The New River Fine Art gallery will host a fundraiser to benefit the Stonewall National Museum and Archives on June 29.
The free-to-all event will run from 6 to 9 p.m. and will feature work exclusively by deceased LGBT activist and artist Elliot Tiber.
Speaking on the event, Lisa Burgess, owner of New River Fine Art, said, “Once I heard [Tiber’s] story, and found out about his work, I knew right away this would be a perfect fit. I said, ‘Why don’t we do a fundraiser for Stonewall?’”
The event marks the first ever public showing of Tiber’s work in South Florida, according to Burgess, who says that around 20% of the proceeds will go to the Stonewall National Museum and Archives. Pieces for sale will include original “line drawings” and prints of varying subjects, including 60’s-era celebrities like Janis Joplin and Joan Baez.
“Think Picasso,” Tiber’s posthumous representative, Frank Gromley said, when asked what type of work Tiber’s most closely resembles.
“They’re drawings. Simple as that.”
Elliot Tiber was a New York City based writer, artist, activist, and interior designer to the stars, before his sudden passing at 81 in South Florida. He participated personally in the Stonewall riots, and is particularly well known for his role in organizing the Woodstock Music Festival of 1969.
As the story goes, according to both Gromley and Burgess, despite his bustling professional life, Tiber worked weekends helping his parents manage a hotel they owned in Bethel, NY. Such work, according to a New York Times article, helped Tiber obtain status in Bethel’s business community. Which in turn led to his obtaining exclusive control of the land permits that eventually allowed Woodstock to take place over three days on a farm in Bethel.
Tiber’s involvement in the planning of the storied music festival was chronicled in “Taking Woodstock”, a 2009 feature film by director Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain). Gromley said that much of the artwork to be featured in the exhibit was inspired by the experience.
As for its part in the event, Stonewall National Museum and Archives Direct Robert Kesten says, “We’re very happy that we’ll be able to be part of this first showing of Tiber’s artwork with the New River Fine Art Gallery. It’s just another way we hope to bring Stonewall and LBGTQ issues and artists into focus within the greater community.”
Ninety percent of Stonewall’s funding comes from donations and “fundraisers just like these,” Kesten said.
The New River Art Gallery is located at 822 E. Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, FL. Drinks and hors d'oeuvre will be served at the event. For more information, call 954-524-2100. For more information on Elliot Tiber’s work, contact Frank Gromley at (386)793-8188.
The Stonewall National Museum and Archives is located at 1300 E. Sunrise Blvd, Fort Lauderdale, FL. For more information, visit stonewall-museum.org or call (954)763-8565.