Glass House ‘Summer Party’ Set for June 8 [Q&A]

The Glass House’s celebrated annual fundraiser, The Summer Party, will be held 12 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 8. This year, attendees can explore the restored Brick House, in addition to the world-famous Glass House and other Philip Johnson structures on the 49-acre campus.

We put some questions to Glass House Executive Director Kirsten Reoch ahead of the big party.

Here’s our exchange.

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New Canaanite: It’s a big year at The Glass House, the 75th anniversary as well as the long-awaited restoration and opening of the Brick House. What is some of the feedback you’ve had in the early going this tour season since it opened?

Kirsten Reoch: The news about the 75th anniversary, the re-opening of the restored Brick House, and our 2024 seasonal exhibitions have drawn a lot of visitors since we opened for the year on April 15. We have new visitors coming for the first time and people returning because there is so much new to see. Tours are filling up for the spring and summer – which is great because the site is so beautiful, green and lush right now. It’s a gorgeous time to be here. The 1949 Brick House, open for the first time since 2017, is what people seem to be the most engaged with as it really rounds out the whole experience and understanding of the Glass House’s design. The two structures were originally conceived together as two halves of a whole and for all these years our guests were unable to connect with that vision by the architect. After a meticulous restoration, it is open for everyone to enjoy. We also have two very special exhibitions this season – Shigeru Ban’s Paper Log House at The Glass House in the south meadow and a special display of the works by the late Frank Stella from our permanent collection. There’s a lot to see and I always recommend signing up for the extended tours or the self-guided tours on Sundays to have time to see everything. Of course, one can also come to the Summer Party on June 8 when all features will be open and activated for the party.

Given what the Glass House property offers, the Summer Party is always one of the most interactive, fun and relaxing days of the year. For our readers who have never gone, describe how it works and tell us about any special highlights for June 8.

The Summer Party is a very special and expansive summer picnic with sites to see, touch, and smell along with music to dance to and lawn games such jumbo jenga and ping pong. Always held at the most beautiful time of the year, guests all get picnic baskets filled with delicious food and picnic baskets by New Canaan’s own restaurant, Elm. We are so grateful for other sponsors including local support from Earth Garden, Greenology, Jack’s Coffee, Litchfield Distillery, Dr. Order’s Baking Co, Modern House Plant, Moffly Media, WSHU, and more. The first summer party was in 1967 with Merce Cunningham Dance Company and the Velvet Underground and I love that we are able to continue this mixture of architecture, landscape, art, music, and performance on a summer Saturday afternoon. Guests can grab their picnic basket, explore the art galleries, enter the Shigeru Ban Paper Log House, and get their chance to see the inside of the newly restored 1949 Brick House. There’s a lot to see and do – but relaxing in the shade and taking it all in at your leisure is always encouraged!

How important is the Summer Party to the operations of the Glass House?

The Summer Party is our primary fundraiser each year and the support we receive helps us to maintain the site, care for the fine art collection, present new annual exhibitions, foster visiting classrooms, and keep this Connecticut treasure open for our visitors each year. It is also an opportunity for our friends and neighbors here to show us how much The Glass House means to New Canaan. We really hope to see community members there enjoying the day. It means a lot to be a part of and a resource for this community.

The Summer Party is a sort of choose-your-own-adventure experience, because there’s so much to see and do on the campus. Beyond the Glass House, Brick House and other Johnson structures on the site, what are some of the other things to see and enjoy during the Summer Party? 

The 49-acre property is open for exploration or relaxing on blankets or sitting at picnic tables and other furniture provided by Design Within Reach. Max Mara, our presenting sponsor, will have special displays, photo ops and gifts for attendees and Aesop will have a Garden Spritz fragrance experience, shuttles by Land Rover Darien. We will all be entertained by a series of performances by Brendan Fernandes dance company in addition to music by DJ Rachel Winters. This year’s Summer Party artist is Ed Ruscha, who was collected by Johnson, created a special benefit edition lithograph to help raise funds for The Glass House. We will kick off the auction benefit on Friday, May 24 @ 12pm ET with our silent auction hosted by Artsy and will feature a range of artworks in all mediums, design items, unique experiences, and jewelry. The auction will close Monday, June 10 @ 12pm ET. Highlights from the auction include Baccarat, Tyler Hays, Annie Leibovitz, Tom Otterness, Cindy Sherman, and Pierre Yovanovitch generously donated by the artists. It is a not to be missed New Canaan experience to celebrate the beginning of the summer season. 

What else, if anything, would you like to tell our readers about the Summer Party?

As I joined The Glass House staff in September last year, this will be my first Summer Party! Maybe some of your readers also have always wanted to go but never got around to it. I think that this 75th Anniversary celebration is the year to be there. Please join me and other New Canaanites in the fun and help support this modernist landmark of our town.