Latrobe trust will honor Southern Alleghenies Museum during annual gala

This year’s Art Gala hosted by the Greater Latrobe School District Art Conservation Trust will honor the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art in Ligonier Township.

The annual event supports the trust’s work to oversee and care for Greater Latrobe’s art collections, which were generated by two teachers: James Beatty and Mary Martha Himler. The collections are entirely student-selected and mostly student-purchased.

Inspiration for the gala’s decorations this year comes from the painting “Light Snow” by Roy Hilton, which was acquired in 1948.

Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art is being honored because it has presented “outstanding” exhibits, provided “wonderful” educational programming and has worked with area school districts on projects such as the Artists of the 21st Century exhibition, which featured regional student artwork.

During the Art Gala, works of art under consideration for student vote will be on display in Greater Latrobe’s Center for Student Creativity.

Student representatives from Latrobe’s junior high and elementary schools will choose from works borrowed from the Latrobe Art Center to take back to their schools for a student vote.

High school student council members borrowed works from Latrobe Art Center’s Mister Fred Rogers Fine Arts Juried Exhibition, the Southwestern Pennsylvania Council for the Arts Exhibition at SAMA-Ligonier Valley and Greensburg Art Center’s Biennial Exhibition.

Tickets for the event, which will take place at 6 p.m. Nov. 2 at Greater Latrobe Senior High School, are $25 per person.

The Art Gala will include four gourmet food stations, music from the Greater Latrobe Jazz Ensemble and student docent presentations about the works.