PHOTOS: The 2025 Whitney Gala Inspired by Max Mara

Jordan Casteel, Scott Rothkopf, Amy Sherald and Darren Walker. Jason Lowrie/BFA.com

Earlier this week, the Whitney held its 2025 gala, and as always, it was a sharp, high-gloss celebration of contemporary culture. The satin-fueled spectacle celebrated ten years since the Whitney decamped to its Renzo Piano–designed home in the Meatpacking District—a milestone nearly upstaged by it also being a decade since Max Mara released its iconic Whitney Bag (seen here dangling from the forearms of Kathy Hilton, Andie MacDowell and others).

The evening also honored three major forces in the art world: acclaimed artist Amy Sherald (whose “American Sublime” opened to major fanfare last month), beloved Whitney curator Barbara Haskell and philanthropist Richard DeMartini. All three have made indelible—though very different—contributions to American art, and their legacies were celebrated by the beau monde of New York City culture.

The night began with a burst of energy as guests sipped margaritas and espresso martinis in the museum’s ground-floor lobby, soundtracked by a DJ set from the vivacious Natasha Diggs. From there, the crowd ascended to the seventh-floor galleries for a seated dinner beneath the museum’s vaulted ceilings. And what a crowd it was! Among the bold-faced names in attendance: thespians Claire Danes, Hugh Dancy, Laura Harrier, Michelle Monaghan, Leslie Bibb; designers June Ambrose, Wes Gordon, Maria Giulia Prezioso Maramotti and Nicky Hilton Rothschild, along with model Ubah Hassan and photographer Mario Sorrenti.

The art world turned out in full force. Firelei Báez, Kevin Beasley, Jordan Casteel, Torkwase Dyson, Teresita Fernández, Jeffrey Gibson, Wade Guyton, Camille Henrot, Lotus Kang, Josh Kline, Jeff Koons, Jesse Krimes, Julian Lethbridge, Glenn Ligon, Trevor Paglen, Rachel Rose, Ian Cheng, Tom Sachs, Ilana Savdie, Laurie Simmons, Carroll Dunham, Lorna Simpson, Henry Taylor, Dyani White Hawk and Terry Winters rubbed shoulders with high-profile patrons and cultural power players, including Steven Beltrani, Donna De Salvo, Rick Hilton, Sarah Hoover, Tina Kim, Matthew Marks, Lisa Phillips, Jordan Roth and the inimitable Darren Walker.

TLC kicking it old school. Tiffany Sage/BFA.com

But the evening’s highest high note came after dinner, when—without preamble and quite unexpectedly—four-time Grammy Award winners TLC (Tionne Watkins and Rozonda Thomas) took the stage and brought the house down with a live performance of their biggest hits. All in all, the Whitney’s 2025 gala raised a record-breaking $6 million for the museum, plus an unexpected $1 million gift from Whitney Trustee and songwriter Judy Hart Angelo to support the museum’s free admissions program. Another $750,000 was raised for the Barbara Haskell American Fellows Legacy Fund, ensuring the legacy of a curator who’s shaped generations of American art history. Not bad for a Tuesday night in May.