Avant Garden, the Walker’s annual benefit, has established itself as the party of the year—and the 2019 event lived up to this well-deserved reputation. As the evening unfolded throughout the Walker galleries and spectacular tents in the Wurtele Upper Garden, more than 1,300 guests turned out to celebrate the Walker and the institution’s award-winning artistic and educational programs. In addition to the robust support of individual Walker fans, 32 Twin Cities corporate citizens participated, chief among them the event’s lead sponsor, Hero Office Systems.
Hero provides office furniture created by artists, fabricators, and manufacturers with an inspired sense of materials and process. The company seeks to support all who sit at a desk with elevated aesthetics, utility, and comfort by offering some of the world’s most innovative designs, conceived and built in the United States. “Like the Walker, we see ourselves as a channel for the creative expression of artists,” say Hero founders Jeanie Simon and George Zenanko. “Hero is proud to support the Walker Art Center, and truly appreciates that it is a catalyst for such creativity.”
“Avant Garden takes a village, from the staff, to our individual patrons, to our corporate sponsors,” says Walker Executive Director Mary Ceruti. “We are delighted to welcome Hero to our family. Their approach to business is creative and customized, and we certainly could not do all that we do in the community without their critical support.”
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