NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s and the Americas Society announced The Americas Society Visual Arts Endowment Benefit Auction in May 2013. The auction will include a selection of works donated to the Americas Society that will be offered in conjunction with the Latin American sale with all proceeds to benefit the Society’s dynamic and expanding Visual Arts Department through the creation of an endowment for its programs.

The Benefit Auction will include approximately 30 works in both the Evening and Day sales at Christie’s, and will feature such established Latin American artists as Carlos Cruz-Diez (Physichromie 1601 from 2009) and Alejandro Obregón (Recuerdo de Trentón from 1979), as well as contemporary artists like Luis Fernando Roldán (Rebbilib, 2012). Cruz-Diez’s work beautifully exemplifies how the artist employs line and color to create an optical illusion that challenges viewer perception while Obregon’s piece, a work from the period when he was living in Cartagena, exhibits a true mastery of color and gesture. In contrast, Roldán's work considers the ephemeral nature of materials and structure through netting, which suggests the human condition.

In the past 40 years, the Americas Society has played a unique role in exploring the cultural evolution during the postwar period in Latin America by examining artistic platforms via a comprehensive visual arts exhibition program. It has been committed to broadening the awareness of groundbreaking artistic approaches and risks amongst its followers by presenting rigorously curated shows.

We are delighted to announce that Patricia Phelps de Cisneros has agreed to act as Honorary Chair of the Americas Society Benefit Art Auction, with Sharon Schultz Simpson and Carlos Cruz-Diez serving as Co-Chairs of the auction, working in conjunction with Susan Segal, President and CEO of the Americas Society, and Gabriela Rangel, Director and Chief Curator of the Americas Society Visual Arts Gallery.

Virgilio Garza, Christie's Head of Latin American department, said: “We are honored to partner with the Americas Society, an institution with such a distinguished history of cultivating due appreciation for the cultural heritage of North and South America, for an auction that will benefit their vibrant visual arts exhibition program.”

Established in 1965 by David Rockefeller, the Americas Society strives to foster an understanding of the contemporary political, social, and economic issues confronting Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada. The institution therefore aims to increase public awareness of and appreciation for the diverse cultural heritage of the Americas, and the importance of the inter-American relationship. The Americas Society provides detailed programming through their Literature, Music, and Visual Arts departments, presenting three exhibitions each year along with a series of public and educational programs, as well as producing scholarly publications and exhibition catalogues.

Gabriela Rangel, the Director & Chief Curator of the Americas Society’s Visual Arts Gallery, added: “We are looking forward to the possibilities that this auction brings to our department. Over 47 years, the Visual Arts Program has established a space of excellence for the Art of the Americas through exhibitions, publications and public programs that challenge preconceptions and simplistic approaches.”

Further details of the sale, exhibition, and catalogues will be announced by April 2013.