A red carpet staffed with photographers, a world-renowned museum as the venue and a theme for guests\u2019 attire and expectations to adhere to \u2014 these descriptors sound like the Met Gala, but they also befit another event here on Stanford\u2019s campus. On May 21, La Soir\u00e9e Cardinale celebrated the art collections and community artists at the Anderson Collection and the Cantor Arts Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Open exclusively to Stanford students and their plus-ones, the event was organized by Cardinal Nights, FashionX and the Cantor Art Center\u2019s Student Advisory Committee. With over 700 attendees, this was the second year of the Soir\u00e9e, with the theme \u201cThrough the Looking Glass: Art as Mirror.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe like to think of La Soir\u00e9e Cardinale as a democratization of the Met Gala,\u201d said Bridget Phillips \u201926, chair of the Student Advisory Committee of the Cantor Arts Center. \u201cWhat I have cared most about \u2026\u00a0 is producing an event that is open to all, accessible to all.\u201d<\/p>\n
The majority of the event planning occurred during the winter quarter, according to Phillips. In April, FashionX and the Cantor Arts Center organized \u201cPatches & Patches,\u201d a prelude event to the Soir\u00e9e, where students learned basic mending techniques, textile production and fiber materials, and brought clothing to upcycle, swap or donate. In addition to promoting the Soir\u00e9e, this event reflected the philanthropic aspect of the Met Gala, the Soir\u00e9e\u2019s source of inspiration.<\/p>\n
The Soir\u00e9e itself was organized by FashionX members and the Cantor Arts Center\u2019s staff, including student guides and student engagement assistants. \u201cFrom last year and this year, this event is really student-driven and student-led,\u201d said Vivian Sming, Cantor Arts Center associate director of academic and public programs, \u201cThe staff is here to support that vision.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Soir\u00e9e began at the Anderson Collection, Stanford\u2019s collection of contemporary American art. Student photographers captured guests dressed in their interpretation of the night\u2019s theme \u2014 \u201cThrough the Looking Glass: Art as Mirror\u201d \u2014 which\u00a0 was a continuation of FashionX\u2019s 2026 runway<\/a> show, themed \u201cThe Mirror Stage,\u201d as well as the 2015 Met Gala theme of \u201cThrough the Looking Glass.\u201d The Soir\u00e9e\u2019s theme also evoked the title of Lewis Caroll\u2019s 1871 sequel to \u201cAlice\u2019s Adventures in Wonderland.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted to lean into that surreal, dream-like world\u2026 to reinforce the idea of stepping into a creative looking glass space where identity and imagination interact,\u201d\u00a0said Skylar Johnson \u201927, one of La Soir\u00e9e Cardinale\u2019s co-directors and a member of FashionX,\u00a0<\/p>\n Some guests posed on the carpet in red and burgundy dresses matching the Queen of Hearts\u2019 attire, with light blue ensembles reflecting Alice\u2019s garb and accessories like rabbit ears (paying homage to the White Rabbit), as reflected in Fashion X\u2019s moodboard for the night. Other guests showed up in gowns and tuxedoes following the invitation<\/a> for attendees to \u201cconsider the museums as your muse and come dressed in colors, shapes, and patterns inspired by art.\u201d<\/p>\n Inside the Anderson, a multisensory experience greeted the guests, thanks to a soundscape and tactile activities that accompanied the art. Shaping the soundscape were DJ dJai (Jai Agrawal \u201928), violinist Sean Tan \u201927, guitarist Eric Wang \u201926 and performance artist fp-matrix (Pauline Mornet, a third-year PhD student). The musicians were all positioned between Terry Winters\u2019 \u201cColor and Information,\u201d Mark Rothko\u2019s \u201cPink and White Over Red,\u201d and Helen Frankenthaler\u2019s \u201cApproach\u201d as they performed for attendees walking up the Anderson\u2019s staircase.\u00a0<\/p>\n