MOCA gala honoring Ed Ruscha raises $3 million

The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles said it raised $3 million at its annual gala on Saturday. The downtown museum’s 37th gala celebration took place at its Geffen Contemporary space in Little Tokyo and honored artist Ed Ruscha.

Among the celebrity guests in attendance were brothers Owen and Luke Wilson, Patricia Arquette, James Marsden and Elizabeth Olsen. The party’s more than 700 guests were entertained by singer Robin Thicke while actor Balthazar Getty served as DJ.

The $3 million was approximately the same amount the museum raised at last year’s gala, where John Baldessari was the honoree.

On Saturday, Owen Wilson narrated a video tribute to Ruscha, who is a friend of the actor. The artist’s L.A.-inspired “City Lights” series of paintings provided the visual motif of the evening, with the interior decor for the gala tent modeled after the nighttime-themed works of art.

MOCA director Philippe Vergne, also in attendance, has headed the once financially troubled museum for two years. He was joined at the gala by museum co-chairs Lilly Tartikoff Karatz and Maurice Marciano.

The museum said it has raked in nearly $2 million from exclusive sales of limited edition Jeff Koons pieces of his balloon dogs in magenta and yellow.

MOCA said the revenue from the sales of the small porcelain pieces , available until 2017, will go toward supporting the museum’s endowment.

The magenta dog costs $8,000, and the yellow version will set you back $9,000. The items, which were made at the Bernardaud porcelain foundry in Limoges, France, measure approximately 10.5 inches in diameter.