Crowds, bids pour in for 'Works of Heart' at Memphis College of Art

John Robinette's "Blues Highway Allegory"

Maysey Craddock's "Caged Heart"

Richard Carr's "Heart of the Garden"

Well, bless my heart, all those fancy hearts hanging up at Memphis College of Art must mean that it's time for the 19th annual "Works of Heart" auction that benefits the Memphis Child Advocacy Center.

"Works of Heart" occurs from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday and features heart- and valentine-inspired work by -- cross my heart -- 102 local and regional artists, including many of the most popular and widely collected artists around, and by artists we mean painters, sculptors, photographers, paper makers, furniture makers, ceramic artists, gold- and silversmiths and other metal workers and many other creative types.

Complimentary wine and beer and other beverages and appetizers will be available. Tickets are $50, with (new this year) VIP tickets at $200 conferring such privileges as access to a VIP lounge, more food, a souvenir T-shirt, the assistance of a VIP concierge and other perks. The pieces in "Works of Heart" may be viewed today at MCA for advance bidding.

Proceeds from the event benefit the Memphis Child Advocacy Center, a nonprofit organization that serves children who are victims of sexual and severe physical abuse through prevention, education and intervention. Returning master of ceremonies is Joe Birch, news anchor for WMC-TV Channel 5.

Though the event is billed as a "silent auction," the college will be anything but quiet during "Works of Heart," which has grown over the years and generates enough excitement that it has become a social scene.

"It definitely pulls people in," said Murray Riss, who has organized the event since its beginning. "It has a life of its own. So many people attend that it's difficult to get from one gallery to the other. And we have to turn away artists who want to participate at a time when other fundraisers go begging."

For many years, the organization passed out wooden heart forms to the artists to be decorated, altered, embellished and otherwise rendered irresistible to bidders, but more recently artists have been allowed to create their own forms and structures.

"We still offer the wooden heart," Riss said, "but a large number of artists wanted to work with something on a bigger or more personal, individual scale. We want it to be collectible art, something of value, not just anything with a heart theme."

OK, I'll have a heart and tell you who some of the artists involved are. Jimpsie Ayres, Dale Baucum, Tootsie Bell, Peter Bowman, Fred Burton, Stephen Crump, Maritza Davila, Carol DeForest, Kat Gore, Angela Goza, George Hunt, Tom Lee, Jonathan Postal and Mary Long-Postal, three Mahs (David, Jeanine and Nancy), John McIntire, Rod Moorhead, Veda Reed and Carroll Todd, and we're barely scratching the surface here.

19th annual 'Works of Heart' Auction

The benefit for the Memphis Child Advocacy Center is 7-10 p.m. Saturday at Memphis College of Art in Overton Park. Tickets are $50. For special privilege VIP tickets, $200, call Laura Terry at 888-4341 or e-mail LTerry@MemphisCAC.org. For more information, visit MemphisCAC.org.

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