![\"Image](\"https:\/\/assets.vogue.com\/photos\/69f12d719d536c01f8b6298c\/master\/w_1600%2Cc_limit\/BFA-1.jpg\"\/)
<\/picture><\/span><\/div>\nChlo\u00eb Sevigny<\/span>Yvonne Tnt\/BFA.com<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n Cipriani South Street was in full bloom on Monday evening, thanks to The New Museum. The lower Manhattan venue was bursting with pink and orange flowers for the art institution\u2019s annual gala\u2014though the boldest blossoms came from the guests themselves. Though no dress code was in place, most arrived in their best printed, embroidered, and sequined floral attire, furthering the event\u2019s sense of joy, levity, and renewal.<\/p>\n Indeed, there was plenty to celebrate. The evening honored the beloved outgoing Toby Devan Lewis director Lisa Phillips, who will be stepping down from her position after 27 years at the institution. And shortly after the gala\u2019s cocktail hour, it was happily announced that previous fundraising records had been broken, as the event had amassed $2.7 million in donations (and counting).<\/p>\n The recent opening of the museum\u2019s second building was also the toast of the night. Its new space currently hosts the sweeping exhibition New Humans: Memories of the Future,<\/em> featuring works from Sophia Al-Maria, Berenice Olmedo, Jamian Juliano-Villani, and a variety of artists focused on creativity and humanity\u2019s relationship to evolving technology. Plus, a new caf\u00e9 is not far behind. Guests including Jeff Koons, Pamela Hanson, Jamie Singer Soros, and honorary committee chair Chlo\u00eb Sevigny\u2014fittingly clad in Chlo\u00e9 florals\u2014were understandably all in high spirits.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s very few institutions downtown that have this caliber of curation,\u201d Sevigny told Vogue.<\/em> \u201cIt\u2019s exciting that people can be hanging out at the parks, Washington Square, Tompkins, and just walk over to the museum. Sometimes, the trek uptown can be a little intimidating.\u201d<\/p>\n Inside the event, the crowd mingled over bubbling pink bellinis, enjoying zucchini chips and miniature club sandwiches while perusing a silk charmeuse painting by Cindy Sherman and stoneware busts by Rashid Johnson, which were all up for auction. Most disregarded the initial seating announcement to snap photos with Phillips, whose impactful tenure includes championing diverse contemporary artists, co-founding its NEW INC incubator program, and co-curating six Whitney Biennials.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n