Kentler’s annual benefit always a winner, by Halley Bondy

If you’re looking for a steal on quality artwork for your living room, look no further than The Kentler International Drawing Space.  

On Saturday, May 21, Kentler will celebrate its 26th year and 14th benefit. For the price of admission, each attendee will receive one drawing or work on paper donated by an artist from somewhere in the world – from the Czech Republic to New Zealand to Walla Walla, Washington. Each of the 150 pieces vary widely in inspiration, form, and color, but they’ll all grace the walls of Kentler until attendees take them home. Tickets are $300 a person and $350 a couple – though the artwork may be worth $550 or more.

In addition, attendees can bid in a silent auction to win prizes, including a 24-hour drive in a Tesla car, gift sets from the likes of Baked and Stumptown, and artwork by renowned Red Hook artists Dustin Yellin and Alexander Gorlizki – worth thousands. Food and drinks from local vendors, including a punch by Fort Defiance, will be served.

Even for the most casual art collectors, it’s tough to resist.

The goodies aren’t the only reason to attend the benefit, however. Kentler International Drawing Space is a 26-year-old renowned institution that depends on benefits like these for its very survival. Kentler may have lived through serious trials – including tough beginnings in Red Hook’s dilapidated 90s, Hurricane Sandy, and the social media boom that transformed the art world – but funding is always an uphill battle for a non-profit art space.

Funding shortfall
“There is less federal funding for non-profits these days, and there are more non-profits,” said Kentler Director Florence Neal,  “It can be difficult to get people to come to a physical space when everything is on a computer. But an art space is a very special thing. We’re essentially inviting people to come to a garden, and they can see where it takes them.”

Throughout the year, Kentler hosts exhibitions and solo shows in addition to the benefit. This year, Kentler will exhibit the Flatfiles, an archive of curated works from about 240 artists around the world. The works include everything from dark abstracts to landscapes to whimsical drawings made from a ballpoint pen.

Throughout the decades, the artwork moving through Kentler has grown higher quality and more renowned, making Kentler one of the most esteemed institutions for drawings and works on paper in the world. A curator from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, for example, will hand-select pieces from The Flatfiles for the Kentler’s June-July show.

Neal said artists used to donate their throwaway pieces to the annual benefit, but these days, they’ve stepped up in the name of exposure.

Everybody helps
“They choose something that represents them, that they can also part with,” Neal said. “It’s the support of these artists that keeps me going year-round.”

You can buy tickets to the 100 Works On Paper Benefit (although they are displaying more like 151 pieces) by visiting Kentlergallery.org.