For more than a century, the winged reptilian gargoyle Sir Bartlemas has watched over the Monument Avenue home that now hosts the Branch Museum of Architecture and Design. This Friday, he’ll receive a new name.
As part of the second annual Mad Hatter Garden Party, attendees will bid to rename the gargoyle for one year. Part of the auction includes a plaque and a private naming ceremony at the Branch. Last year’s winner named Sir Bartlemas after his dog Bart.
“People fight over it quite viciously,” says Lucy Northup, the Branch’s marketing director. “He’s kind of the unofficial mascot of the Branch.”
Renaming the gargoyle is just one of the many prizes attendees of the Mad Hatter party can vie for through silent and private auctions. In this fundraiser for the Branch, guests will bid for sculptures, paintings and photographs by local artists while enjoying live music, hors d’oeuvres and an open bar.
But the people watching is as much a draw as the art. As befits a Mad Hatter party, attendees “are encouraged to wear their most extravagant, craziest hat possible.” The event’s most inventive hat is honored with the Milliner’s Award. Northup says last year’s winner was a 3-foot-by-3-foot rendering of a tree, complete with a dangling birds nest.
“It was not easy to go through doorways, but it was really cool,” she says. “People design their hats months in advance, so it will be quite the fashion show.”
Northup says the idea for the Mad Hatter Garden Party came about as a way to create a fundraiser for the Branch that wasn’t stuffy.
“Since we’re a design museum, we wanted people to have some fun and tap into that side of Richmond,” she says.
Though the Friday event sold out of its 200 tickets last Friday, those who didn’t get a ticket can still take part in the festivities. Tonight, the Branch will host a free preview party that’s open to the public where guests can take part in the silent auction and enjoy complementary hors d’oeuvres and drinks. The public can also view the art and participate in the silent auction by visiting the Branch during normal operating hours this week.
In addition to creating a fun fundraiser for the Branch, Northup says the event is intended to showcase the quality of Richmond artists and designers.
“Our mission is to explore design in everyday life and the impact that it has on us,” she says. “Good design is often so good that you don’t even think about it. We, as a museum, want to be a place where people can come and think critically about design and how it plays a role in our lives.”
The Mad Hatter Garden Party takes place Friday, April 19, from 6 to 10:30 p.m. at the Branch Museum of Architecture and Design, 2501 Monument Ave. The preview party takes place Tuesday, April 16, from 6 to 8 p.m. For more information, visit branchmuseum.org.
