Dolphins Legend Jason Taylor to be Honored at 15th Annual Cuisine for Ar

Miami Dolphins legend and former National Football League All-Pro Jason Taylor will be honored for his contributions to South Florida at this year’s Cuisine for Art fund-raiser slated for Thursday, May 17 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Benefiting the Center, this event features elected government officials and community leaders serving as celebrity waiters.

The party kicks off at 6 p.m. with wine and vodka cocktails courtesy of Southern Wine and Spirits and delicious signature hors d’oeuvres. Following will be a sit-down dinner featuring petite filet mignon and roasted salmon, awards presentation, a silent and live auction of one-of-a-kind items, a raffle for prizes, and entertainment by Rock With U.

Get a jump on all of the silent auction action! Click here to check out our Online Auction in conjunction with Cuisine for Art.

This year’s celebrity waiters are: Hon. Patricia Asseff, City of Hollywood commissioner; John Benz, senior vice president and chief strategic officer, Memorial Healthcare System; Hon. Richard Blattner, City of Hollywood commissioner; Hon. Peter Bober, mayor, City of Hollywood; Marc Cannon, senior vice president-corporate communications and public policy, AutoNation; Hon. Beam Furr, City of Hollywood commissioner; Hon. Joe Gibbons, Florida State Representative; Michael Goodman, partner, Bitner Goodman; Hon. Sue Gunzburger, Broward County commissioner; Hon. Evan Jenne, Florida State Representative; Jen Klassens, vice president-programs, The Wasie Foundation; Phil Madow, president, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino; Jason Martinez, WPLG Local 10 morning and noon news anchor; Vanessa Medina, WSVN 7 reporter; Hon. Heidi O’Sheehan, City of Hollywood commissioner; Diana Pittarelli, president, Greater Hollywood Chamber of Commerce/realtor associate, First Colonial Realty; Carole Pumpian, president, Hallandale Beach Chamber of Commerce/president, CPumpian PR; Trina Robinson, NBC6 news anchor/meteorologist; Fran Russo, City of Hollywood commissioner; Hon. Elaine Schwartz, Florida State Representative; Linda Sherwood, vice mayor, City of Hollywood; Hon. Eleanor Sobel, Florida State Senator; and Brent Spechler, chairman of the board, Broward Boys and Girls Club/president/founder, WorkNet Network, Inc.

Cuisine for Art Event co-chairs are Jules Meyer, Susan Renneisen, and Anna Smith.

Event sponsors at this time are AutoNation, Bitner Goodman, Florida Power & Light, Hazen & Sawyer, Memorial Hospital, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Southern Wine and Spirits, Shutts & Bowen, and The Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa. Media Sponsor is Eye on South Florida.

Cost of this business/dressy casual attire event is $100 per person before or on Monday, May 14; $120 per person after that date and at the door. To reserve your seat, become a sponsor, or receive more information about this don’t-miss event, click here.

This year, the Center recognizes Miami Dolphins legend and former National Football League All-Pro Jason Taylor for his contributions to South Florida.

A former defensive end and linebacker who spent a majority of his 15-year career with the Miami Dolphins, Taylor is sixth in the National Football League (NFL) in sacks with 139.5. He is the all-time leader in fumble return touchdowns with 6. Named NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2006, he is a six-time Pro Bowl selection. Taylor retired from the NFL in 2011 and is considered a future Hall of Fame candidate.

Off the field, he and his wife Katina founded in 2004 the Jason Taylor Foundation, which aims to improve the lives of South Florida’s children. Among its accomplishments is The Jason Taylor Children’s Learning Center at Holtz Children’s Hospital and the Jason Taylor Reading Room. The Jason Taylor Reading Room is geared toward increasing the literacy rate of inner city youth, while The Jason Taylor Children’s Learning Center provides children enduring extended hospital stays with the resources they need to keep up with their school work and stay in touch with family and friends.

Taylor has received numerous awards, including the 2007 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, an honor that recognizes both on-field and off-the-field achievement. He also was the runner-up on “Dancing With the Stars Season Six,” which was won by Olympic Champion Figure Skater Kristi Yamaguchi.

# Posted Monday May 7, 2012

Golf for Art Raises Over $23,000 for the Center

Over $23,000 was raised for the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood at its Fourth Annual Golf for Art fund-raiser held on Saturday, April 14 at the Hollywood Beach Golf Resort. At this fun-in-the-sun fund-raiser, a full field of golfers enjoyed a continental breakfast before playing the championship, par-70, tree-lined golf course designed by renowned architect Donald Ross. Golfers stayed for lunch and the awards ceremony, where door prizes were also awarded and a live auction was held.

