Applause for MOG Red Hot Auction & Party 2013
Thanks to our friends Melissa and Ted Lagreid, Gaye and I got our first exposure to Museum of Glass Tacoma on September 21. Applause, applause for MOG Red Hot Auction, the gala fundraiser that certainly lived up to its name. We were impressed and delighted…starting with this Chihuly blown glass installation at the outside entrance to the museum!
Ted & Melissa Lagried pictured with Gaye & Harry Pollitt at the entrance to Museum of Glass Red Hot Auction 
Close up of blown, clear glass installation in reflecting pool at entrance to Museum of Glass Tacoma
Two thirds of the Museum space that evening was taken up with auction items – 320, to be exact, which were wonderful to peruse. And there were also several dozen pieces from the Museum’s permanent collection on display. A really fun part of the collection is the area called “Kids Design Glass” – objects created by a variety of glass artists interpreting drawings by children, ages 12 and under.
Glass maestro Preston Singletary with his production Team clad in fire-protective gear, and the exuberant Auctioneer at MOG Red Hot Auction
We shared a wonderful dinner with 200 or 300 fellow lovers of glass art, and then participated in the auction which was lively and fun. The work sold for good prices — a great testimony to the quality of the art, the exuberance of the crowd (above), and the hard-working, energized auctioneer. We were guests at the table of Randy and Joyce Lert and (as shown in this photo) delighted along with Randy at his unexpected purchase of a Lino Tagliapietra.
Museum of Glass Tacoma is a museum unlike any we have ever seen. Yes, there are individual salons housing wonderful work by the world’s glass luminaries, but there is also a large, fully functioning glass, hot shop with amphitheater seating. Such a concept! Unique indeed, because the art is not static, but a living element that allows visitors the opportunity to see glass art in the creation process.
The Red Hot party showed us all the full advantage of the hot shop by staging a work session with Preston Singletary and a very skilled production team. They created two wonderful Singletary designs right in front of us that were auctioned off during the process! At times, the auctioneer was so close to the glory hole, he looked to be an intrinsic part of the team. In fact, I guess, he really was.
We were told later that the Museum comfortably achieved its financial goals for the entire evening. This achievement reflects the tremendous planning, preparation and execution by the museum staff and volunteers that came together to make the evening successful.
All in all, for us, this was a wonderful experience and a perfect finale to Gaye’s and my five-day glass-art-centric excursion to Seattle and Tacoma.
