FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Event and Exhibition Overview

Salon d'Arts, a fine art exhibition and sale of some of the most notable representational artists living today, is designed in the tradition of the great European art salons of the late nineteenth century and serves as a public forum to experience nationally recognized artworks. All net proceeds benefit Colorado UpLIFT. Le Jeune Salon will benefit Denver Art Museum.

The Fifth Annual Salon d'Arts is entitled "SALON 06", and will run from June 10th through June 29th at the Colorado History Museum attracting hundreds of visitors from all walks of life. It is open to the public and free of charge. Due to limited capacity in the gallery space, the fundraising gala will have an estimated attendance of 400 art collectors, many of whom travel in from throughout the U.S.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Why was Salon d'Arts established?
Salon's mission includes the following:

• Strengthen Colorado's presence as a cultural destination by producing a fine art exhibition featuring the country's most influential living artists

• Strengthen the cultural development of our community by providing fine arts programs and educational activities to the underserved and general population

• Strengthen Colorado's community resources by establishing strategic alliances with other non-profits

Is this an annual event?
Yes, Salon d'Arts is now in its fifth year. The inaugural exhibition was in 2002, and continues to be produced on an annual basis.

What is the demographic of attendees?
The crown jewel of Salon d'Arts is the Gala, which attracts some of Colorado's top business leaders, community leaders, and art collectors. Approximately 55% of the four hundred Salon Gala attendees have entrepreneurial, business ownership, and/or senior corporate management positions.

Historically, the mode net worth of gala attendees is in excess of $1 million, with the top range of attendee wealth in excess of $500 million. Salon d'Arts also attracts affluent out-of state art collectors; 25 - 30% of collectors reside outside of Colorado.

During regular museum hours, the 2005 exhibition attracted approximately 3,800 visitors including over 1,000 children who participated in special art education programs. We will be expanding the outreach programs considerably in 2006, and anticipate reaching over 5,000 children and adults.

What is the nature of the artwork?
An invitational exhibition, artist advisors are utilized in the selection of all artwork with a focus on long-term artistic significance and educational merit. The selection process will emphasize exhibiting varying degrees of nonobjective and representational fine art.

The artwork for sale is new and has not previously been exhibited, and considered by several of the artists to be their strongest work of the year. Genres include landscapes, still lifes, bronzes, abstract, figurative work, and more.

How many artworks will be featured in the exhibition?
Each artist will submit three works, resulting in an exhibition of more than 120 works of art totaling more than $1 million. Artwork for sale will be priced between $1,500 and $100,000. All artwork will be assigned a fixed price that is based upon fair market value.

How are Salon d'Arts artists selected?
Salon d'Arts' founder, Natalie Rekstad-Lynn, makes final selection decisions with the input of an Artist Advisory Committee comprised of noteworthy international artists, who provide recommendations of their contemporaries. Artists are chosen based upon on long-term artistic significance and merit.

Salon artists have work in major national collections, including Smithsonian National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian National Portrait Museum, Butler Institute, Prado Museum in Madrid, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Denver Art Museum, and Philadelphia Art Museum to name a few.

Participating 2006 Artists include:

Carolyn Anderson Michael Bergt Gordon Brown Gregory Calibey Dennis Campay Lu Cong Peter Cox Molly Davis Paul H. Davis Joellyn Duesberry John Felsing Alyce Frank Scott Fraser Makoto Fujimura Daniel E. Greene

Albert Handell Glenn Harrington Ron Hicks Quang Ho Sabin Howard Steve Huston Robert C. Jackson Geoffrey Johnson Morton Kaish Jeffrey Keith Emilio Lobato Malcolm T. Liepke Dan McCaw John McCaw Philip Maior

Paul Mullally Dean Mitchell Elliot Offner Ron Richmond Laura Robb Ben Schonzeit Burton Silverman Daniel Sprick Bill Starke Judith Stewart Nancy Switzer Kevin Weckbach Mary Whyte Mark Zunino

Do the artists receive compensation for the sale of their artwork?
Salon d'Arts has established a high standard for the quality of works that appear in this exhibition. As with other major exhibitions across the U.S., Salon d'Arts is compelled to provide competitive compensation in order to secure a collection of noteworthy artworks. For this reason, Salon d'Arts retains one third of each artwork sale as proceeds revenue; the other two thirds goes back to the artist as compensation.