Browse pictures from the event and tag your friends on Facebook.

The following teams placed at the tournament:

First Place, Low Gross
Dale Bruschi
Thomas Bolf
Clint Gage
Fred Stacer

Second Place, Low Gross
Scott Beaman
Dan Bisbee
Steve Drake
Frank Lang

First Place, Low Net
Raul Flores
Dan H. Revis
Daniel K. Revis
David Wagner

Second Place, Low Net
Bob Behan
Paul Cinnante
Russ Danna
Denny Hoover

Closest to the pin
Women:
Kelley Barth
Men:
Nick Masi

Presenting sponsor was Sublime Restaurant & Bar/Animal Rights Foundation of Florida (ARFF). Beverage cart sponsor was Equity Insurance Underwriters, Inc. Awards luncheon sponsor was Golf Hollywood! Gold sponsors included Becker & Poliakoff/Alan Koslow, AutoNation, promo ae/Anna and Mark Smith, and The Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa. Silver sponsors included Broward County Fair, Marianne Ferro, PR Pageant Coaches, Smith Watson Parker Insurance, Southern Wine & Spirits, Toilet Taxi of South Florida, and United Trust Fund.

# Posted Wednesday April 25, 2012

Fifth Annual Abracadabra a Huge Sucess!

With more than 250 in attendance and nearly $25,000 raised, the Center’s fifth annual Abracadabra was the most successful yet! Thanks to everyone who made the exhibition and raffle a record-setting success, including the 115 contributing artists, participating galleries, and Host and Event Committees. See you next year!

Browse pictures from the event and tag your friends on Facebook.

Watch video of raffle event below, covered by artisabout.com. See more images and read a review of the event here.

# Posted Wednesday March 14, 2012

Knight Arts Challenge - Application deadline March 19

The Knight Arts Challenge, a community-wide contest funding the best ideas for the South Florida arts, is accepting applications. Anyone can enter – nonprofits, businesses and even individual artists. There are only three rules: the idea must be about the arts; the project must take place in or benefit South Florida, and the winners must find funds to match Knight’s commitment.

Ask questions during an online chat at 1 pm March 7 at KnightArts.org or in-person at a Town Hall meeting at 6 pm, March 14 at the Little Haiti Cultural Center, 212 NE 59th Terr. Learn more and apply at KnightArts.org.

# Posted Monday March 12, 2012

2011 Year in Review published

The Art and Culture Center has just published the 2011 Year in Review. This 20-page publication lists the Center’s accomplishments for 2011, and presents an overview of the year ahead. Includes information on exhibitions, education programs, performing arts, membership and volunteer programs, the Center’s finances, and recognizes all the individuals, organizations, and government entities that support the Center. Stop by the Center, call 954. 921. 3274 or email info@ArtAndCultureCenter.org to receive a print edition.

Click here to see the publication online

The report is part of the new Publications page, where you can view a selection of the books, catalogs, and brochures the Center has released over the last few years.

# Posted Thursday March 1, 2012

Jerry Saltz Electrifies at the Art and Culture Center

On December 10, the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood presented Jerry Saltz as the third speaker in its John S. and James L. Knight Foundation-funded “Hot Topics” lecture series. Saltz, the Senior Art Critic for New York Magazine and a judge on the Bravo television show Work of Art, gave a rousing talk to a sold-out crowd in the Center’s Main Gallery. A three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and 2006 honoree as “Best Art Critic” by Time Out New York for his work at the Village Voice, Saltz is perhaps the most renowned and accessible art critic of our day, a quality which has made him very popular among artists, art lovers, and everyday people who wish to better understand contemporary art.

Saltz began the evening by mingling with scores of people during a pre-lecture reception. He also took time to admire and critique the work of South Florida artists Giannina Coppiano Dwin and Freddy Jouwayed, each of whom have solo shows up in the Center’s other main floor galleries. Saltz was generous in his praise of the main gallery exhibition Artist Unknown/The Free World. The U.S. premiere of this first-of-its-kind exhibition features thousands of images of vernacular photography found online by artists Oliver Wasow and John D. Monteith. From the bizarre to the sublime, these anonymously sourced amateur photographs provide a fascinating view of American culture through the new frontier of social media. Both artists were in attendance (Wasow from New York and Monteith from South Carolina).

