ART BENEFIT : Auction to Last Until the Bidders End

More than 60 works donated by artists from Orange County and Los Angeles will be auctioned at the annual Orange County Center for Contemporary Art benefit party on Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m. at the center, 3621 W. MacArthur Blvd., Space 111, in Santa Ana.

The art may be previewed at the center on Saturday and Sunday 23 between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. The auction, conducted by auctioneer Maurice Hansen of Hansen Auctioneers, San Clemente, begins at 7 p.m.

Participating artists include Valerie Bechtol, Barbara Berk, Jerry Burchfield, Jim Cokas, Paul Darrow, Roberta Eisenberg, Wolf Gowin, Mildred Kouzel, Janet McKaig, Charlotte Myers, Richard Turner, Elizabeth Jennings, Bardene Allen and Ray Jacobs.

Tickets are $10 per person and include a light buffet with wine donated by Robert Mondavi Wine Center in Costa Mesa. Patrick Smith will offer piano accompaniment. Call (714) 549-4989 between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.

OCCCA, a nonprofit cooperative dedicated to showing the work of emerging and established member and guest artists, was founded in 1980 by Robert Cunningham, Richard Aaron, Alhena Scott, Suvan Geer and Carol Stella. More than 120 one-person and 150 group exhibits--including juried shows--have been mounted at the gallery.

OCCCA, a founding member of the Santa Ana Council for Arts and Culture, offers lectures and workshops for area artists as well as educational outreach for schoolchildren.

Earlier this year, OCCCA received a $7,500 community development block grant from the city of Santa Ana to fund educational programs in the city’s elementary and high schools, tours of OCCCA exhibits and community outreach.