Arts Group Kicks Off NJ's 350th Anniversary with Raffle and Open House

The ArtPride New Jersey Foundation kicks off the state's 350th year with an Art Glass Raffle and Open House on Jan. 31 at the Lyceum Hall Center for the Arts, 432 High St. in downtown Burlington. 

Tickets are on sale now for the grand prize drawing of a one-of-a-kind glass orb created by renowned N.J. glass artist Paul Stankard, according to a prepared statement from ArtPride NJ Foundation.

The “Walt Whitman Bouquet” orb – with an estimated value of $6,500 – depicts life native to the Pinelands region of N.J. and holds a miniature glass cane portrait of Walt Whitman. 

In honor of the state’s 350 birthday in 2014, tickets for the drawing are $35 each and only 350 tickets are available for purchase. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit ArtPride New Jersey Foundation’s programs and services. 

“We’re very grateful to Mr. Stankard for donating this beautiful piece to ArtPride N.J.,” said Ann Marie Miller, Executive Director of ArtPride New Jersey. “He is world-renowned for his exquisite glass paperweight orbs and we’re thrilled to be working with him for this commemorative occasion.”

Famed for encasing his extremely delicate sculptures of flowers and insects in globes or cubes of clear glass, Stankard is the recipient of numerous awards, holds two honorary doctorates and has had his work shown across the U.S., Europe, Japan and Taiwan. He is currently a Fellow at the Corning Museum of Glass and serves as a founding board member of the Creative Glass Center of America in Millville.

The Grand Prize Drawing and Open House will be held at 5 p.m. Jan. 31 at ArtPride’s offices in the Lyceum Hall Center for the Arts, 432 High Street in Burlington. Refreshments and musical entertainment will be provided. 

Prior to the event, Walt Whitman’s Bouquet will be on display at ArtPride N.J., Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Raffle tickets are available for purchase at the offices or by phone. Please call Stephanie Carr at (609) 479-3377 x305 or email at scarr@artpridenj.com for more information.

ABOUT THE ARTPRIDE NEW JERSEY FOUNDATION
The ArtPride New Jersey Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) organization, is the charitable and educational arm of ArtPride New Jersey that promotes the value of the arts to New Jersey’s quality of life, education and economic vitality through research and a variety of programs and services including Discover Jersey Arts and Arts Plan New Jersey.