Newport Art Museum Summer Art Party
Honoring Minnie Cushing Coleman
July 11, 2025 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm Newport Art museum
Please join us as we celebrate the artistry of Howard Gardiner Cushing
This event is completely sold out.
Join us this Summer: The 2025 Summer Art Party celebrates the life and work of Howard Gardiner Cushing in conjunction with the exhibition of his work. The party will consist of a cocktail hour followed by an elegant sit-down dinner and live auction/auctioneer with music and dancing.
Given the overwhelming response, we are now offering a special Cocktail Party ticket. This includes the exhibition, open bar & specialty drinks from 6 PM – 7:30 PM. This cocktail party ticket is $150 per person.
Many of you have asked for attire suggestions for this special evening. We have included some ideas for your consideration below:
Inspired by Ida Rubinstein as painted by Howard Gardiner Cushing —Bold silhouettes. Jewel tones. Turn-of-the-century elegance. Theatrical glamour with a touch of the avant-garde. (Click the image for more inspiration)
About the Exhibition: Howard Gardiner Cushing (1869–1916), was a dynamic force in American art at the turn of the twentieth century. His career bridged the traditions of 19th-century realism with the bold innovations of early modernism.
Cushing was a prolific artist, regularly exhibiting at theNational Academy of Designand thePennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and was a member of theSociety of American Artists. Though his life was cut short, his artistic legacy endures through an extraordinary range of works, includingevocative portraiture, impressionistic depictions of everyday life, fantastical scenes, and large-scale murals.
Profoundly influenced byJames McNeill Whistler, French Impressionism, and the European Symbolists, Cushing developed a distinctive artistic voice, known for hismasterful use of color, elegant linework, and emotional depth. A longtime resident of Newport, he found inspiration in thelandscapes of New Englandand the city’s rich cultural fabric, elements that are deeply embedded in his work. As an early member of the Newport Art Association—now the Newport Art Museum—Cushing played a foundational role in shaping the region’s artistic identity. His legacy also lives on through theCushing Memorial Building, founded byGertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, further cementing his impact on American art history.
This exhibition will feature significant works that have not been publicly displayed inover fifty years—or, in some cases,since the artist’s death. The Museum invites you to rediscover the breadth of Cushing’s artistic contributions and his lasting impact on American art.
About the Guest Curator:
Ricardo Mercado is an art historian specializing in the art of the nineteenth century, with a
particular focus in the Americas and transatlantic exchange. He holds a B.A. in Art History from Columbia University, and a Master of Arts from the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art, a joint program with the Clark Art Institute. During his time at the Clark, Ricardo led a reinterpretation project for the museum’s collection of eighteenth–century British silver objects. Ricardo also held a Judith M. Lenett Memorial Conservation Fellowship in American Art, working closely with the Senior Paintings Conservator from the Williamstown Art Conservation Center. The Lenett project focused on the artist Howard Gardiner Cushing and involved treating a portrait of the artist’s wife, Ethel Cochrane Cushing, from the collection of the Newport Art Museum. Ricardo is currently the Charles H. Sawyer Curatorial Fellow at the Addison Gallery of American Art in Andover, Massachusetts.
Summer Art Party Working Committee
Sandra Craig, Co-Chair | Ellen Bowman, Co-Chair/Trustee | Frank Garofolo, Co-Chair/Trustee | Sue Metzger, Trustee | Rebecca Rex, Trustee
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