By Karen Parr-Moody
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – In 1966 writer Truman Capote hosted his legendary black-and-white masquerade ball in New York City, during which welcomed masked guests including Frank Sinatra, Lauren Bacall, Prince Stanislas and Princess Lee Radziwill.
As Amy Fine Collins later wrote in Vanity Fair, “If you weren’t invited … you simply left town.”
At 5 p.m., June 7 the guild of the Customs House Museum will also welcome masked guests to a masked gala, its annual summer fundraiser, Flying High, at the Wilma Rudolph Event Center at Liberty Park, 1188 Cumberland Drive.
It’s a stretch of geography, but the event’s chair, Mary Turner, aims for an air of elegance, just as Capote once did. Being familiar with Capote’s event, Turner said she was also trying to sprinkle glamour throughout the event center with beautiful decorations.
“We’re trying to transform the space so that guests don’t feel like they’re walking into the Wilma Rudolph Event Center,” Turner said. “They’ll feel like they’re walking into a more exclusive space.”
Like Capote, Turner is from New Orleans and looked to the region for inspiration.
“We learn about lots of cultures through different exhibits at the museum,” she said. “Not being from here, I wanted to bring in some culture from southern Louisiana. I thought the masquerade would be a great way to do that; plus it lends itself to making the event dressier.”
Handmade masks are currently on sale at the Customs House Museum gift shop for those who plan on attending. Tickets to this event are $125 for Museum members and $175 for non-members and can be purchased by contacting Linda Maki at 931-648-5780. As of press time, 25 tickets remained.
The event will begin with a silent and live auction, which will feature high-end products, 30 pieces of fine art and travel packages (including one trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and another to Napa Valley, California).
“All of the auction items we have are really great,” Turner said.
In another twist, three artists will be creating artworks of the scene of the party as the gala unfolds – another of Turner’s ideas. One piece will
go to the museum and two pieces will be auctioned off during the gala.
“I’ve been to several friends’ weddings in New Orleans who have done that,” she said. “At the end of it, you have this original piece of art that is beautiful. You can go home and frame it and it’s also a reminder of the event.”
Dinner and dancing will follow the auctions, with the band Emerald Empire striking up the music.
Those who plan to attend can view the artwork featured in the auction through an online auction catalogue on the museum’s website at www.customshousemuseum.org.
Photo: This year’s signature artist is Jennifer Bowman, whose piece “Shine Bright” will be auctioned off during the Flying High gala. Bowman is represented by Bennett Galleries in Nashville.
Karen Parr-Moody began a career as a New York journalist, working as a fashion reporter for Women’s Wear Daily, a beauty editor for Young Miss and a beauty and fashion writer for both In Style and People magazines. Regionally, she has been a writer at The Leaf-Chronicle newspaper and currently writes about arts and culture for Nashville Arts magazine each month.