How is the artwork sold?
The gala evening is the first opportunity to purchase exhibition artwork in a special lottery. All artwork is priced by the artist and reflects fair market value (what the artwork would sell for in a gallery). Each artwork has its own lottery box. Potential buyers put their name in the box of the artwork they desire to purchase. At the end of the evening, each box is opened and a name is drawn as the "winner". This person has the first privilege to purchase the artwork.

How is the public served by Salon d'Arts?
Salon has two distinct personas. Most sponsors see the after-hours "elite" side of Salon only, with its patron reception, gala, and artwork sale featuring the work of museum held artists. While this "elite" side is important to attracting corporate funding and generating artwork sales revenue, a large part of Salon's identity is our accessibility to the arts for all, which takes place during regular museum hours throughout the three-week exhibition. The Salon gallery is consistently full of visitors, special group tours, educational programs, children's programs, and more. It is this other persona that is the heart of Salon d'Arts.

We have expanded our community outreach greatly in the last two years with the addition of a Community Outreach Director, Alyson Vivar. We are thrilled with the scope of services we now offer, including bilingual tours, tactile tours for the blind, art workshops, and more, several of which are held outside of regular museum hours to ensure freedom and privacy. In addition, our adult education and outreach continues to grow, and we anticipate 1,000 attendees to our adult educational programming in 2006.

What is the schedule of events?

June 9, 2006: Vernissage Patron Reception in the Salon Gallery. In the tradition of the late 19th Century Paris salons, this fun and lively opening party gives sponsors and patrons a chance to see the exhibition before it opens to the public.

June 10 - 29, 2006: Exhibition Open to the Public Free of Charge. SALON 06 is open to the public free of charge at Colorado History Museum. Throughout the month there are numerous art activities for all ages including artist seminars, demonstrations, hands-on programs for children, and more.*

June 16, 2006: Artist Reception in a Private Home. A lively evening designed to welcome the SALON 06 artists to Denver so that they can see old friends, and get to know other artists and collectors. Tickets are $75 per person and available to gala attendees only.

June 17, 2006: VIP Dinner and Gala Exhibition & Sale. A luxurious VIP dinner will be held at Kevin Taylor's at the Opera House for Salon 06 sponsors and patrons beginning at 5pm. The crown jewel of Salon events, the gala exhibition and sale at the Colorado History Museum will begin at 7pm and will feature heavy hors d'ouvres prepared by Restaurant Kevin Taylor. Regular gala tickets are $165.

Tickets to Vernissage, the Artist Reception, and the Gala can be purchased by calling 303.494.0180.

* The adult and children's educational programs will be listed on this site in late May, 2006.

Do you have any programs for the beginning collector?
Yes, Salon d'Arts has a separate exhibition and sale entitled "Le Jeune Salon" (The Young Salon), an annual fine art exhibition of notable national living artists, with artwork available for sale between $150 to $2,500. Le Jeune Salon benefits the Denver Art Museum, funding its expansion of the Frederic C. Hamilton Building designed by world-renowned architect Daniel Libeskind. Le Jeune Salon is curated by Ann Benson Reidy. Honorary co-chairs are Sarah Hunt and Anne L. B. Hanson.

The inspiration for Le Jeune Salon is to provide the beginning art collector with an affordable alternative to Salon d'Arts, its affiliate exhibition. It is a lively and much anticipated event, geared toward up-and-coming young professionals who have an interest in learning more about, and collecting, fine art. Attending Le Jeune Salon is an extraordinary opportunity for people to become in engaged in the artistic process, converse with artists about their work, and collect works of art to be treasured for decades. And let's face it: It's a really great bash!

Le Jeune Salon will be open from June 5th through June 7th at the Colorado History Museum, enabling visitors to preview the work prior to the June 7th evening reception and sale. The June 7th evening attracts hundreds of young, affluent professionals and community leaders. Tickets are $45; Patron Tickets are $100 and include a preview reception in late May at the home of the Curator. Tickets can be purchased by calling 303.494.0180.

What kind of media coverage will Salon d'Arts receive?
An event of this significance holds tremendous news appeal, as evidenced by the extensive coverage received during the past years. We anticipate continued coverage in the future. Profiles have been provided by:

9NEWS KUSA (NBC) Colorado Expression Magazine Colorado Homes & Lifestyles The Denver Post Denver Woman Magazine 5280 Magazine American Artist Magazine	Art of the West magazine KWGN WB-2 Art & Antiques Magazine Rocky Mountain News Southwest Art Magazine Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine

Visit Salon d' Arts websites from past years:

• Salon d' Arts 2004

• Salon d' Arts 2003

• Salon d' Arts 2002