Inside The Frick Collection’s Opening Night Gala

The Frick Collection celebrated its reopening Monday night with a black tie gala befitting its glorious surroundings. Over 400 guests, including Christine and Steve Schwarzman, Alice Walton, Max Hollein, Jo Carole and Ronald Lauder, Gala Chairs Margot and Jerry Bogert, Nathalie Kaplan and Ivy Getty were dazzled by the exquisite upgrades made to the beloved Beaux Arts building. The evening raised $3.7 million which will support the many important activities of the museum and Frick Art Research Library including conservation, education, and exhibitions.

The Frick hired Selldorf Architects to expand and reimagine the space, modernizing core elements while refreshing the galleries in keeping with the spirit of its original owner, Henry Clay Frick.

“The Frick is a much beloved museum, in a landmarked building,” said Annabelle Selldorf. “We said at the outset that we wanted design the project in such a way that those who knew the Frick would find its essence unchanged and new visitors would feel welcomed and comfortable – all the while accommodating the necessary new program space, circulation and infrastructure upgrades.”

“It is always difficult to select just one aspect of a project that you are most proud of, but I think for the Frick I would say the [Stephen A. Schwarzman] Auditorium” Selldorf continued. “Located below the 70th Street Garden, and not adjacent to any of the historic spaces, it has a warm, enveloping, almost immersive feeling – with amazing acoustics of course!”

Guests began gathering in the reception hall, where Selldorf has added a strikingly beautiful staircase made entirely of Breccia Aurora marble. The atrium and its beloved fountain have been restored to their original splendor, and the first floor galleries, including the Fragonard Room, the Oval Room, the East and West Galleries, and the Dining Room, are alive with new lighting, fresh upholstery and exhibition enhancements that allow for much more interaction and appreciation than before.

“I cried when I walked in,” said Young Fellows Gala Co-Chair Arielle Patrick. “I’m so excited about holding this year’s gala in the new space. It will be a dinner for the first time, and we will use multiple rooms which will really enhance the experience.”

A walk up the majestic original staircase leads to the newly repurposed second floor, which had been closed to the public since the museum opened. So many treasures abound: paintings by Renoir and Manet (to name a few), an entire room filled with Boucher panels, porcelain and coin collections, and many more masterpieces.

The Frick’s newly minted Director, Axel Ruger, is excited for its future.

“It is an enormous honor and privilege to have been asked to take The Frick Collection, one of the world’s most beloved museums, into the next chapter of its history,” said Ruger. “Not only can we present the famous – and even iconic – masterpieces of the Frick’s collection to the public once again in the original context of the museum’s mansion, but the new special exhibition spaces, education room, and auditorium, allow us to develop exciting expanded offerings that provide more context for the collection and its historical and contemporary significance as a source of joy, wonder and imagination.”

Outgoing Director Ian Wardropper, who has been in the trenches with this project since its first iteration in 2014, was the evening’s honoree.

“What I love most about this project is the way that the old and the new knit together – the new spaces don’t overshadow the old, and the old look better than ever,” said Wardropper. “Since I’ve retired, coming back, I’m almost like an outsider, and I can just appreciate the good work that the Frick did.”

As he sat for dinner in the Fragonard Room aglow in candlelight, Jordan Roth, dressed in Versace, Prada, Dior and Lanvin gave an enthusiastic critique of the renovation.

“I am overwhelmed by how gorgeous these spaces are,” said Roth. “Every space and every object was lovingly collected and lovingly restored, exhibited as they never have been before. I was stopped literally in my tracks by Thomas Lawrence’s portrait of Lady Peel – the expression on her face, the hat, the bracelet. She’s a showstopper.”

In a whimsical twist, Lady Peel’s portrait would revisit Roth later in the evening – on a shortbread cookie encased inside a chocolate art crate on his dessert plate.

“The most common thing people say to me when they find out I’m involved with The Frick is ‘It’s my favorite museum,’” said Board Vice Chair Michael Horvitz. “People love the Frick, and so do I. It’s one of New York’s great treasures. It was a treat to work with Annabelle Selldorf to help upgrade the Frick while preserving what people love about it — the intimacy and the Gilded Age feel. Annabelle and the board took this responsibility seriously, and I hope people feel we succeeded.”