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[click "Play" to hear Judy Kohin talk about trash to fashion]

 

 

Foam paper dress Note: Fashion Friday is Two Skirts' regular column about fashion trends and hot designers. But this week Kristin Holbrook generously turned over her real estate to the Telluride AIDS Benefit. Next week, look for our tribute to Two Skirts, celebrating its 10th anniversary.

For six year running, Beau Staley of Telluride's Dolce Jewels and Katey Brunini, a world-famous designer in his stable, have donated a line of Katey's bling to accessorize the clothes worn by the models on the catwalk of the Telluride AIDS Benefit Fashion Show. Not for nothing: the bold, beautiful line of silver warrior cuffs, shin guards, gold compass pendant, and Italian Renaissance sundial rings is all about  aggression and strength, attributes that underly TAB: The Telluride AIDS Benefit takes an aggressive stance towards the virus through prevention education, aided and abetted by its five beneficiaries, which also offer strong shoulders to people living with HIV/AIDS.

The Telluride AIDS Benefit in general and the fashion show in particular came into being as a tribute to the life of one man, Robert Presley, an outrageous, in-your-face, fearless, funny, fabulous fabric artist, who died in 1997 of AIDS. The man lacked the gene for moderation.

03 March, 2011 /

MD painting with signatures Telluride local Baerbel Hacke knows only one way to go and that's BIG.

It is Baerbel's big personality that brings second homeowners to the Telluride Gallery of Fine Art, where she is director, to find out what's happening in town. Baerbel sings big with her all-woman rock group, The 525s. When she turned 60 last month, she threw herself one big party, packing the historic Sheridan Opera House with family and friends, some of whom came all the way from Baerbel's native Germany to celebrate.

On Friday, March 4, Baerbel returns to the Opera House to host the silent art auction she puts together annually for the Telluride AIDS Benefit. The idea is to raise lots of money so that TAB can continue to support five other non-profits from Colorado to Africa, all of whom work on prevention educations and helping individuals and families living with HIV/AIDS. The event starts at noon. The bidding ends at 9 p.m. (And while you are at the Opera House, don't miss the work in the downstairs gallery. It is produced by families and kids affiliated with the Children's Immunodeficiency Program or CHIP, based at the Denver Children's Hospital. CHIP is one of TAB's beneficiaries.)

03 March, 2011 /

Hockney art prints 1
Hockney prints at TGFA

Telluride's First Thursday Art Walk is a monthly meet-and-greet, an invitation to locals and guests to find out more about Telluride's vibrant cultural scene. Art venues on or near Main Street (Colorado Avenue), as well as retail outlets stay open on that special night late until 8 p.m. Participating restaurants, including The Cosmopolitan, La Cocina de Luz, La Marmotte, The Llama, The New Sheridan Chop House and Pescado, offer Art Walk specials.

Thursday, March 3, is the last Art Walk of the winter season. We suggest the following line of march:

 

02 March, 2011 /

Dream big Let's start with the something more. Anyone who knows him knows Stash Wislocki, the Telluride AIDS Benefit's executive director, operates on all four burners. When an idea catches his hair on fire, he pursues it until it happens. For years, there has been a disconnect – perceived or real – between what happens at TAB's fashion show extravaganza and the work of the five beneficiaries. Between the glam slam on the catwalk and life on the front lines dealing with individuals and families living with HIV/AIDS. Long-time model Molly Wickwire Sante had an idea that would help bridge that gap.

Similar to the mentorship model established by Telluride-based One to One San Miguel Mentoring Program, TAB's models would "adopt" kids, even families, who are part of the Children's Hospital Immunodeficiency Program (CHIP), a clinic with the Denver Hospital. If Stash has his way, this pilot program will grow into something bigger and more comprehensive.

