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    Form & Function

    Dallas Museum of Art designs dazzling spring gala for picture-perfect evening

    Stephanie Allmon Merry
    May 1, 2019 | 9:19 am

    Hundreds of Dallas philanthropists and arts patrons donned their black-tie best for the most beloved gala of spring, Dallas Museum of Art's Art Ball.

    Themed "Form + Function — A Celebration of Craftsmanship Throughout the Collection," the DMA's premier fundraiser celebrated the details captured among the museum's vast collection and the materials artists use to create them.

    On an unseasonably warm spring evening April 27, ladies picked up their ballgown skirts and made their way, arm-in-arm with their dapper dates, up the stairs and into luxurious tents on the grounds of the DMA. Event planner extraordinaire Todd Fiscus and his team had brought the theme to life with vignettes and a bar installation of varying textures and materials. “Wood, marble, metal, paint, glass, and so much more were used to create texture and space design,” he explained in a post on Instagram.

    Before securing a glass of Ruinart bubbly or lining up at the bar for craft cocktails, party-goers posed at the step-and-repeat and cheek-kissed with friends. Those mixing and mingling included Kara Goss, Randall Goss, Charlie Anderson, Moll Anderson, Alvise Orsini, Tim Adair, Faisal Halum, Angelia Venker, Greg Venker, Itzel Crow, Nathan Crow, Scott Smetko, Ashley Smetko, Jessica Nowitzki, and Dirk Nowitzki (looking sharp in a tux but utterly relaxed in retirement).

    At the far end of the reception, an opportunity to help color a mural with brightly colored chalk allowed guests to try their own hand at design. Then they could pause at a high-top table and enjoy a bite or two of truffle popcorn.

    When the dining tent opened, attendees streamed into a room fairy-tale ballroom, complete with floral installations hanging from the ceiling.

    Dancers from a troupe called Eclipse introduced each part of the program with a choreographed vignette shadowed behind a large screen, adding to the mystical ambiance of the night.

    Guests were given a warm welcome, via pre-recorded video, by event chairs Lindsey Collins and Amanda Shufeldt, and DMA Director Agustín Arteaga. Big thanks went to all the sponsors, with special recognition for presenting sponsor Headington Companies.

    Each course of dinner was a work of art by Cassandra Fine Catering. First came citrus-cured salmon dotted with crème fraiche, caviar, and a delicate crispy potato. Main course was pan-roasted merluza with eggplant, tomato conserva, and water cress butter sauce, embellished with a colorful flower on top. Dessert paired a passion fruit tart with a milk chocolate mousse with dark chocolate bittersweet apricot truffle.

    After dinner, auctioneer Robbie Gordy, associate vice president of Christie’s New York, took the stage for a live auction of nine extraordinary items that included a Viking river cruise in Europe; a New York fashion adventure; an art-filled birthday party at the DMA, and more.

    Each package was introduced by Eclipse, with a shadowed dance vignette that spelled out a word at the end. Their introduction of a safari in Kenya, for example, created shapes of animals and spelled out “Africa." Bidding for the package got fierce and eventually fetched $50,000.

    The most exciting auction moment of the night, though, was a bidding war that broke out for a trip to Mexico with the DMA’s Arteaga. Up to eight people could spend five days exploring the cultural institutions of Mexico City and enjoying fine dinners in private homes. In the end, one trip turned into two, each selling for an astounding $110,000.

    To celebrate, servers brought out bottles of Maestro Dobel tequila for each table and a shot for each guest.

    In total, the live auction alone raised $393,000.

    With the live auction concluded, the after-party could begin, with the beats provided by DJ Elusive. Those who wanted to continue the evening kept the dance floor moving and the bartenders busy.

    Not including this year's event, for which fundraising dollars are still being totaled, Art Ball has raised more than $28 million for the DMA. Such support, Arteaga told guests, has allowed the museum to engage nearly 830,000 visitors with free admission, present 31 special exhibitions, and provide access to learning experiences through more than 5,000 free or low-cost programs.

    Among those helping to further the Art Ball efforts in 2019 were Natasha Hallam, Andrew Hallam, Kristen Gibbins, Reed Gibbins, John Dayton, Carlos Gonzalez-Jaime, Mary Noel Lamont, Justin Myer, Jake Walton, Susan McIntyre, Ingrid Van Haastrecht, Kim Bryan, David Huntley, Catherine Rose, Blake Wright, Fred Holston, Dhruv Narayanan, Prisha Gaddam, Abigail Rust, James Rust, Erin Duvall, Clane LaCrosse, Ashley Cathey, Louise Marsh, Lisa Robbins, Kimberly Rosenbaum, Nancy Neuhoff, and Ben Kelley.

    Lewis Chang, Grace Cook

    Lewis Chang, Grace Cook
      
    Photo by WJNPHOTO
    Lewis Chang, Grace Cook
    museumsgalasfundraisers
    news/society

    Welcome to the Dreamstate

    Dreamy DIFFA Dallas gala invites glammed-up guests into surreal soiree

    Lindsey Wilson
    May 16, 2025 | 1:30 pm
    DIFFA 2025
    Photo by Kelly Alexander
    Gabriella Monte

    We're always in favor of a gala where you can turn up wearing pajamas, but when that gala is House of DIFFA, those PJs had better be glam.

    The 2025 theme combined the eerie with the ethereal: Dreamstate, which DIFFA describes as "a surreal realm where the power of dreams fuels transformation and fantasy gives way to fearless impact."

    And this year's guests were definitely not sleeping. Along with silky, slinky, sequined pajama sets and even a bit of racy lingerie, attendees at this avant-garde fashion extravaganza interpreted the theme in myriad ways: fairy wings, lacy masks, crowns, and plenty of ballgowns, rhinestone tuxedos, and high heels (on all genders) tall enough to rival skyscrapers.

