Location
About
When: Saturday, September 26, 5:30 PM
Where: Pocketbook Hudson Hotel and Baths
Type: Benefit
Ages: All ages
Join us for an evening of celebration as we honor artist, collector, and philanthropist Jack Shear during the annual Art Omi Upstate Benefit.
Every year, the Upstate Benefit aims to raise vital funds to ensure Art Omi continues fostering acceptance and respect, inspiring innovation, and igniting positive change by providing meaningful opportunities for diverse creative voices.
We honor Jack Shear for his vision, generosity, and lifelong dedication to the arts.
As a philanthropist, Jack has generously supported local organizations throughout Columbia County that improve the lives of residents and provide opportunities for civic engagement, while also displaying tremendous support for the arts across the globe. In 2022 Jack initiated an innovative collaboration among three college art museums with the donation of his collection of 75 Tibetan Thangka paintings and objects to Skidmore College, Vassar College, and Williams College. He currently serves on both the executive committee of the MoMA’s International Council and the board of the Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies.
With a lifelong passion for collecting art, Jack has built a collection of over 2,000 works on paper ranging from Old Masters to contemporary artists. In 2020 he was honored by The Drawing Center for his achievements as a collector, and he serves on the Drawings and Prints Committee at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
As a photographer, Jack has published a number of books including his most recent, Knot, in which his photographs are paired with poems and prose from the 2019 Pulitzer Prize–winning poet Forrest Gander. Jack’s work is represented in the permanent collection of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Albany Institute of History and Art.
As the husband of Ellsworth Kelly, Jack continues to honor his legacy with extraordinary dedication as President of the Ellsworth Kelly Foundation and Executive Director of the Ellsworth Kelly Studio. In 2023, to celebrate the centennial of Ellsworth’s birth, Jack donated 207 artworks by Ellsworth Kelly to 22 American museums and oversaw a globe-spanning network of exhibitions and publications highlighting Ellsworth’s landmark achievements.
Pocketbook Hudson—nestled in a historic textile factory built in 1885 and the preferred hospitality partner of Art Omi—blends history, design, art, and cuisine. The hotel offers a communal bathhouse, an open-fire restaurant, café and bar, a subterranean nightclub, galleries, and a street-level market.
For more information and early access to tickets, please email Lux Krueger, Associate Director of Development, at Lkrueger@artomi.org