By TBR Staff

Art, history, and giving align for a fun time at Long Island Museum’s Mount House (c. 1725) Summer Soirée fundraiser on Saturday, June 7, from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The evening will feature live music by Johnny Cuomo, craft cocktails and delicious food provided by Bliss Restaurant, a 50/50 raffle, and live painting by LIM Development associate Danielle Reischman. 

“Our ability to do good programs, important lectures, great exhibitions, all the things people know us for and want to come to visit us for, rely on nights like this one. When you buy a ticket to an event like this, you support the museum and everything we do,” LIM’s Co-Executive Director Joshua Ruff said.

Sponsored by Long Island Tent, M&V Limousines Ltd., Pindar Vineyards, and Carol and John Lane, guests will meet at the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook and then travel by shuttle bus to the the grounds of the historic Mount House, home to American genre painter William Sidney Mount (1807-1868) as well as generations of of his artistically-inclined family. 

LIM staff will lead guided tours of the home’s first floor throughout the evening.  

“Most of the current footprint of the house was completed by the time that William Sidney Mount’s grandfather Jonas Hawkins (1752-1817) renovated and extended it by the early 19th century,” Ruff said. 

Although the house does not contain any original early artifacts or furniture, it does still boast the small markings that Mount painted on the side of the kitchen fireplace’s mantel. 

Additionally for one night only, artwork and other materials from LIM’s archives, the largest repository of Mount artifacts in the world, will be on display. 

“This is a great opportunity for people to see the inside of the [Mount] house, a community and historical treasure in our own backyard. Having all the resources related to Mount in archives and art collection, it is a good chance to tell the story in full,” Ruff said. 

That narrative incorporates not only W.S. Mount, but his relatives: brother Shepard Alonzo Mount and niece Evelina Mount, both of whom were artists in their own rights. Some of their work will be included in the showcase. 

The Mount family, particularly William, maintained strong personal and artistic ties to the Three Villages. Many of his famous works  — Left and Right, The Power of Music, Long Island Farmhouses — feature local people and places, forever immortalized through his painting.

Mount’s art gives a sense of community that transcends time. The LIM strives to offer a community — one that fosters education, enrichment, an appreciation of art, and an insight into our past. 

In an effort to support these endeavors, the LIM has a number of fundraisers throughout its fiscal year. Among them are a winter gala in November and an upcoming spring golf classic, held on Monday, May 19, at St. George’s Golf and Country Club in East Setauket. The format of its third major fundraiser, generally held in June, varies. 

Such overtures are now particularly necessary and significant.

“It’s a challenging fundraising environment for all cultural arts institutions and nonprofits across the country. The type of work and programming and exhibitions that we bring to the community are things that people cannot get anywhere else,” LIM’s Co-Executive Director Sarah Abruzzi said. 

LIM’s $134,000 Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant was recently terminated by the federal government, potentially critically hampering its ability to create a new exhibit. The grant was supposed to support Riding Towards Justice, an interactive, immersive, accessible exhibition designed around the circa 1885 street car in the carriage museum, as well as an interpretative plan to teach people about transportation.

“Receiving the termination letter was obviously a blow,” Ruff said. “We believe in making the carriage museum a more accessible place for visitors. We are redoubling our commitment to being the best place we can be for the public…we rely on support, we need our community to come together and help us, and this is one of the ways that they can.”

This symbiotic relationship with its patrons allows the museum to develop engaging, unique programs and exhibitions that enrich and inspire visitors. The Summer Soirée is one way for people to contribute to the continuation of LIM’s services.

“It is an opportunity for everyone to get together to focus on the things that are good in the world, to spend some time learning more about local history, and a really important American artist. We are doing something great for and with the community,” Abruzzi said. 

Tickets, which must be purchased in advance, are $125 each. Sponsorships are also still available. For more information or to RSVP, visit www.longislandmuseum.org.