On the evening of September 22, guests gathered at the New York flagship location of Lafayette 148, which was founded in 1966 by Diedre Quinn, Ida Sui, and Shun Yen Sui and named after its address. Dressed to the nines, with many in Lafayette 148 Italian crafted accessories, shearling reversible vests, and blazers, they meandered between the clothing racks in the gallery-like space, where drinks were served alongside caviar-stuffed potato bites set to the soft hum of a playlist by model and DJ Alexandra Richards. The affair was far more than a gathering of the fashionable set: Lafayette 148 hosted to support the nonprofit Save Venice’s “Women Artists of Venice” program, which is working towards the restoration of Female Saint in Glory, an 18th-century painting by Giulia Lama.
Founded in 1971 by art history professor John McAndrew; his wife Betty Bartlett McAndrew, and Sydney J. Freedberg, chairman of the art department at Harvard and chief curator emeritus of the National Gallery of Art, Save Venice is dedicated to the preservation of art history. Thus far, the organization has been able to fund the conservation of about 2,000 artworks. Lafayette 148 dedicated ten percent of sales from the evening to conserving the Lama painting.
Invested also in the continuing success of young women artists’ lives, Lafayette 148 invited two outstanding New York University ballet students who have modeled for the brand, Emily Eshoo and Sydney Hirai, to join in on the celebration. Save Venice supporters including Lauren Santo Domingo, Lizzie Asher, Adelina Wong Ettelson, Daysi Kanavos, Nathalie Kaplan, Casey Kohlberg, Alexandra Lind Rose, and Alana Zimmer—the face of Lafayette 148’s Spring 2023 campaign—all attended the event at the fashion flagship, helping continue the efforts to conserve art made by women in Venice.
