Cover PJ Pascual, Stella Abrera Radetsky, Elizabeth Roxas Dobrish, Robert Dobrish, Sofia Elizalde, Mercedes Zobel and Carla Villacorta
PJ Pascual, Stella Abrera Radetsky, Elizabeth Roxas Dobrish, Robert Dobrish, Sofia Elizalde, Mercedes Zobel and Carla Villacorta
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Tatler gets inside access into the 60th anniversary gala of the Asian Cultural Council at TAO Downtown in NYC
For its 60th anniversary gala, the Asian Cultural Council had Caroline Kennedy, US ambassador to Japan, as its Honorary Chair. The much-awaited event was held at TAO Downtown in New York City on May 11, 2022.
Above Guests enjoy the night at TAO Downtown
Guests enjoy the night at TAO Downtown
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Three awards were given away that evening. The gala anniversary award was given to Akiko Yamazaki, chair emerita of The Asian Art Museum. In 1997, she joined the board of the museum and has served in multiple leadership roles, including president and chairman of the board (2014-2020). She led the US$100M transformation project, which doubled the museum’s special exhibition space, reinstalled permanent galleries centred around masterpieces, and infused digital technology. She supports the Advisory Council of the Stanford Cantor Center for the Arts, the Department of Asian Art Visiting Committee at The Met, and many others.
Mercedes Zobel and Bruce Colley
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Two John D Rockefeller III awards were also given out that evening. The first recipient was Cai Guo-Qiang (ACC 1995, 2006, 2012). He was born and raised in Quanzhou, China and trained in stage design at the Shanghai Theater Academy. He is known for experimenting with gunpowder painting. Experimentation with scale and form of these gunpowder works led to the development of his signature outdoor explosion events. In 1995, he received the ACC Fellowship with which he created his work in the United States—a miniature mushroom cloud at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site. In 2008, his work was featured in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. In 2014, he established The Cai Foundation to support emerging contemporary artists worldwide.
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Above Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki
Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki
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The second awardee was Midori (ACC 2009) from Osaka, Japan. A visionary artist, activist and educator, she explores and builds connections between music and the human experience. She began her violin studies with her mother, Setsu Goto. When she was 11, she was invited to perform with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra’s New Year’s Eve concert. Midori performed with the world’s prestigious orchestras and musicians of all time: Leonard Bernstein and Yo-Yo Ma. She performed the world premiere of Detlev Glanert’s "Violin Concerto No 2" with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra. She has received many awards and recognition and is proud to be a part of ACC.
Riccardo Salmona and Lulu Zhang
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The co-chairs of the evening were: Yama and Goodwin Gaw, Mr and Mrs Cho Liang Lin and ACC Taiwan Foundation, Ellen and Dominic Ng, Wendy O’Neill and David Ryner, Susan and David Rockefeller, Masako and Yoichiro Ushioda, Lady Ivy and Sir Gordon Wu and Mercedes Zobel.
The vice-chairs were: Fred Levin (Chairman of The Asian Art Museum), Salle E Yoo (President of The Asian Art Museum), Jeffrey P Gray, Alice Eduardo, Sofia Elizalde Douglas Tsu, Janet Nathanail and William Flanz, and Josie and Ken Natori.
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For the gala night, David Monn transformed TAO Downtown into a beautiful Shangri-La. After the programme came the dancing, with a group of dancers from Alvin Ailey escorting the guests to the dance floor.
Above Alvise Orsini and Josie Natori
Alvise Orsini and Josie Natori
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In 1963, John D Rockefeller III established ACC to support cultural exchange between Asia and the United States by giving grants to individuals and organisations working in the performing arts. With the help of Porter A McCray, founding director, the exchange grew grant-giving into its signature role, focusing on programmes tailored to the recipient's needs. As a global organisation based in New York, Hong Kong, Manila, Taipei and Tokyo, ACC has invested more than US$100M to support over 6000 exchanges across 16 artistic disciplines and 26 counties and regions.
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