Scene & Heard -- baltimoresun.com

August 31, 2008

Scene and heard: House of Ruth 'Crabaret'

Were those soft summer breezes blowing through the Baltimore Museum of Art's Sculpture Garden? Or were they, perhaps, a collective sigh of relief from members of the House of Ruth board? This was the sixth year they had planned their outdoor "Crabaret" party and the second year in a row in which Mother Nature had complied.

August 24, 2008

Baltimore Children's Literacy Programs

One of the hottest spots in Baltimore last weekend was a car dealership, as a couple hundred glammed-up guests nibbled on hors d'oeuvres and sipped cocktails while surrounded by exotic cars at Maserati of Baltimore. Casino games inside and a cigar lounge outside added to the evening's pleasures. It all led up to a high-end, high-energy fashion show featuring collections from several area designers. And that was inside the dealership's garage. A very clean garage, we should add.

August 17, 2008

Second anniversary

A sellout crowd filled the Founders Room of the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park and Museum to celebrate a second birthday. But the center of attention wasn't a toddler, but the museum itself, which marked its second anniversary. That didn't stop museum advisory board president Dr. Patricia Schmoke from admitting she felt a bit like a proud mom.

August 10, 2008

Annual Meeting and Reception

If you think a museum is always a place of quiet contemplation, you weren't at the Baltimore Museum of Art's Annual Meeting and Reception. The decibel level (and the excitement level) in the BMA's Atrium Court resembled something more along the lines of a high-school pep rally. The reason wasn't just the official kickoff of the museum's $65 million philanthropic campaign, but the announcement that $40 million has already been raised.

August 3, 2008

H.O.O.D. Weekend

The banquet room at Fogo de Chao was abuzz with activity, not all of it supplied by the gaucho-attired waiters zipping from table to table with large skewers of meat. Friends and family of Carmelo Anthony - plus a celebrity or two - had come together to help the NBA star kick off his "4th Annual H.O.O.D. Movement Weekend," to benefit the Carmelo Anthony Foundation.

July 27, 2008

VIP Artscape kickoff party

You're probably safe in assuming that there's only one time each year where the favorite destination of dozens of people is a Baltimore parking garage. That time was the VIP Artscape kickoff party held at the Meyerhoff Parking Garage. Guests gathered on the top of the garage for drinks, hors d'oeuvres, and all sorts of hobnobbing. All, with a bird's-eye view of the arts festival swirling around the building below.

July 20, 2008

Sondheim Prize gala

People may come to the Baltimore Museum of Art to see the work of many internationally renowned artists, but a recent gathering there was to celebrate local talent.

July 13, 2008

Third Annual Gala

Dozens of well-dressed gentlemen and ladies strolled through the rooms of the Carroll Mansion, sipping cocktails, nibbling on hors d'oeuvres and admiring the art on the walls. They stepped out the back door to enjoy the warm summer temperatures in the mansion's gardens. If it wasn't for a few modern accents - such as 2008 clothing and a couple of large electric fans to help guests keep cool - it could have been a scene from the house's early days. The National Historic Landmark was built in 1811 for one of Maryland's wealthiest citizens, Charles Carroll.

June 8, 2008

Hampden Family Center's Flamingo Fling

It wasn't just the guests who gussied up for Hampden Family Center's annual party, Flamingo Fling. This was the first such event to be held at the Clipper Mill Pool Pavilion. And it had been dressed accordingly. There was the party's signature color - hot pink - everywhere. Tables scattered around the pool area were draped in fuschia brocade, each with a rose centerpiece, in which even the water was pink. And you couldn't miss the pink flamingo punch served up in martini glasses that featured pink flamingo stems.

June 1, 2008

OSI-Baltimore 10th anniversary party

The theme of Open Society Institute- Baltimore's 10th anniversary party was "audacious thinking," as in the style of OSI founder and international philanthropist George Soros. It also included the audacious thinking on the part of OSI's Community Fellows, whose innovative programs the organization has helped fund over the years.