BEYOND EDEN: Over 3,000 attend opening – Robert Williams honored – opening night pictures

L to R: Andrew Hosner (Beyond Eden organizer, Thinkspace Gallery, Sour Harvest,)  Matt Kennedy (Gallery Director – La Luz de Jesus,) Robert Williams, Billy Shire (Owner, Curator – La Luz de Jesus,) Lee Joseph ) (Beyond Eden publicist and coordination assistance.)  Photograph by Sam Graham

From Andrew Hosner / Beyond Eden event organizer:
BEYOND EDEN 2010 opened with a blast this past weekend drawing  nearly 4,000 people total over the weekend to the beautiful grounds of Barnsdall Park and the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery.

We would like to thank everyone who came out to support the artists and to extend our gratitude to the staff at LAMAG for making the event possible and nurturing it into such an overwhelming success. Saturday night’s opening reception alone drew well over  3,000 people and the energy in the air was palpable.

At 8pm when the time came to present the one and only Robert Williams with a Lifetime Achievement award, the venue was simply packed with a crowd of friends and revelers that stretched outside into the municipal gallery’s courtyard. Robert Williams, ever a gentleman, was gracious and ribald during the well received presentation.

We can’t stress enough what a huge honor it was to have Robert–the progenitor of contemporary West Coast art–there and to be able to present him with this award in front of all his friends and family. It was truly the crowning moment of an already amazing night that saw so many new people exposed to the thriving New Contemporary Art Movement. Long ignored by the mainstream, this movement continues to gain momentum and supporters all the while further breaking down the doors at institutions and museums the world over.  A new generation of artists and art enthusiasts is rewriting the rule books and we are excited that BEYOND EDEN can serve as a vehicle of enlightenment and change.