A Look Inside the 2024 Botanical-Themed Whitney Art Party

This past Tuesday night, January 30th, the Whitney Museum of American Art celebrated its annual Art Party, a botanical-inspired event, with co-chairs Natalie Ball, Edward Barsamian, Steven Beltrani, Micaela Erlanger, and Kambui Olujimi.

Partygoers were entertained with DJ sets by indie pop duo MGMT and Samantha Urbani. Young patrons, emerging artists, and guests from the worlds of art, fashion, business, philanthropy, and entertainment spent an unforgettable evening immersed in the beauty of nature. Art Party, a fundraiser for the Museum’s Independent Study Program, was sold out and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Hosted by the Museum’s Whitney Contemporaries proceeds from the Art Party provide critical support to the Whitney’s renowned Independent Study Program (ISP). Founded in 1968, ISP is one of the country’s leading postgraduate programs in studio art, curatorial studies, and critical studies. The program furthers the Whitney’s mission to support living artists throughout their careers.

Sponsored by Aesop and Cynthia Rowley and with tequila provided by Tequila Casa Dragones and wines by Dry Farm Wines, Art Party is a celebrated cornerstone of New York’s arts and philanthropy calendar.

Guests gathered on the Museum’s ground floor in the Kenneth C. Griffin Hall for a botanical-themed evening of dancing, craft cocktails and signature mocktails, and music. Guests also enjoyed exclusive access to the Museum’s galleries, as well as a special first look at Harold Cohen: AARON, an exhibition exploring the foundational stages of AI in artmaking, before the exhibition opens to the public.

Female-founded boutique creative agency East Olivia designed the cascading fresh floral arrangements. Guests dined on hors d’oeuvres by Olivier Cheng Catering. The craft cocktails for the evening were made by Tequila Casa Dragones and signature mocktails were created by artists and co-chairs Natalie Ball and Kambui Olujimi.

NOTABLE GUESTS: Actors Emily Hampshire, Katherine McNamara, Sally Pressman, Yaritza Reyes; media personalities Sofia Franklyn, Pieper James, Serena Kerrigan, Erin Dana Lichy, Olivia Palermo; models Emira D’Spain, Audrey Hilfiger, Johannes Huebl, Natalie Lim Suarez; designers and stylists Maurice Diallo, Wes Gordon, Marty Harper, Eny Lee Parker, Cynthia Rowley, Nina Tiari; artists Natalie Ball, Peter Burr, Lola Flash, Ashley Longshore, Kambui Olujimi, Salman Toor; DJs Dede Lovelace, The Muses (Jack James Busa and Daniel Walters); influencers Grace Atwood, Griffin Maxwell Brooks, Barbie Brigoni, Victoria Casalino, Olivia Duncan, Olivia Dunnigan, Jules Fox, Christina Grasso, Sarah Hamrick, Kit Keenan, Cassidy Lynn, Brooke Miccio, Luca Mornet, New York Nico, Margo Oshry, Coco Schiffer, Lauren Tiby, Melissa Vale, Caroline Vazzana, Carly Weinstein; photographers Alice Gao, Gabriel Perez Silva, Brandon Woelfel; fitness star Robin Arzón; Museum supporters Paul Arnhold, David Cancel, Claudia Laviada, Fern and Lenard Tessler; supporters of the arts Fred Baba, Samantha Brand, Drew Butler, Roman Chiporukha, Sophie Cohen, Peter Davis, Jonathan Densa, Adam Fields, Jonathan Gardenhire, Leah Glimcher, Josh Glass, Hannah Gottlieb-Graham, Ethan James Green, Alexander Hankin, Danielle Hankin, Jordan Huelskamp, Flora Irving, Sophia Adrianna Kanavos, Nicholas Kanavos, Stephanie Ketty, Casey Kohlberg, Molly Krause, Benoit Lagarde, Suzanna Lee, Alex Marinier, Kevin McIntosh Jr., Brian McKinney, Polina Proshkina, Lilah Ramzi, Theo Ressler, Paula Sanders, Catherine Smith Licari, Elise Taylor, Greer Tessler and Travis Miranda; curators Kim Conaty, Marcela Guerrero, Meg Onli, Laura Phipps, Drew Sawyer, and Scott Rothkopf, the Alice Pratt Brown Director of the Whitney Museum of American Art.