Quench your thirst for supporting the arts at ‘Toast’

By Leila Ugincius

Recognizing the importance of research in the arts, Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Craft and Material Studies will host a silent auction to fund research and travel opportunities for its students. 

“Toast,” featuring works by faculty, students and alumni, will be held Friday from 7 to 10 p.m. at The Depot.

Mediums such as fiber, glass, wood, metal and ceramic have rich histories, said Sonya Clark, chair of the department in the School of the Arts.

“The notion is that craft becomes a way in which we can connect globally,” she said. “There’s craft everywhere. I have the privilege of having the most amazing talented artists. … We want to pay that forward, for our faculty to mentor students and do more.”

Based on “the sense of how we have come to be who we are in the world through the objects that hold the things that we drink,” many of the auction items are one-of-a-kind beverage vessels, Clark said. 

The department is partnering locally with mixologists — “Because that’s another thing you find everywhere in the world is alcohol, and the vessels they’re carried in,” said Clark. The mixologists created unique drinks that inspired the various beverage containers.

The auction will feature a wide range of work. 

“The work itself will range from those vessels pairing with a mixologist to functional objects and sculptural objects as well,” Clark said.

Tickets are on sale for $100 and can be purchased at https://www.support.vcu.edu/event/toast.