In his talk, Saltz proclaimed the exhibition as adventurous, bold and important. He said it is so impactful that it could be expanded and should travel to major museums, so that more of the public can see it. He gave kudos to the Center and its’ curator and staff, for presenting so bold an exhibition in a location that is outside the realm of a major art capital such as New York.

Saltz’s talk was lively and upbeat, encouraging artists, collectors, curators, and gallerists to think outside the box and be prepared to make mistakes. He stated clearly that the artist does not own the message of his or her work. In discussing the trajectory of art history, he referred to the timeless potency of early cave paintings and Andy Warhol’s homage to banal everyday objects, thus covering the vast spectrum of what we consider “art.” Echoing the words of Marvin Heiferman, who also gave a Hot Topics lecture the opening weekend of Artist Unknown/The Free World (Oct. 29), Saltz suggested that this important exhibition and its accompanying 260-page book of the same name may be considered as an updated version of Edward Steichen’s revelatory MoMA photo exhibition The Family of Man, which traveled the globe during the 1950s.

The Hot Topics talks by Saltz and Heiferman were extremely well attended. The attendees included Dennis and Debra Scholl, Francie Bishop Good and David Horvitz, Martin Z. Margulies and Catherine Hinds, collectors Paul and Estelle Berg, Hot Topics sponsors Lou Anne and Mike Colodny, Norton Museum of Art Assistant Director Charles Stainback and his wife Kitty Bowe Hearty (an independent curator), and Drazia Rubenstein, President of FAB! (Funding Arts Broward). FAB! awarded the Center a $50,000 FAB! Knight New Work Award to fund the Artist Unknown/Free World exhibition and book. There were many artists, as well as VIPs, in attendance for both talks, which made for lively and fun exchanges. At the close of the lectures, the respective guest speaker and artists Monteith and Wasow signed copies of the book, which the Center co-published in collaboration with artist Gean Moreno’s [NAME] Publications. With hundreds of images selected by the artists, the book includes text by Saltz, Heiferman, the Center’s Curator of Exhibitions Jane Hart, as well as Monteith and Wasow.

Learn more about our entire Hot Topics Discussion Series here.

# Posted Friday December 30, 2011

2011 Matching Gift Challenge - We're Almost There!

We’re almost at our goal of $10,000! As of December 29th, the Art and Culture Center has received $9,680 for our matching gift challenge ($6,675 in donations, and $3,005 in new memberships and renewals).

Donate, become a member, or renew today!

All donations and membership purchases to the Center made through December 31, 2011, will be matched by an anonymous donor who has stepped forward and issued a matching-gift challenge. That leaves only 3 days to reach our matching-gift challenge goal.

# Posted Thursday December 29, 2011

Sun-Sentinel Spotlights Creative Connection

The Sun-Sentinel featured an article on the front page of it’s Community section about the Center’s Creative Connection program this past Sunday, Dec. 25th. The write up gives a brief explanation on the program and highlights a few of its participants.

Click image to read the full article:

# Posted Wednesday December 28, 2011

Jerry Saltz Lecture - Sold Out!

The Center’s Jerry Saltz lecture for Saturday, December 10th is SOLD OUT! We hope you purchased your tickets in advance and look forward to seeing you at Dan Cameron’s lecture May 12, 2012!

Learn more about our entire Hot Topics Discussion Series here.

# Posted Friday December 9, 2011

Matching Gift Challenge

An anonymous donor has stepped forward and issued a matching-gift challenge: All donations and membership purchases to the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood through December 31, 2011, will be matched, up to a total of $10,000.

Give to the Art and Culture Center before the end of the year and double the impact of your donation through our matching donor’s generous commitment.

All donations and membership contributions will support our Youth Arts Education Scholarship Fund. Each year, the Center awards full/reduced tuition scholarships to qualifying youth from low-income households so they can attend Summer Arts Camp and after-school arts classes.

This fund allows students from all backgrounds to participate in our education programs.

We received many heartfelt and touching thank-you letters from children and caregivers who benefit from these funds. Here is an excerpt from a student who received a scholarship: “‘You got it.’ Those were the three most amazing words I had heard since my little cousin was born. I started to jump and scream, and I began to cry. This was a huge miracle to me.”

Meet the Challenge. Help a Family.

Click here to give now.

# Posted Thursday December 1, 2011