The Crowd: An intersection of art and politics

In the midst of this very important and tumultuous election season there is an exhibition in Orange County taking the public back four decades to another period of important and tumultuous presidential politics.

South Coast Plaza, in partnership with an elite roster of serious organizations — the Getty, Carnegie Hall, Bowers Museum, Orange County Museum of Art, Pacific Symphony, Philharmonic Society of Orange County, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, Segerstrom Center for the Arts, South Coast Repertory, USC Pacific Asia Museum and the Nixon Presidential Library — present an exhibition recalling the late President Richard Nixon’s historic visit to China in 1972.

Nixon was the first American president to visit that nation, a landmark occurrence in East-West relations. The presentation at South Coast Plaza, which opened in late June and runs through Aug. 18, is free to the public. Attendance is expected to reach more than one million visitors.

Two weeks remain to experience the interactive display that pays homage to Chinese art, music, theater, culture, design, history and politics in relation to the transformative Nixon experience of 1972.

The long lines that arrived for opening day have diminished, enabling visitors to partake in a leisurely immersion of this museum-quality educational exposure. A note to teachers of history, language, culture and international relations: Bring your summer school students on a field trip. This showcase is a must-see.

South Coast Plaza went to considerable lengths to stay away from the controversial aspects of the discredited Nixon presidency, focusing instead on the ramifications of international accord created by Nixon’s outreach. That’s appropriate, of course, given the significance of international commercial trade and consumer support that serves as the foundation of the retail empire known as an international shopping destination.

Debra Gunn Downing, executive director of marketing at South Coast Plaza, commented, “This exhibit displays the best of who we are not just as a business, but as a nation and as human beings crossing all barriers of language, culture and politics.”

She continued, “We are proud to provide a unique forum that explores the interchange of music, dance, art and more between the U.S. and China.”

A confederation of high-profile O.C. citizens joined in the support of Gunn Downing’s purpose. Others involved include Lawrence Higby, chairman of the Richard Nixon Foundation; Elizabeth Segerstrom, co-managing partner for South Coast Plaza; David Grant, general manager of South Coast Plaza; Werner Escher, executive director of domestic/international markets for South Coast Plaza; Robert Sun, American-Chinese Society president and CEO; Ruda Guo, the honorable Chinese consul, commercial affairs; Gun Jin, the honorable Chinese cultural counselor; Peter Keller, president of the Bowers Museum; William Baribault, Richard Nixon Foundation president and CEO; and O.C. philanthropists Sandy Segerstrom Daniels, Anne Shih, Marta Bhathal, Sally Segerstrom Andrews, Barbara Johnson and Dee Higby, among others.

Elizabeth Segerstrom, Grant and Gunn Downing recently invited dignitaries to a private dinner at Marché Modern, created as a thank you for the collaboration between many organizations making the exhibition possible.

A long U-shaped table was erected in the Marché loggia. It was festooned with serious arrangements of blooming velvet red roses, a nod to the Chinese color representing good fortune. Distinguished guests from Los Angeles, Orange County and beyond were greeted by the ultra-charming Elizabeth Segerstrom as flutes of Schramsberg champagne were poured.

Sampling hors d’oeuvres of crisped shrimp skewers, cinnamon spiced duck on scallion rice cakes and more, guests — including the very community-oriented and vivacious Anne Shih, escorted by Keller — talked shop with Dee and Larry Higby, Marta and Raj Bhathal, and Barbara and Mark Johnson.

An elegant four-course dinner followed, served in exquisite Marché style. The crowd enjoyed roasted duck breast and king salmon paired with more 2013 Schramsberg blanc de blancs, Flowers’ 2014 Sonoma Coast chardonnay and a 2014 Migration Russian River pinot noir. A caramel éclair crowned the evening with a bit of sweetness.

A side note of history: In 1972, the 1969 Schramsberg blanc de blancs was served at the “Toast to Peace” in Beijing, between President Richard Nixon and Premier Zhou Enlai. Schramsberg wines have been served by every subsequent presidential administration.

Speeches were brief. Conversation was definitely political and serious. It was an evening on the Orange Coast that would qualify as an intellectual and cultural salon.

B.W. COOK is editor of the Bay Window, the official publication of the Balboa Bay Club in Newport Beach.