The Albany Museum of Art’s Annual Celebration of Art and Community Is Saturday, May 9
Art Ball: The Surreal Will Be Held at the AMA’s Future Home in Downtown Albany
A Surrealist artist looks at the world from a different perspective, taking what is familiar and common and transforming it through imagination and talent into something different and extraordinary. With the Albany Museum of Art at the threshold of transforming a vacant department store building in downtown Albany into a vibrant new museum, its annual celebration and major fundraiser, Art Ball, has a particularly appropriate theme: The Surreal.
Art Ball 2026: The Surreal will take place at 6:30 pm on Saturday, May 9, at the former Belk department store at 128 W. Broad Ave. This is the last time Art Ball or any event will be conducted in the building until the new museum opens at the location in 2028.
“Art Ball has always been one of the most joyful expressions of our community’s belief in the Albany Museum of Art, but this year is particularly meaningful,” said AMA Executive Director Andrew James Wulf. “To gather in our future home at this defining moment is both celebratory and symbolic. We will be standing inside of a space that is still on the way to becoming what it is meant to be, just as our community is helping shape the museum’s next chapter through its generosity, imagination, and shared sense of possibility.”
This year’s co-chairs are AMA Board of Trustees members Meghan Gentile and Dr. Jason Langer. Gentile said they “love the theme of the surreal because, in the same way that a surrealist challenges the viewer’s experience of reality as we know and perceive it, we get to ask our community to join us in a beautiful vision of what isn’t yet but will be.”
“We are going to party together in this unrefined, rough space and literally project our community’s bright, shiny future onto it,” she said. “What a perfect meeting of what is and what will be—and what a great starting point for continuing the museum’s bright future!”
Art Ball 2026 will open with cocktails and a silent auction, followed by a gourmet dinner by Canterbury Catering.
After dinner, there will be a live auction. After attendees bid on unique artworks, luxury experiences, and more, they will have the opportunity to participate in the Wayne and Alicia Gregory Family Foundation Paddle Raise. Donations made during the paddle raise directly support the AMA’s educational programs, including scholarships to the museum’s popular seasonal art camps.
“We are proud to support the Paddle Raise for the fifth consecutive year, helping to raise vital funds for the AMA’s educational programming,” said Wayne Gregory, Co-President of the Wayne and Alicia Gregory Family Foundation. “The Gregory Foundation’s longstanding commitment to the Museum reflects our belief in the power of art to strengthen communities, and we look forward to celebrating this shared mission at this year’s Art Ball.”
The paddles used to bid on auction items and to donate to the Paddle Raise are sponsored by the Gregorys’ BMW of Albany and Albany Motorcars dealerships. “While we are fortunate to represent automobiles that many people consider rolling works of art, the most meaningful legacy is the work of our owner’s family foundation,” General Manager Shane McKenzie said. “Its unwavering support of the local art museum enriches our community, preserves culture, and ensures that inspiration remains accessible for families, students, and future artists.”
Gentile said Art Ball shows how strongly the community supports the Albany Museum of Art and its mission to make a real difference in people’s lives through art. “I look forward to it every year—it’s always such a positive, fun, and enriching night out,” she said. “I always feel so great about Albany at Art Ball. When I see how much the community supports the AMA and when I see what the AMA can do, I feel so good about our friends and neighbors. And wow, can we party!
“There’s this expression, ‘give until it hurts,’ which I think is supposed to encourage people to donate a lot, but I think it misses the point. My approach is ‘give because it feels good.’ This is a celebration and a commencement. Give because it feels good to support Albany, to support the arts, to support our community, and to support artists and the AMA!”
Much of that critical support comes from Art Ball sponsors.
“Without them, we could not have this wonderful event each year,” AMA Director of Development Chloe Hinton said.
In addition to the Wayne and Alicia Gregory Family Foundation, BMW of Albany, and Albany Motorcars, sponsors for Art Ball 2026: The Surreal are The Dream (bar sponsor) LRA Constructors, Inc.; The Illusionist (entertainment sponsor) Colony Bank, and The Muses (corporate sponsors) Upland Wealth Advisors, Flint Community Bank, the Fred Taylor Company, Inc., Hays LTI, Phoebe, and Watson Spence, LLP.
Hinton added that new this year is Portal to Paradise, a raffle drawing for a trip to one of four exciting destinations—New York City, California, Kentucky, or Italy. For each $100 in donations made, the donor will receive one raffle entry.
“The more you give, the more opportunities you have to win,” Hinton said. “Donations can be made online, and the lucky winner will be drawn at Art Ball. You do not have to be present at the event to win. Join us in supporting a great cause while taking a chance on an unforgettable getaway.”
After the dinner and auctions, the evening will continue with dancing to the music of Mind Plays, an intense, pop/rock band from Amarillo, Texas, that now calls Panama City Beach, Fla., home. The three brothers comprising Mind Plays—Adam, Andrew, and Noah Tijerina—feature a consistent drive and flow between hard-edged rock and stainless power pop.
“Jay and I stumbled upon Mind Plays a few years ago in a beach bar in Florida and stayed there all night,” Gentile said. “We cancelled the rest of our plans and stayed there to eat oysters, sing, and dance. They’re not just technically excellent musicians—they’re performers. We’re so excited to party with them again.”
The important thing to remember, Gentile said, is why the community support for the Albany Museum of Art is needed.
“The AMA offers Albany and our area of the state that precious and rare ‘third space,’” she said. “It’s a space that’s not home or work; a space that requires no formal invitation, but offers so much to the people who visit. We can come to the museum and get exactly what we need at the moment, be it quiet contemplation, social engagement, mental and creative satisfaction, and even inspiration.”
Individual tickets to Art Ball 2026: The Surreal are $250 ($200 for AMA donors at the Reciprocal Level or higher). They can be purchased by emailing Hinton HERE.
AMA EXHIBITIONS
Familiar Rhythm: Time, Nostalgia, and Memory, featuring works of Maiya Lea Hartman, Larry Cook, and Kimberly Anderson, is Jan 22-May 2, 2026 in the Haley Gallery.
Wadsworth & Jae Jarrell: Art Making / World Making is Jan 22-May 2, 2026 in the East, Hodges and McCormack Galleries.
Still Waters, works from the permanent collection, is Jan 22-April 25, 2026, in the West Gallery.
ABOUT THE ALBANY MUSEUM OF ART
The Albany Museum of Art is located at 311 Meadowlark Drive in Albany, Ga., adjacent to Albany State University West Campus just off Gillionville Road. The museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. The Albany Museum of Art is open to the public 10 am-5 pm Tuesdays through Saturdays. Admission is free.
For more information about the AMA please visit our website, www.albanymuseum.com, or call 229.439.8400. Be sure to follow AlbanyMuseumOfArt on Facebook and AlbanyMuseum on Instagram.
