Laura O'Connor (President, Pasadena Art Alliance), Vivian Rescalvo (Event Chair), and Mollie White at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Justin Dean, Mia Dean, Deanni McGee, and Pat McGee at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Clarissa Welrick and David Zaro at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Dorothy Matthiessen, Levlie Clayton, and Mary Alexander at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
George Penner, John Babcock, Laura Babcock, and Judy Penner at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Laura O'Connor (President, Pasadena Art Alliance), Nancy Monk (Artist), Sarah Lajeune (Artist), and Robin Banks at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Edwina Dedlow and David Dedlow (Artist) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
R-Lene de Lang and Gina Knox (VP, Pasadena Art Alliance) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Soia Singla, Carrie Davich, and Carolyn Morton at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Toi Treister and Gina Knox (VP, Pasadena Art Alliance) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Bette Cooper and Annie Brose at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Mollie White and Charles Moody (Artist) with Moody's watercolor painting "March 15th, 11:30am, Los Angeles" at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Polly Wheaton and Chris Lewis at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
David McCarthy, Yvonne Zaro, David Zaro, Kathleen Maguire Miller, and Carlin McCarthy at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Alexis Hyde, Jennifer Bedford, and Brian Masterman listening to DJ Lani Love at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
David King, Andrea Nagata, and Ed O'Connor at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Andy O'Connor and Rebecca Ring at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Terri Miller and Laura O'Connor (President, Pasadena Art Alliance) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Terri Miller and a art enthusiast with fabric artwork "Willie Lincoln" by Chris Roberts Antieau at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Suzanne Holder, Barney Evans, and Courtney Evans at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
John Sheptock, Parker Howe, and Erin McDonald at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Denise Brady, Anne Otter, Heidrun Mumper-Drumm, and Shelley Sackett at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Kimberley Stever and Robin Stever at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Peter Neff, Meg Aldrich, Patsy Pinney, William Pinney, and Charles Moody (Artist) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Jaime Scholnick (Artist) with her mixed media artwork "Thinking of Barry McGee" at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Denise Mathews and Sarah Lejeune with Lajeune's mixed media artwork "Study for Burnscar: Sacred Datura" at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Janice Bae, Max Brennan, and Sigrid Burton (Artist) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Linda Brownridge, Lizzie Salvati, and Gaji Fujita (Artist) at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Colin Ward, Reiko Wei, Patrick Ward, and Shannon Ward at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
Scott Ward, Greg King, and Parker Howe at the Pasadena Art Alliance Art Auction held at The Pit [Shirley Huang/Pasadena Now]
At The Pit in Atwater Village, the Pasadena Art Alliance’s biennial auction read less like a benefit and more like a tightly packed survey of contemporary practice—painting, sculpture, fiber, and assemblage, all donated, all for sale, all in service of something beyond the room.
“This is all donated art from local artists,” said Gina Knox, the Art Alliance’s vice president. “And we raise money to support contemporary art throughout Los Angeles. So this is our one Fundraiser.”
The structure is simple and, for the Art Alliance, essential. The group holds one major fundraiser to support its grants, distributing roughly thirty awards each year to arts organizations across Greater Los Angeles, most of them in Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley.
“We have one fundraiser in order to earn enough money to fund our grants, which is what our mission is,” said president Laura O’Connor. “And we give it all away.”
The auction, held every other year, is typically the largest of those efforts. This year’s event included work from roughly eighty artists, Knox said, with contributions spanning multiple media but centered on contemporary work.
For the artists, participation is both practical and personal. Many return regularly, part of what O’Connor described as a reciprocal relationship built over time. “They all are so enthusiastic and so generous,” she said.
That generosity carried particular weight this year. Several artists had been affected by the Eaton Fire in Altadena. The Alliance told them they were not expected to donate. “Many of them said, ‘No, we still want to donate,’” O’Connor said.
Inside the gallery, those experiences surfaced in quieter ways—through materials, subject matter, and conversation. Artist Sarah Lejeune described returning to the Santa Monica Mountains after a fire and documenting the slow recovery. “Everything was black,” she said of her first visit back. Over time, she began photographing the regrowth, including fields of plants that appeared in greater numbers than before. “It was really, really amazing,” she said, describing the process that led to a large-scale painting based on those observations.
Another artist, Jaime Scholnick, spoke about working with found materials—objects left behind in a former furniture manufacturing space where she maintains a studio. “They were throwing them out,” she said. “I love to use material that’s in my… environment.” Her practice now includes sculptural work and fabric-based pieces, some of which will appear in an upcoming exhibition.
Scholnick also pointed to the long-term impact of public art commissions, including a 400-foot installation at the Expo/Crenshaw station. “It changed my life,” she said. “Since then, I’ve gotten two other commissions that are big.”
For others, the Art Alliance represents a model as much as a marketplace. One artist and consultant who has worked on public art projects with agencies like Metro said she often cites the group as an example of how to connect artists and communities effectively. It is, she said, “a really great organization” for bringing a community sensibility to contemporary art.
The evening itself moved without a fixed target. “We don’t really know,” Knox said when asked about a fundraising goal.
Instead, the measure comes later, when the proceeds are distributed. For now, the exchange is immediate: artists contribute work, collectors respond, and an all-volunteer organization translates that activity into support for dozens of arts institutions across the region.
