Press Release

Her Majesty Queen Sofía and Her Excellency Shaikha Mai Bint Mohammed Al Khalifa Of Bahrain Honored at Annual World Monuments Fund Hadrian Gala on October 21, 2015

New York, NY, October 22, 2015—The grand ballroom of Cipriani’s 42nd Street was filled with approximately 350 guests on October 21, 2015, to celebrate World Monuments Fund’s 50th Anniversary and to honor two remarkable women for their accomplishments and leadership on behalf of heritage preservation.  The event, along with the Hadrian Gala After Party, held at The Lambs Club Bar at The Chatwal Hotel, raised $995,000 for World Monuments Fund, the leading, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the world’s architectural heritage.

Her Majesty Queen Sofía received the Hadrian Award in recognition of her generous and tireless efforts to promote awareness and understanding of the cultural heritage of Spain and for motivating others to action through her ongoing support and advocacy of Spanish patrimony. Her Excellency Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa of Bahrain, the President of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, received the Watch Award in recognition of the singular role she has played in the preservation and protection of culture and heritage in Bahrain.

The evening also included a tribute to Bonnie Burnham, President of World Monuments Fund for 30 years, who is retiring this fall. Jack Shear, WMF Trustee, announced that he and Ellsworth Kelly have contributed $500,000 to start an endowed fellowship in Burnham’s name that will fund a one-year position with WMF for a young preservation professional. The retiring president was also feted by Timothy McClimon, president of American Express Foundation, a long standing partner of World Monuments Fund, who presented her with an American Express travel poster of France from the 1930s.

In addition to the above, those in attendance included: Joshua David, co-founder of Friends of the High Line, and incoming World Monuments Fund President; Prince Amyn Aga Khan; Princess Yasmin Aga Khan; Mica Ertegün; His Excellency Ambassador Ramón Gil-Casares, Ambassador of Spain to the U.S.; Dr. Valentin Fuster, Director of Mount Sinai Heart and Physician-in-Chief of The Mount Sinai Hospital; Atif A. Abdulmalik, Chairman of Arcapita Bank in Bahrain; Susan Molinari, Vice President of Public Policy and Government Relations for The Americas at Google Inc.; Philippe de Montebello; Mary McFadden; HRH Prince Dimitri of Yugoslavia; Inmaculada de Habsburgo-Lorena; H.E. Mr. Motohide Yoshikawa Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations; Pilar and Juan Pablo Molyneux;  Roger Berlind, Tony Award-winning Broadway producer; Amb. W.L. Lyons Brown, former Ambassador to Austria; Eileen Guggenheim; Mounir Bouchenaki, former assistant director general of UNESCO;  Vijay and Nanda Anand; Fernanda M. Kellogg; Simon Roosevelt; Juan Carlos Fierro, Chairman of WMF Spain; Monika McLennan;  Suzanne Deal Booth; architect Alexander Gorlin; Sydney Houghton Weinberg; Madison Cox; and Joan Hardy Clark, among others.

During cocktails, guests were treated to a preview of Google Cultural Institute’s special 3D visualization of the Chancellerie d’Orléans, which brought this remarkable WMF conservation project to life.

The evening also included special performances by the Amir Vahab Ensemble; Joseaugusto Mejía, on Spanish guitar; Mohammed bin Faris Ensemble; Hyesang Park and Edward Parks from Operalia (the world opera competition founded by renowned tenor Plácido Domingo), accompanied by Myra Huang on piano; and Ballet Hispanico’s BHdos.

After the gala, guests headed to the After Party, hosted by WMF’s young patron group, the Moai Circle. The After Party was already in full swing at The Lambs Club, with music by DJ-duo AndrewAndrew. The party co-chairs were Mieke ten Have and Carlos Huber. 

# # #

Press contact: Daniela Stigh, Communications Director, World Monuments Fund, 646-424-9582 or dstigh@wmf.org.

Images available upon request. Or visit PatrickMcMullan.com for photos of the Hadrian Gala (here and here) and After Party (here and here). After Party photos can also be found on Guest of a Guest.

Image right ©Scott Rudd

Open PDF