A Bowl of Cherries by Lillian Horner, Exempla Colorado Lutheran Home

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More than 550 people attended Denver’s 13th Annual Memories in the Making Art Auction celebrating the lives and memories of people with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

Many of the families of Alzheimer’s artists whose work was featured this year attended the event, some even bidding on the work of mom or dad. Jim Lash attended with his two daughters, Karetta Lee and Edith Grey, and three of Lillian Horner’s children attended with her. Artists Gertie Beagle and Peter Englehardt were also there with family members. Mary Jo Hren attended in memory of her mother Frances who died recently. And a number of David Cowan’s children attended to honor their dad’s work.

In addition to Alzheimer’s artists many of the professional artists who donated their work came out for this very special celebration including Michelle Torrez, Judy Gorsuch Collins, Victoria Kwasinski, Sallie K. Smith, Tammy Otis, Vickie Anderson, Susan Rubin, Jill Williams, Madeline O’Connell, Roxanne Rossi, and Cheryl St. John.

At the invitation of artists Susan Dickson and Norm Cable, Noa Banghart and her mom Lori came to the auction. Noa was the subject of Susan’s piece Remembering. In a note she wrote to Noa after the portrait was complete, Susan calls this “the most important of my work this year”

Remembering by Susan Dickson
Dear Noa,
I’ve enclosed a print of the painting I’ve completed for the “Memories in the Making” event in June. The finished piece is life size 24” x 48”. I hope you like it…I consider it the most important of my work this year, and I wanted it to be just right.

I know that you are a young girl who is filled with light and joy. That certainly was apparent when I met you. This is a rather dark painting of a lovely girl who is a little sad, and a little uncertain because she can’t understand why her mother doesn’t come to get the flowers she has for her. You see, though the girl in my painting looks like you, when I painted her, I was thinking of my Mother. As you know, she had Alzheimer’s disease, and one of the last memories she was able to keep was of herself as a young girl like you. She used to ask anyone who would listen: ”When is Mamma coming?”

Thank you again Noa, for taking the time…For being such a professional and charming model.

Noa’s presence on the stage may have helped fuel the furious bidding that finally reached its peak when Rick Miller, CEO of Olinger Dignity bid the final amount of $10,000 setting a new record for the auction.

The Memories of Birds Quilt, auctioned to Dr. Mike Wasserman for $1,800, was created in the style of a traditional “crazy quilt” with transfers of the original watercolors of birds painted by Alzheimer’s artists. Each of nine squares were embellished by 11 embroiderers, and assembled and quilted by FireHouse Quilters. Here is a quote from the daughter of Jean May, the woman who painted The Judging Owls, the centerpiece of the quilt.

“When I look into the eyes of the owl, it is like I am looking at my Mom’s eyes; and she is painting outward from her soul.  This (Memories in the Making) has been a ‘ray of sunshine’ for our family.”

The cherry theme, borrowed from this year’s signature watercolor by Alzheimer’s artist Lillian Horner A Bowl of Cherries, was carried throughout the event with Japanese fans on all the tables, cherry blossoms as the centerpieces, cherry red powerpoint slides running on Invesco’s internal television station, cherry-colored gift bags and even cherry cobbler for dessert. The elegant classical music during the silent portion of the auction was provided by three members of the Denver Philharmonic Orchestra. Things kicked into high gear, however, when the Denver Taiko Drum Group, a traditional form of Japanese performance art, processed through the event chanting and beating a rhythm on their drums as they called guests into the live auction.

Kim Christiansen, 9News anchor, served as the mistress of ceremonies, and with her emotional reading of each story about the artwork, the bidding made it obvious the audience truly felt her personal connection to the disease. Chuck Miller and his son Bryson, no strangers themselves to this deadly disease, served as auctioneers and kept the bidding lively, at times literally running from one end of the hall to the other to capture that final bid.
 
Other guests in attendance included Jay and Joyce Moskowitz, Chris (Alzheimer’s Board Chair), and Linda Binkley, Susan (former Alzheimer’s Board Chair) and Carl Barnhill and their son Seth, Alex Speros, Val and Linda Dean, Dr. David Scanavino, Dr. Don Murphy and his wife Susan, Alan Dill, Dr. Mike Wasserman, Michael Saracusa (Alzheimer’s Board), Helen and Morris Ginsburg, Linda Mitchell (CEO of Alzheimer’s Association) and Ken Neeper, JJ and Tim Jordan, John and Colleen Maxfield.

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