More than $1 million in auction sales; highest single auction bid $76,000
ATLANTA, May 22, 2019 –– In its 27th year, the High Museum Atlanta Wine Auction (March 20–23, 2019) raised more than $2.6 million to support the Museum’s exhibitions and educational programming, with a live auction total of more than $1 million and a silent auction total of $136,776. The dates for the 28th annual Auction are March 18–21, 2020.
The 2019 Wine Auction, organized by co-chairs Allison Hill and Dawn Tresh, celebrated the theme “perfection in wine, food, and art.” The weekend events under the tents at Atlantic Station welcomed 750 guests for the Friday Fête and more than 1,000 guests at the Vintners’ Reception and Live Auction. More than 150 vintners and 74 chefs participated in the 2019 Auction.
“We are incredibly thankful for the support of all who joined us at the Auction and have helped to advance the Museum’s mission to provide vital educational programming and share incredible artworks with our audiences,” said Rand Suffolk, Nancy and Holcombe T. Green, Jr., director of the High. “We are continually grateful to work alongside such a dynamic team of vintners, chefs, patrons and donors in celebration of the arts.”
The Special Guests of Honor were James Beard Award winners and co-authors of “The Sommelier’s Atlas of Taste: A Field Guide to the Great Wines of Europe,” Jordan Mackay and Rajat Parr. The 2019 Special Guest Chef was Todd Richards, culinary director of Jackmont Hospitality Restaurants One Flew South and Chicken + Beer, at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Richards is also owner of Richards’ Southern Fried in Atlanta’s Krog Street Market and has authored a cookbook, “Soul: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes.”
The March 23 main event, the Vintners’ Reception and Live Auction, featured 56 live auction lots and 119 silent auction lots, which offered exclusive opportunities to taste a variety of wines, tour vineyards across the globe and visit with vintners from the world’s premier wine regions and chefs from across the country. The lots also included rare vintages and large-format bottles.
The top live auction lot, “Burgundian Adventure!,” sold for $76,000. The winning couple will enjoy a six-day trip for six to Domaine de Cromey in Burgundy, France. The vacation includes tours and tastings with local winemakers, sightseeing excursions and meals prepared by the owners of Domaine de Cromey. The “Blackberry Mountain Dinner in Atlanta” buy-in lot sold for the second highest total of the day at $72,000. The 24 couples who contributed to the lot will experience a very special dinner at Atlanta’s The Estate by Legendary Events with food prepared by Blackberry Mountain and wines poured by Jasmine Hirsch of Hirsch Vineyards. At $64,000, the “From Napa to South Africa with Blackbird Vineyards & Travel Sommelier” lot sold for the third highest bid. This lot features a trip for two to South Africa, including two nights in Cape Town, two nights on safari and two nights in South Africa’s winelands. Also included is a weekend trip for four to Napa’s Harvest Inn by Charlie Palmer, dinner at Harvest Table by Charlie Palmer and a special tasting experience with Blackbird Vineyards.
This year’s Paddle Raise, which brought in over $128,000, was held in support of arts education at the High and raised funds for the Museum’s Art Access programs.
The 2019 Wine Auction was made possible with support from the following corporate sponsors: Presenting Sponsor Delta Air Lines, Grand Cru Sponsor Merrill Lynch, and Friday Fête Sponsor JLL.
The High is pleased to announce Aarati Alexander and Burch Hanson as co-chairs for the 28th High Museum Atlanta Wine Auction (March 18–21, 2020).
For more information, visit https://www.highmuseumwine.org/.
High Museum Atlanta Wine Auction
Founded in 1993, the High Museum Atlanta Wine Auction is the largest fundraising event for the High Museum of Art. The Wine Auction is the top charity fundraising event in Atlanta and the no. 1 charity wine auction benefiting the arts. Proceeds generated by the Auction, which have amounted to more than $32 million over the last 27 years, provide a significant source of funding for the Museum’s exhibitions and educational programs. Proceeds help to make possible special exhibitions and partnerships. The Auction also provides funds for dynamic youth education programs, which draw more than 65,000 schoolchildren to the High each year. For more information, visit https://www.highmuseumwine.org/.
About the High Museum of Art
Located in the heart of Atlanta, Georgia, the High Museum of Art connects with audiences from across the Southeast and around the world through its distinguished collection, dynamic schedule of special exhibitions and engaging community-focused programs. Housed within facilities designed by Pritzker Prize–winning architects Richard Meier and Renzo Piano, the High features a collection of more than 17,000 works of art, including an extensive anthology of 19th- and 20th-century American fine and decorative arts; major holdings of photography and folk and self-taught work, especially that of artists from the American South; burgeoning collections of modern and contemporary art, including paintings, sculpture, new media and design; a growing collection of African art, with work dating from pre-history through the present; and significant holdings of European paintings and works on paper. The High is dedicated to reflecting the diversity of its communities and offering a variety of exhibitions and educational programs that engage visitors with the world of art, the lives of artists and the creative process. For more information about the High, visit www.high.org.
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Media contact:
Marci Tate Davis
Manager of Public Relations
E-mail: marci.davis@high.org
404-733-4585