The 19th Annual Friends of the Fine Arts Center Gala "IN THE MOOD" is this Saturday, February 2 at 6:30pm at The Hotel Northampton. There are only a few tickets left to this amazing event. There will be a moveable feast that will cater to every palate while each of the banquet rooms of the Hotel will feature entertainment for different moods. The Ballroom features a Sentimental Journey with the Jeff Holmes Big Band, the Hampshire Room spotlights La Vida Loca with Jose Gonzalez y Banda Criolla; Sue Wiggin and Wiggin' Out sets a sultry romantic mood in Wiggins Tavern; and Karaoke by Cloud Nine puts you in the spotlight in the Coolidge Cafe.

The auction has seen a lot of action over the last three weeks but there are still some great items left. Don't miss out on some incredible getaways, jewelry, beauty and health items and some incredible pieces of art and photography from local artists. Remember, the auction closes at midnight, February 2nd.
For those interested in some SILENT Auction Action at the Gala - Check out these bodacious gift baskets This bidding will be done "the old fashioned way;" with bid cards and winners announced by 11 p.m. in the lobby.

Pleasures of the Grape This Whole Foods Market offering features a year-long membership in the Whole Foods Market Wine Club where you'll enjoy a discount on the Wine Club selections and the WFM Wine University classes, a six bottle canvas tote, as well as invites to the Wine Club parties that happen throughout the year. The Wine Club offers everything a wine novice needs to become more familiar with the pleasures of the grape.

Taste of Japan If you want to take your casual curiosity of Sake into a full-blown investigation then this basket is for you. It is filled with hand- selected sakes (cold and warm) from Liquors 44, a hot sake serving set, cold sake serving set and The Insider's Guide to Sake by Philip Harper that the New York Times calls "A lively, clear guide to a subject just waiting to be discovered by the inscrutable West."

California Dreaming These five (5) Bottles of California red wines that will inspire you. Sean Barry of Four Seasons Wine & Liquor hand selected these muses which will motivate you to write that novel, paint a fresco perform like a rock star or just dream that dream!

Attention Cigar Aficionados! Don't miss this special selection from Four Seasons Wine & Liquor of nine (9) Hand-rolled Dominican Cigars displayed in an authentic cigar form press with an attractive ring gauge device.

A Gift Basket from AnnMarie Harding/ Pravda Vodka To share or not to share, your decision! This generous selection of Pravda Vodka, including multiple size bottles, glasses and various Pravda Vodka items will surely bring out the selfish side of anyone.

The Wines of Italy From the mountains of the northeast to the hills of the northwest, to the heart of Tuscany then south through the Marche and Abruzzo, to Puglia's heel and Sicily's sunshine, a dozen authentic Italian wines chosen by us at Spirit Haus for your dining enjoyment.

You can also make the night complete by taking advantage of the special overnight rates being offered to Gala guests by The Hotel Northampton. Online auction bidding will be available at the event. Gala tickets are $100 per person or $150 per person for individual sponsorship. Corporate Sponsorships are available starting at $500.
For tickets call the Fine Arts Center Box Office at 413-545-2511 or 1-800-999-UMAS or buy online. For other event or auction information, contact the Friends at 413-545-3671. Remember all proceeds benefit the Fine Arts Center's Artist Community Educational Residencies. Please help us by bidding, attending the event, and passing this email along to your family and friends. We can't do it without you.
A special thank you to our numerous sponsors and auction donors for their tremendous generosity and support of the UMass Fine Arts Center!

Cover Me is an exhibition born of a humorous post on curator Mo Ringey's blog, "Art & About with Mo", on The Valley Advocate's website from Wednesday, April 04, 2007. The post called "Arts Coverage & Some Guy I Dated in High School", commented on artists' laments regarding the dwindling coverage of arts in the news and suggested a call to action; a show of artists satirizing the issue of arts coverage. The exhibit gives humorous voice to work created by 13 different artists calling attention to this concern. On view in Hampden Gallery, Sunday, February 3 - Tuesday, February 26. Opening reception Sunday, the 3rd from 3pm - 5pm, free and open to the public.
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Sleeping with Strangers, created by Dan Kwong and his Beijing Opera trained e-pal Peng Jingquan, is an ironically funny and honest dive into the relationship between two world super powers-China and the US. Ruthless yet hilarious, Sleeping with Strangers skewers the irrationalities of governments, cultures, and individuals. The work is a series of vignettes (such as a Chinese opera challenge dance between Karl Marx and Bill Gates or a literal interpretation of talking heads using puppets) and the artists explore ignorance, antagonism, and separation. Politically savvy with a sense of humor, Sleeping with Strangers questions the identities of America and Asia - and more importantly---are we really that different?

When the bicultural and bicoastal performance artist Kwong finishes his New England tour he'll be heading back to the Los Angeles Theater Center to present the world premiere of his play "Be Like Water," about a thirteen year old Asian American girl who is not only a tomboy but a Bruce Lee fanatic.

Sleeping with Strangers, is presented by the Asian Arts and Culture Program, February 8, 2008, 8pm in Bowker Auditorium, UMass, Amherst. For tickets call 545-25-11 or 1-800-999-UMAS or online

This will be the first museum exhibition in the U.S. of work by the outstanding Welsh artist Bethan Huws. Her work was featured at the 2003 Venice Biennale and she is the recipient of the 2006 B.A.C.A. Europe Laureate prize, which recognizes outstanding European artists in mid-career. Bethan Huws has had solo exhibitions in Europe at such leading showcases of contemporary art as the Kunsthalle Bern and Tate Modern (London). On view Wednesday, February 6 - Saturday, March 29 In Conversation: Bethan Huws and exhibition curator Gregory Salzman Wednesday, February 6 at 5pm, opening reception at 6pm, free and open to the public
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