Box Art Pushes Convention

As there is more than one side to every story, there are more than six sides to every box.

For starters, there are technically 12 surfaces to work with, said painter Fulvio Massi, who recently had his first brush with creating a piece of box art to be auctioned off by the East End Hospice on Saturday, September 10, during its 11th annual “Box Art Auction” event.

“The first thing I thought was it could be a three-dimensional painting,” Mr. Massi said of the piece from his Bridgehampton home last week. “I do a lot of free scribble, but I didn’t know how to replicate it.”

The solution: guitar string. He looped it through an old wine box, which still utilizes part of its sliding cover that’s cut to show the box’s interior.

“Cutting the cover that way, you’re revealing the hidden part of the box, which otherwise would be lost,” the native of Italy said. “I thought to put a mirror inside, too. That really brings it into the game.”

Over the last 11 years, the “Box Art Auction” has certainly seen its share of eclectic creativity, said benefit chair Arlene Bujese, who has been involved with the event since its inception.

“The thought behind this was, ‘Why not have artists make things, instead of traditionally asking artists for works to be auctioned off?’” she said during a telephone interview last week. “And what we’ve gotten are boxes painted on the inside, outside, top and bottom. Some break up the box and turn it into a sculpture. Some, the only way you can ever tell ... ”

She paused, and laughed.

“Well, actually, you can’t even tell it was a box,” she concluded.

Each of this year’s 87 participating artists began with either a cigar or wine box. But the rest was up to them, Ms. Bujese said.

There are only a few rules the artists must follow: the piece can’t plug in electrically and it can’t be larger than 18 inches in any direction, Ms. Bujese explained.

“It’s a lesson learned after I got one that was 6 feet tall,” Ms. Bujese said. “And also, that they not be so fragile that we have to carry them in an armored vehicle.”

While the annual auction isn’t the hospice’s largest fundraiser, it is the organization’s only event in East Hampton, said community relations coordinator Theresa Murphy.

The auction consistently raises more than $50,000 annually, she said. Pieces in the silent auction start at $125, and live auction box art begin at $250. All proceeds are put toward the hospice’s general fund, which provides care for terminally ill patients and their families on the North and South forks—a worthy cause in artist Anne Sager’s eyes.

“The auction is a very exciting experience, but it also goes toward a very, very good organization,” Ms. Sager said during a telephone interview last week. “Someday, we all might need hospice.”

This year, Ms. Sager decided to combine an image of an old painting—“Dance (I)” by Henri Matisse—with the more contemporary “Broadway Boogie Woogie” by Piet Mondrian. Hence, Ms. Sager named her cigar box piece “Dancing to Boogie Woogie.”

“It is a creative experience and I certainly like the idea that these boxes make money for hospice,” she said. And they really are an inexpensive way to keep artwork in your home. I’ve bought a few of them myself. I even bought back one of my own because I liked it so much.”

Ms. Bujese, who has chaired the event for seven of the 11 years, owns eight box art pieces, she said. As an artist herself, she’s created two boxes—one the auction’s first year and her most recent on the 10-year anniversary. It was a memorial to all of the participating artists who had died since the event’s inception.

“I felt moved to do that last year,” Ms. Bujese said.

Because, as chair, she is responsible for choosing 20 boxes from the group to be put in the live auction, Ms. Bujese will not participate this year, she said.

“I enjoy seeing what comes in, as it comes in,” she added. “You think you saw everything that can be done and then each year I start receiving them, there’s always a surprise. It’s ‘Gee, I didn’t think someone thought that way.’ Or someone will stretch him or herself and you won’t recognize the artist right away.”

The event will cater to 250 bidders with wine and hors d’oeuvres, Ms. Bujese reported, but she emphasized that no one will be turned away.

“You’re supporting art, celebrating art and celebrating a wonderful, important organization,” she said. “Bidders can feel really good that they’re contributing what they have spent, yet they have something they can take home, as well. It’s a win-win, as I see it.”

East End Hospice will host its 11th annual “Box Art Auction” on Saturday, September 10, at 4:30 p.m. at the Ross School Center for Well-Being in East Hampton. The live auction will begin at 6 p.m. Admission is $60. Leading up to the event, the boxes can be viewed on Wednesday, August 31, and Thursday, September 1, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Hoie Hall at St. Luke’s Church in East Hampton. A free preview reception will be held there on Wednesday, August 31, from 5 to 7 p.m. For more information or to place an absentee bid, call 288-7080 or email tmurphy@eeh.org.