NEW YORK, NY.- Alumni and Friends of LaGuardia High School will host their inaugural fine art benefit auction on Wednesday, November 9, 2011 from 6:30-9:30pm at the Vincent Astor Gallery in Lincoln Center’s Library of Performing Arts. This landmark event will honor artist Wolf Kahn and includes a cocktail reception, exhibition and auction of almost 100 works to benefit of LaGuardia High School and its gifted students. Among the prominent Contemporary artists who have donated works to the auction are Wolf Kahn, Emily Mason, Frederick Brosen, Paul Resika, Harvey Dinnerstein, Burton Silverman, Byron Dobell, Guy Richards Smit, Milton Glaser and Jerome Witkin, all alumni of the school.

SILENT AND LIVE AUCTION
All of the 93 donated works of art to be auctioned will be on view at the November 9 event. The works have been organized into two groups. Seventy-nine works (lots 201-279) will be offered in a silent auction format with bidding taking place throughout the event. Fourteen works by the most prominent artists (lots 101-114) will be offered during a live auction at the event.

TRIBUTE TO WOLF KAHN
In addition to the exhibition and auction, attendees of the event will witness a special award presentation and tribute to Wolf Kahn. Wolf Kahn (M&A 1945) is one of the most important colorists working in America today. With pastels and oils, he creates vivid scenes that excite the senses. He experiments with color and season in a way that is abstract, refreshing and all his own. Mr. Kahn is an artist who embodies the synthesis of his modern abstract training with Hans Hofmann with the palette of Matisse, Rothko's sweeping bands of color, and the atmospheric qualities of American Impressionism. He exhibits at galleries and museums across North America. His work is also in the collections of such museums as the Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Whitney Museum of American Art; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Hirshhorn Museum; and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Guests at the November 9 event will also will enjoy a live musical performance by LaGuardia students.

INTERNET CATALOGUE
Doyle New York has donated professional auction services for the event. Members of the public may visit DoyleNewYork.com to preview the free, fully-illustrated catalogue for the benefit auction. The lot descriptions have been provided by the Alumni & Friends and the artists themselves. Accompanying each lot description is the lot’s starting bid and its suggested value, as determined by the artist. There is no Buyer's Premium on purchases made at this auction.

ABSENTEE BIDS
Bidders unable to attend the November 9 event may leave absentee bids on the interactive catalogue at DoyleNewYork.com. Absentee bids will be accepted until November 9 at 3pm. The highest absentee bids will then be executed as the opening bid at the auction event that evening. Absentee bidders need not attend the event to participate, and successful absentee bidders will be notified on the day following the auction. There is no Buyer's Premium on purchases made at this auction.

LAGUARDIA HIGH SCHOOL
LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts (the “Fame” school) has a long history of producing many of the most notable artists. Its students have gone on to Broadway (Liza Minelli, Al Pacino), television (Stephen Bochco, Jennifer Aniston), dance (Arthur Mitchell, Edward Villela), and art - art alumni include numerous artists known to collectors, curators and visitors to New York’s many museums and galleries.

The dual mission of this extraordinary specialized high school is to provide each student with professional preparation in conservatory arts and academic education. LaGuardia was the first school in the nation to provide a free, publicly funded program for students with unique talents in the arts. Students are admitted on the basis of potential and achievement, as demonstrated in a demanding and competitive audition, and a review of their academic records. The school’s 2600 students receive full academic and conservatory level training in one of 6 areas: vocal music, instrumental music, performance theatre, technical theatre, dance and art. Its graduates serve as vivid proof of the value of the school’s program – its alumni have distinguished themselves in virtually every field in the arts.

The mission of Alumni & Friends (A&F) is to provide scholarships, grants, awards and other assistance to students and the school that enhances the arts education beyond traditional funding from the Department of Education. In the 2010-2011 school year alone, A & F’s endowment of over $5 million provided over $300,000 to the school and its students. Generous donors and events such as the Art Auction have made this possible and it is the goal of the A&F to grow this endowment further to provide even more assistance, particularly as the school undergoes furtherbudget cuts and its needs are greater than ever. A&F also serves as a resource for alumni to inform them of activities and events in the school and help them keep in touch with each other.