ACRIA "20th Annual Holiday Dinner" 2015
Vogue
Tania FaroukiLast night, ACRIA, the research and education organization dedicated to helping people with HIV and AIDS live longer and healthier lives, held its 20th Annual Holiday Dinner at the majestically domed Cunard Building in the Financial District.
Hosted by Benjamin Bashein, Francesca Amfitheatrof, Ross Bleckner, Francisco Costa, Ariel Foxman, Donna Karan, Julianne Moore, and Jason Wu, the evening honored irreverent photography duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin and Drew Barrymore for their ongoing AIDS activism. "I love their generosity of spirit and the expression of this spirit in their work," said Moore, dressed in a demure Simone Rocha black number.
The soiree kicked off with cocktails and a chance to bid on a number of donated artworks as part of a silent auction on Paddle8—iPads provided—featuring an eclectic array of pieces by artists ranging from Catherine Opie to Takashi Murakami.
The chic assembly of guests, which included the likes of Zani Gugelmann in a nude-beige star-patterned Valentino gown, Amy Fine Collins in a fur-trimmed Carolina Herrera number, Giovanna Battaglia in a pastel pink frock, Maryna Linchuk, and Daphne Groeneveld, took their seats for a dinner under the 60-foot ceiling featuring celestial murals of mythical and historical figures, with tables adorned with decadent candleholders, foliage hedges, and gold candelabra wrapped in trailing vines echoing a grand Last Supper.
The evening continued with a most entertaining live auction of a specially commissioned portrait by the honorees, after which Drew Barrymore—clad in a sequined silver Jason Wu dress—received the inaugural Elizabeth Taylor Award presented by her sister-in-law, Jill Kargman. "I'm honored and humbled to be part of an evening that's still keeping this conversation alive," she said.
A few tables down, a giggling Bruce Weber said, "I think Liz would have wanted Inez and Vinoodh to take her picture and somebody in the audience to pay for it!" to which he was quick to add: "She would've loved giving the award to Drew because Drew represents the kind of woman that she was—really open, free, and experiences life at its fullest."