    Chaired by Payton Martin and Jacob Samson and sponsored by the Louis L. Borick Foundation, the May 3 evening began with a private VIP cocktail hour. Then the masses could descend on the Sheraton Dallas Hotel for a vibrant two hours of sipping specialty drinks, posing for photographers, and bidding on both the silent auction items and legendary jacket collection.

    DIFFA 2025Midsummer night scene in the runway show.Photo by Thomas Garza

    These custom, one-of-a-kind jackets were all created exclusively for DIFFA Dallas, and included pieces from both local and global designers. The extensive silent auction offered everything from luxury fashion and jewelry to artwork, spa services, furniture, decor, and exclusive dining and travel experiences, with all proceeds benefiting HIV/AIDS service organizations across North Texas.

    This year's beneficiaries include:

    • AIDS Interfaith Network
    • AIDS Outreach Center
    • AIDS Services of Dallas
    • AIDS Walk South Dallas
    • CAN Community Health
    • Cathedral of Hope United Church of Christ
    • Children's Medical Center ARMS Clinic
    • Cook Children's Health Foundation
    • Dallas Hope Charities
    • East Texas Cares Resource Center
    • Elevate North Texas
    • Greg Dollgener Memorial AIDS Fund
    • Health Services of North Texas
    • HELP Center for LGBT Health and Wellness
    • Legacy Cares
    • Legal Hospice of Texas
    • Open Arms, Inc. - Bryan's House
    • Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas
    • Prism Health North Texas
    • Resource Center of Dallas
    • A Sister's Gift
    • Sonya's House
    • Tarrant County Samaritan Housing
    • White Rock Friends

    A special display also showed off outfits and headgear worn by such stars as Madonna, Shania Twain, Chappel Roan, and Zoe Saldaña in music videos, photo shoots, and on the red carpet.

    When the doors of the Lone Star Ballroom were thrown open, guests quickly sought their seats so that the program and three-course dinner could commence.

    Following remarks from the co-chairs and DIFFA Dallas board chair Ken Weber, the lady herself presented the Donna Fishel Community Hero Award to Todd Bacon, pastor of White Rock Community Church and community liaison for White Rock Friends.

    For the last 30 years, White Rock Friends has been committed to the health and well-being of its community, providing hot meals on weekends (one of the first and only in DFW) and running a "general store" that supplies personal care and household cleaning products to those in need.

    Then the DIFFA board of trustees got their moment in the spotlight, with waves of applause for Jacob Samson, Brandon Bell, Rick Castillo, Jonathan Flores, Steve Lopez, Paige Westhoff, Richard Rivas, David Chadd, Jainy Selvakumar, Danny Acevedo, Rhiannon Bolen, Christi Meril, J.R. Shoman, JR Hernandez, and Eric Bright.

    Strutting the runway next were the 2025 DIFFA Dallas Style Council Ambassadors: Ashley Anderson Smith, Sonya Morfor, Bill Moore, Korey Williams, Shelle Carrig, Amy Baumann, Lisa Endicott, Clayton Nabors, Chad Collom, Deborah Bowles, Sonia Simmons, Sierre Tuthill, Kelly Wolfenberger, Kelli Seliger, Danny Cabrera, Steven Hoyl, and Abbe Fenimore.

    DIFFA 2025Booker T. Washington Senior Modeling Luxury Jacket Photo by Danny Campbell

    To introduce the recipient of the Candy Long Excellence in Fashion Award, Erykah Badu surprised the crowd in an oversized hat and floor-length black veil. She revealed the winner to be Swedish-born activist and costume designer B. Åkerlund, who has outfitted some of the world's most iconic artists such as Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and Britney Spears.

    Comedian Dana Goldberg returned as auctioneer, leading both a spirited paddle raise and a bidding race for such elite live-auction packages as a week in Puerto Vallarta, a villa stay in Costa Rica, a South African safari for two, a colorful painting of Dolly Parton titled Born With a Good Heart by Ashley Longshore, an in-home private chef dinner for six, a jaunt to Cortana, Italy, and a romantic Turks & Caicos escape for two.

    This led into the much-anticipated fashion show, which opened with a "Diamonds Are Forever" James Bond tableau and then ran the gamut from "A Midsummer Night's Dream" to "Rhinestone Rodeo." At different points, the enraptured audience experienced dancers from Ballet North Texas, live musicians scattered across the T-shaped runway, and pajama-clad phone operators cooing to their callers. It was, as always, an over-the-top night to remember

    DIFFA Dallas' signature fundraising events continue throughout the year, with Burgers & Burgundy set for October 9 and the Holiday Wreath Collection happening in winter. The 2026 House of DIFFA will take place May 9, 2026, at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel.

    Since 1984, DIFFA has granted millions of dollars to North Texas HIV/AIDS programs by raising funds through the production of incredible events highlighting the design community. DIFFA is one of the largest and most successful fundraising organizations for HIV/AIDS nonprofit service providers and education programs within Texas, New York, California, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, and Washington.

    DIFFA is the only HIV/AIDS organization in Texas that provides non-earmarked funding exclusively to HIV/AIDS service efforts in our communities, thus providing for the direct care for persons living with HIV/AIDS. Dallas is DIFFA's largest fundraising chapter. The unique design-focused events DIFFA Dallas holds include Burgers and Burgundy, DIFFA Wreath Celebration, and House of DIFFA.

    DIFFA 2025
      

    Photo by Kelly Alexander

    Gabriella Monte

    fundraisersfashion showcelebritiesfashiongalas
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