Keynote Presentation by Robert Storr, Dean, School of Art, Yale University School of Art, artist, curator and critic.

Award Presentation: Eleventh Annual Award Luncheon - Wednesday, April 15, 2015, New York Athletic Club

The Appraisers Association of America will honor Ilya and Emilia Kabakov, renowned contemporary artists, with the 2015 Award for Excellence in the Arts to be presented at the Eleventh Annual Award Luncheon on Wednesday, April 15, 2015 at the New York Athletic Club on Central Park South, New York City. Robert Storr, Dean of the School of Art, Yale University School of Art, artist, curator, and critic, will present the keynote address.

Since our inaugural Award Luncheon in 2005, this much anticipated event has grown to include over 300 guests, with leaders in the arts, financial, and legal professions coming together to acknowledge extraordinary contributions made to the arts—locally, nationally, and internationally. Our past honorees include Peter Schjeldahl, Ai Weiwei, Linda Nochlin, Arne Glimcher, Martin Margulies, Thomas Krens, John Richardson, Wendell D. Garrett, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, and Susan Weber.

Our guests come each year from a wide swath of the art world and include artists, dealers, auction house specialists, attorneys, art insurance professionals, collectors, appraisers, conservators, curators, art advisors, museum directors and curators, and non-profit arts professionals, among others. Following a lively reception hour, we sit down for lunch and presentations. This year, Robert Storr will give an overview of the artist couples’ extraordinary achievements and careers and Emilia Kabakov will speak about their current international projects.

Luncheon Committee co-chairs Elizabeth von Habsburg and Nancy Harrison are joined by committee members: Sharon Chrust, Michael Findlay, Alexandre Gertsman, Cynthia Herbert, Leigh Keno,  Betty Krulik, Kimball Higgs, Judith Selkowitz, Deborah Spanierman, Gene Shapiro, Natalia Tchetchoulina, Renee Vara.