WMF Honors Frank Stella and Deborah Lehr at 2017 Hadrian Gala

World Monuments Fund held its 2017 Hadrian Gala on Monday night at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, celebrating the accomplishments of champions of conservation who are helping to preserve and protect the world’s shared cultural heritage.

Guests enjoyed cocktails and tunes by DJ Franco V before a seated dinner, where the 2018 World Monuments Watch was announced. Later, the evening culminated with the presentation of the 2017 Watch Award to Frank Stella, and the 2017 Hadrian Award to Deborah Lehr.

Stella, the famed American artist, was instrumental in saving Long Island’s A. Conger Goodyear House, one of the most significant houses built in the United States between the two world wars. His activism on behalf of modern buildings also led to the development of World Monuments Fund’s Modernism at Risk initiative, which draws attention to modern sites around the world.

Lehr employs her vast professional expertise to safeguard and preserve antiquities under threat from conflict, extremism and looting in the Middle East and North Africa, most notably through the Antiquities Coalition, an organization she founded and leads as Chairman. Her leadership in U.S./China partnerships is also helping to advance sustainable urbanization and green economic development.

Click through the gallery below for more of the night’s celebration.