A Stellar Season for the Syd: Arts council celebrates year of success with gala
Published 4:57 pm Tuesday, April 29, 2025
The outdoor pavilion of the gala was just as busy as the interior celebration, with plenty of guests electing to enjoy the evening outdoors.
Along with the silent auction and reverse raffle, gala patrons could take part in an drawing for a one of a kind diamond ring by purchasing a glass of champagne. Victoria Garcia, a candidate for Miss Fiesta del Pueblo 2025, roamed the gala serving as a model for the auction's prize.
As a testament to the work the Tifton Council for the Arts had put in to bring art programs to the county's elementary schools, a handful of works crafted by the students of said schools was on display during the evening's festivities.
Kenneth Barfield was one of three plein air painters hard at work during the gala, diligently capturing the stained glass of the Syd in art form with chalk and paint. In addition, a series of his artworks of the Syd's various stained glass windows were available for sale during the event.
Syd executive director Bruce Green recounts all of the progress the Tifton Council for the Arts had managed to make during the past year, thanking the community for their support and asserting they would continue striving for ever greater heights in the coming year.
Out on the outdoor pavilion, musician Joshua Pridemoor serenaded gala guests throughout the evening.
Ariella Ramos was one of the three student artists recognized by the Tifton Council for the Arts during the gala. A student at the University of Georgia and a self-taught artist who's been painting since third grade, her work "A Time to Wake Up," explored the exploitation of the coffee industry in Guatemala. Half of the profits from its auction will go to support Ramos's education.
TIFTON — As thanks for the past year of support and success, the Tifton Council for the Arts invited local residents to join them for a lively evening of arts appreciation April 24 with their annual arts gala.
Patrons bustled about the busy halls of the Syd Blackmarr Arts Center, enjoying fine dining delights with a tropical zest, mingling with their fellow art aficionados, and taking in the spirit of the festivities. The celebration even spilled out into the space behind the arts center, where a second dining area, complete with live music, was set up to enjoy the event amid the evening air.
The area also housed the selection of items up for bid in the gala’s silent auction, inviting guests to browse the various prizes and write down a bid throughout the evening, in the hopes of walking away with their coveted quarry at the end of the night.
Auction items included art from several local artists, a utility trailer, a 5-night stay at the Lodge of Mountaineer Square in Crested Butte, Colorado, tickets to the University of Georgia vs. University of North Carolina at Stanford this fall, and a pair of Brooks running shoes from Tifton’s Best Running.
Other raffles were taking place inside the Syd as well, like a champagne auction inviting guests to purchase a glass of champagne for a chance to win a diamond ring crafted by Central Jewelers and a live auction for a trio of artworks created by students from the community.
Intended to recognize and celebrate the efforts and passion of some of Tiftarea’s rising artists, who were in or would soon be heading off to college, the arts council ensured that half of the profits from each winning bid would go back to support the students’ educational pursuits.
Guests enjoying the evening outside were kept updated on the proceedings of the gala’s events, including the auction, via a live broadcast, and were given full ability to bid on the three pieces of art with the aid of staff monitoring and reporting their bids.
The main event of the evening was the gala’s reverse raffle, which saw tickets pulled from the pool at regular intervals until only one remained, with the winner receiving a choice of either a $10,000 cash prize or a four-night trip for six to Tulum, Mexico, and $5,000. Patrons dropped out of the drawing had the opportunity to buy their way back in by purchasing more tickets, spicing up the competition.
The spoils of the contest would go to city clerk and deputy city manager Jessica White, who elected to take the vacation in Tulum as her prize.
Members of the arts council expressed their gratitude to the community for their support across the past year during the gala’s festivities, reporting on their growth throughout 2024 and announcing their plans for the coming year.
Bruce Green, executive director for the Syd Blackmarr Arts Center, asserted that the arts council had managed to expand and strengthen their partnerships with several local organizations, including Southwell, the local library, Georgia Power, and Tift County Schools.
He proudly reported that through their efforts and these relationships, the Tifton Council for the Arts had managed to bring the arts to over 10,000 people in the Tiftarea last year.
Additionally, the arts council had been working to bring art teachers to various elementary schools in the community that didn’t have an existing or extensive art program. While Green noted that they’d succeeded in getting a few such teachers situated, he and the rest of the arts council were eager to continue bringing more arts education to elementary schools in the county.
Green expressed his immense gratitude to the attendees of the arts gala, and the greater community as a whole, for their continued support of the Tifton Council for the Arts and its programs, with the hope and assurance they would continue to work to foster and bring the arts to the people of the Tiftarea.
