MONROE — Monroe Arts Center’s (MAC) largest fundraiser of the year, Taste of Spring: It’s a Whole New Season, will be held in-person Monday, Aug. 30. The event will kick off with an online silent auction, which will be held from Aug. 9-30.
The event which was virtual in 2020, but will be held live this year at MAC.
The event will begin with cocktails and feature a multi course dinner featuring the culinary talents of Russ and Nadine Brown of Pancho and Lefty’s Outlaw Grill. The Brown’s farm-to-table menu is a decadent blend of flavors, textures, and techniques. The menu will be featuring appetizers of jumbo pickled shrimp, pork belly tacos and caprese skewers with fresh basil pesto. Following the appetizers will be a small plate of fresh sweet corn elote with fried corn tortillas and queso fresco. The entree will include grilled beef tenderloin, marinated grilled chicken breast and avocado green chile crema along with rice pilaf, pepitas and summer veggies. A dessert of Mango Pango — puree of mango with lime and tapioca, fresh mango whipped cream and candied ginger.
The cuisine will be paired with fine wines and craft beer. Live music for the evening will be provided by the Craig Tuttle on guitar.
The virtual silent auction is a great opportunity for those who could otherwise not attend to become a part of the MAC family and help create a pathway to sustainability for the organization as the world comes out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Online bidding begins August 9.
Over 25 items awaiting bids in the virtual silent auction include one-of-a-kind art objects, hand turned wood bowls, furniture, hand-knit and crocheted hats and shawls, gift baskets and more. Online bids can be placed at
32auction.com/
monroeartscenter. Items may be viewed in person in a display located in MAC’s southside (east building) lobby windows. The final bidding for the online silent auction will be at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, August 30.
Cocktail hour opens the evening at 4:30 p.m. There is an admission cost for individual tickets and for tables of 8. For reservations, call 608-325-5700 by August 21. Visit
monroeartscenter.com for additional information.
MAC holding 32nd photography contest
MONROE — For the 32nd consecutive year, the Monroe Arts Center (MAC) will sponsor the Photography Contest and Exhibit. Photographs entered in this contest will be on display at MAC from September 10, 2021 through November 5, 2021. The Monroe Arts Center is located at 1315 11th Street, Monroe, Wisconsin.
The contest is open to all non-professional photographers. The photographs must have been taken after September 1, 2020 and be the first time entered in this contest. Each photographer is permitted to enter as many photographs as they wish. There will be cash and ribbon awards for Best of Show, second place, third place, and fourth place.
The judge for this year’s Photography Contest is Bruce Fritz, noted Madison photographer and News Photography Pulitzer Prize nominee. Fritz began his career as a full-time, award winning, photojournalist at the Capital Times in Madison (1969-77) where he covered human-interest stories, lifestyles, features, sports, and news. In 1976, he was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in News Photography, and the National Society of Professional NPPA Journalists honored him with the Sigma Delta Chi Distinguished Service Award in News Photography. Following his newspaper career, he freelanced for many national magazines including TIME, Newsweek, and National Geographic.
Contest entry forms can be downloaded from the Monroe Arts Center website,
monroeartscenter.com/exhibits. Call the Monroe Arts Center for additional information.
The MAC Gallery Season is Underwritten by; Mike and Shelley Muranyi, Paul and Sue Barrett, David and Julie Buchanan, Gof and Mary Thomson, Pete Guenther and Barb Woodriff, Don Amphlett and Jan Johnson, David and Janeen Babler, and Chuck and Chris Wellington.
