The Art of Brunch kicks off a new exhibition with a gourmet outdoor meal

click to enlarge The Art of Brunch kicks off a new exhibition with a gourmet outdoor meal
Garett Fisbeck
Jayme Phillips poses for a photo at Campbell Art Park, Wednesday, May 31, 2017.

People are crazy for brunch. So Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center decided to make a crazy brunch for the people.

The Art of Brunch debuts 10:30 a.m. June 17 at Campbell Art Park, 1146 N. Broadway Ave.

Oklahoma Contemporary event manager Jayme Phillips described the happening as an “Alice in Wonderland garden party circus.”

“This is the second year for the Guerrilla Art Park,” she said, “so we were wondering, ‘How can we cross-promote it?’”

When Phillips visited Campbell Art Park, future home of Oklahoma Contemporary’s headquarters, it hit her — let people brunch among the art.

“Part of what we’re doing now, too, is trying to drive traffic to where the new building will be and engage with vendors in that area,” she said. “It’s a way to cross-promote two different things: a fundraiser for Oklahoma Contemporary and the new exhibit.”

The Art of Brunch will also be one of the best brunches in the city, said event co-chair Lori Burson.

Burson’s Stella Modern Italian Cuisine, 1201 N. Walker Ave.; Hatch, 1101 N. Broadway Ave.; and Packard’s New American Kitchen, 201 NW 10th St. are creating a menu that will work in concert, highlighting what each one does best.

“Unlike a lot of events where there’s random food by 10 different restaurants, this will be a meal that really flows together from three independent restaurants,” Burson said.

The 21-and-older event will feature bottomless mimosas, wine and local beer; a build-your-own doughnut station by Wylie, Texas-based Itsy Bites food truck; and a specialty coffee bar from Coffee Slingers Roasters, 1015 N. Broadway Ave.

Art of Brunch guests will get a tour of the park and be allowed to wander in and around the new art. Visitors will get a first peek at Liz Dueck’s ceramic stones, an industrial wheat field created by Kyle Golding, stained glass installations by Rick and Tracey Bewley, a continuation of Desmond Mason’s flag series and Gary Batzloff’s abstract Oklahoma landscape.

Short Order Poems will craft poems on demand, and Leanne Regan Fitzpatrick will sketch fashion-plate illustrations of attendees while all-vinyl DJ group Carte Blanche plays music.

Burson said the goal is to put guests in an artistic mindset.

“Every piece of the event is a piece of art, from the invitations to the food,” she said. “That’s why we’re doing just a few restaurants and coordinating so closely. We want the food to be very artistic.”

The Art of Brunch is a kind of a homecoming for Phillips, who returned to Oklahoma City after 12 years in Los Angeles.

“It’s like a different city, and it feels like we’re on the cusp of something really cool here,” she said.

When she left the state, she went looking for culture and new experiences.

“Now all that stuff is right here. You don’t have to leave to get those things anymore,” she said.

That’s why the fundraiser for Oklahoma Contemporary is so vital, she said. Money raised by The Art of Brunch will be reinvested in the organization, ensuring the gallery remains free to visit and keeping prices for art classes and camps affordable.

They’re planning for 250 guests, but Phillips said she hopes for more and to see the event continue to grow each year.

Tickets are $75. Visit oklahomacontemporary.org or call 405-951-0000.

Print headline: Al fresco; The Art of Brunch kicks off a new exhibition with a gourmet outdoor meal.

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