'DINNER AND THE SHOW' AT CLARK ART INSTITUTE PROMISES SPECIAL DINING EXPERIENCE

Acclaimed Stephen Starr Events to Prepare Five-course Meal

For Immediate Release
January 14, 2015

Williamstown, MA—Art and fine cuisine come together on Friday, January 30 from 6–9 pm at the Clark Art Institute’s “Dinner and the Show,” featuring a private gallery tour of the Monet | Kelly exhibition, a prix-fixe dinner prepared by Executive Chef Daniel Hardy in the new Café 7, and extended shopping hours in the Museum Store.

In the first of a series of special dining events at the Clark, the exceptional cuisine of Stephen Starr Events takes center stage. A division of the acclaimed Starr Restaurant Group, the Clark’s new culinary partner brings creative, innovative, and artful menus to Café 7 that feature locally sourced ingredients.

Clark senior curator Richard Rand leads guests on a private tour of the Monet | Kelly exhibition at 6 pm, followed by a five-course dinner at 7 pm. The menu includes onion chicharone; hamachi crudo with soy caramel, avocado lime puree, pickled shallots, and crème fraiche; duck liver with mushroom risotto and almond cherry mousse; chicken roulade with shiitake mushrooms, cranberry, goat cheese, and mustard herb gnocchi; and chocolate citrus cremeux.

Tickets are $45 ($42 members). Beverages, gratuity, and taxes are not included. Vegetarian and gluten-free options are available. Space is limited; advance reservations are required. For more information, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 0524.

A second dinner will be held Saturday, March 7, which will include a private gallery tour of Machine Age Modernism: Prints from the Daniel Cowin Collection with Manton Curator of Prints, Drawings, and Photographs Jay A. Clarke.

In other upcoming events, there will be a Valentine’s Day Tea held on Saturday, February 14, with seatings at 11:30 am and 1:30 pm. Children are welcome and are encouraged to dress festively for the occasion, which features elegant tea sandwiches and special Valentine's sweets. Tickets are $24 for adults and $12 for children. Space is limited; advance reservations are required. For reservations and more information, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 0524. Other Valentine’s Day activities include free love-themed gallery talks at 10:30 am, 12:30 pm, 2:30 pm, and 4:30 pm, as well as an “I Love Art” activity in the permanent collection galleries in which visitors vote for their favorite works of art.

ABOUT CHEF DANIEL HARDY

Executive Chef Daniel Hardy combines his passion for healthy, wholesome cooking with the bountiful selection from local farms to create a refreshing approach to food. Trained at Western Culinary Institute in Portland, Oregon, Hardy began his career at Signal Mountain Lodge in Wyoming after which he became executive chef at the Old Yellowstone Garage in Jackson, Wyoming. He then moved to Seattle as a key member of the start-up team for Volterra, an Italian concept restaurant, which earned “Best New Restaurant” from Seattle Weekly in 2005. After opening Volterra, he relocated to Livingston, Montana, where he started his own company, Second Street Catering, and ran the business as chief financial officer, manager and executive chef. Hardy relocated to the East Coast in 2010 when he was offered the opportunity to lead the Mezze Catering kitchen where he worked with a team that executed events including Berkshire weddings, non-profit galas, and private parties. After several years, he landed a position as executive chef of Mezze's sister restaurant, Allium, in Great Barrington. He joined the Clark in 2014. Hardy’s recipes have been published in cookbooks and magazines, with mentions in Food & Wine, Wine Spectator, Mountain Living, Skiing, and Sunset.

ABOUT THE CLARK

The Clark Art Institute is one of a small number of institutions globally that is both an art museum and a center for research, critical discussion, and higher education in the visual arts. Opened in 1955, the Clark houses exceptional European and American paintings and sculpture, extensive collections of master prints and drawings, English silver, and early photography. Acting as convener through its Research and Academic Program, the Clark gathers an international community of scholars to participate in a lively program of conferences, colloquia, and workshops on topics of vital importance to the visual arts. The Clark library, open to the public with more than 240,000 volumes, is one of the nation’s premier art history libraries. The Clark also houses and co-sponsors the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art.

The Clark opened its expanded facilities on July 4, 2014, unveiling new and enhanced spaces that accommodate the continued growth of the Institute’s programs. Included in this final stage of the project are the new 42,600-square-foot Clark Center designed by Tadao Ando Architect & Associates, expansion and renovation of the original Museum Building and the ongoing renovation of the Manton Research Center by Selldorf Architects, and a sweeping redesign of the grounds by Reed Hilderbrand Landscape Architecture. The first phase of the campus expansion project was completed in 2008 with the opening of the Lunder Center at Stone Hill, a striking conservation and exhibitions facility also designed by Tadao Ando.

The Clark is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Galleries are open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm. Admission is $20; free year-round for Clark members, children 18 and younger, and students with valid ID. For more information, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 2303.

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