He created art for “Dune,” “Star Wars,” National Geographic, NASA and a number of sci-fi books.

“I think that worked out really well because the Gala is on May 4, which is technically ‘Star Wars Day,’” said Plains Art Museum Executive Director Erin Shapiro. “I should watch the movies – I haven't yet, so I'm not the best person to speak to that. But no, I think it'll be a lot of fun. And it's a really broad theme that people can have fun with too, which I think is really fantastic.”

It’s no secret that the Plains Art Gala is one of the best and most highly anticipated parties of the year. One of the best parts of planning on attending an art party is you can fully embrace the theme and show up in full costume, tails, or jeans and you’ll fit in just fine.

Listen and groove to the sounds of Post Traumatic Funk Syndrome and DJ Star IV. Enjoy a wine tasting courtesy of Happy Harry’s Bottle Shops, hors d’oeuvres from Chef’s Table + Urban Foods, and sweet treats from Nichole’s Fine Pastry. Experience sci-fi art adventures from Fargo Pinball, Folkways, and Puzzled Escape rooms, while Livewire sets the mood.

Don’t forget to check out and bid on the art. It’s the most important part. It’s a juried exhibition, meaning a number of artists applied to have their work be part of the exhibit.

“I think we had more artists that applied than ever and it was a competitive year too, because we're in the Starion Gallery this year, which is a little bit of a change and is a smaller space,” said Shapiro. “So it was a competitive year to get into the art auction.”

The art featured in the art auction consists of work from local, regional and national artists. This year, the art was selected by Texas-based artist Annalise Gratovich, whose prints recently hung in the atrium of the Plains.

“When Annalise juried the show, she was really thinking about how the works would look as an exhibition as a whole,” Shapiro explained. “So she was thinking about how the different works from different artists really kind of spoke to each other and the dialogues that they created, which I really appreciated. It's about the individual artworks, but it's also about the exhibition as a whole. And of course, we want all of our exhibitions to look great and to be cohesive. So she did a really wonderful job of selecting works that worked well with other works in the show. So I think it's going to be really fantastic.”

The art for the Gala will be on view in the Starion Gallery at the Plains until May 4. Admission to the Plains Art Museum is free.

IF YOU GO:

Plains Art Gala

Saturday, May 4

7 p.m. - midnight

Plains Art Museum

704 1st Ave. N. in Fargo

For ticket information: plainsart.org/events/spring-gala-2024-sci-fi-artistry/