01 March, 2011 /
[click "Play", Susan talks with Jesse James McTigue and Rick Fusting]

 

 

Christmas Card11 Last week's post on Telluride Inside... and Out described the fundraiser: the world-renowned Harlem Ambassadors take on a local team. The event, a slam dunk fun time, is scheduled to take place Wednesday, March 2, starting at 5:30 p.m., at the Telluride Middle School/High School.

This story is all about why we want to attend. It is all about the cause: One to One San Miguel Mentoring Program.

28 February, 2011 /
[click "Play" to hear Katy Parnello's conversation with Susan]

 

 

Katy Parnello Stash Wislocki, the Telluride AIDS Benefit's executive director, is no gusher, but mention the name "Katy Parnello" and breathless superlatives start flying. With good reason.

Katy Parnello is a multi-media event unto herself: co-creator/co-owner of a successful fashion label, dancer/choreographer, and actor. This year Katy adds one more notch to her increasingly heavy belt: she is the 2011 director of the Telluride AIDS Benefit's fashion show. The Sneak Peak is Thursday, March 3, and the gala is Saturday, March 5. (Both shows are sold out and there is a waiting list.)

The fashion label, Onerary (pronounced “honor-ary”), a collaboration between Katy and Danielle DeRoberts, was inspired by the Greek word "Oneraria," which means “in a dreamlike state.” Founded in 2004 right here in Telluride, Onerary is a fair trade clothing line for women that merges forward-thinking design and functionality, striving to blur the lines between work and play. (For an early intro to Onerary, see this 2009 post on Telluride Inside... and Out.)

28 February, 2011 /
[click "Play" to listen to Ron Gilmer's take on the state of AIDS]    

6a00e553ed7fe188330148c7b8ed9c970c-120wi At the time of his death in December 2010, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke had had a 20-year relationship with the Telluride community. One fact that might be lost in all the ink spilled over his extensive legacy is this: Holbrooke was once president of the Global Business Coalition against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. As an AIDS activist, Ambassador Holbrooke summed up the Telluride AIDS Benefit this way:

"What Telluride is doing is a model for small communities around the world."

In the program for the upcoming Telluride AIDS Benefit fashion show, there's a tribute to Ambassador Holbrooke and the evening is dedicated to the man. Which is a good and proper thing, but....

Is TAB still necessary?

28 February, 2011 /
[click "Play" to listen to Jodie Wright talk about the auction items and her involvement with the Telluride AIDS Benefit]

 

Laura Linney
Laura Linney

No doubt about it. The Telluride AIDS Benefit's fashion show is the insider ticket of the winter season. Both evenings, this year, the sneak peak Thursday night, March 3, and the gala on Saturday, March 5, sell out in the blink of an eye.

(However, you can still email TAB's executive director Stash Wislocki to get on the waiting list.)

But in the middle of the fabulous booty and threads, it is easy to lose sight of the goal: AIDS prevention education and helping those living with HIV/AIDS through TAB's beneficiaries, five non-profits in all, whose tireless efforts extend from Colorado to Africa. The only way that work continues is by keeping the pump (TAB) primed, which means raising money. Which is why the Telluride AIDS Benefit's fearless leader, board chair Jodie Shike Wright, works around the clock to develop packages to auction off on the runway after the catwalk at both shows.

Among the irresistible goodies for 2011:

27 February, 2011 /

[click "Play to hear Susan's conversation with WestCAP's Mary Beth Luedtke ]

 

 

WestCAP office Since getting off the ground in 1994, the Telluride AIDS Benefit has donated over $1 million towards HIV/AIDS education, advocacy and NGOs, from Colorado to Africa. Today, there are a total of six beneficiaries, including Denver Children's Hospital Immunodeficiency Program, Brother Jeff's Community Health Initiative, The Manzini Youth Care Center in Manzini (Swaziland) and the Ethiopian Family Fund. But the mother of them all, TAB's primary beneficiary, is the Western Colorado AIDS Project (WestCAP), a nonprofit that in its infancy helped support a man named Robert Presley in his battle against the virus. Presley was the Telluride AIDS Benefit's muse.

26 February, 2011 /