The second annual Tabler Arts Gala was held on Wednesday evening at the Tabler Center for Arts, Culture, and Humanities.

Over 100 guests admired the artwork that the Douglass Hall council displayed and auctioned to raise money for Camp Kesem.

Camp Kesem is a national non-profit organization with an initiative to provide a community for children whose parents are battling cancer.

This summer’s camp is set to be hosted by Camp Herrlich in upstate New York.

The community that Camp Kesem creates for the children affected by cancer is filled with others who understand what they are going through, creating an empowering safe haven.

“It’s an honor to help support Camp Kesem through art,” Jasmin Pramar, a freshman civil engineering major and one of the many student artists who displayed their work at the
event, said.

Pramar’s collection of artwork called “Turbans and Beards” displayed colorful and vibrant illustrations of different people donning turbans and beards, as one could assume by the title of the collection.

But the colorful and heartwarming style used offers a deeper meaning, according to
the artist.

“It hits home for me,” Pramar said. “The purpose of my collection is to help people realize that wearing a turban and having a beard is a symbol of love
and peace.”

Haley Sheridan, a freshman computer engineering major, was among the artists who donated their work.

She had a particularly special connection to the event because her mother previously had cancer, but was able overcome it through treatment. 

The large collection of photographic art she donated was the most donated by any artist for the event.

“I feel like my art is making an impact instead of people seeing it and saying ‘Wow, this is cool’,” she said.

The event raised $63 for Camp Kesem, with multiple pieces being sold and purchased by other college students.

The next Camp Kesem fundraising event on campus will be the Spring Reunion Scavenger Hunt on April 16 at the HDV/GLS Center.

In addition to the art on display and the refreshments, the Tabler Arts Gala provided guests with musical performances by students from throughout Stony Brook’s campus.

Peter Brestia, a freshman psychology major with a minor in jazz music, played the saxophone to open the event with SB Live and later returned to the stage to play some jazz music.

He had several solos on Wednesday, but during his second time on stage, he laid it all out for his audience with an exceedingly spirited performance.

“I just love playing,” Brestia said. “Helping others is a great thing and getting to play is just a bonus on top of it.”

Kylie Merrow, the president of the Douglass Hall Council, headed the event and said that artists, musicians and guests heard of the event mainly through word of mouth.

She also said some many learned of the event through Facebook groups or flyers posted throughout campus.

“We had a lot more [contributing] artists than we had thought,” Merrow said. “It’s good to think of in the coming years, especially if we want to make the event bigger.”

The event also featured free food for attendees to enjoy.

For the rest of the semester. Tabler Quad is hosting other events that include the ACH Artist in Residence Exhibit & Talk an a Academic Success Pogram, and other various events held hall councils.