Sep 11, 2011
Nathalie Decoster @ Mission Hill
Anthony von Mandl, Proprietor of Mission Hill writes, “At Mission Hill Family Estate our goal is to achieve the extraordinary. We are thrilled to showcase these magnificent sculptures alongside our wines surrounded by the natural beauty of the Okanagan Valley.”
We were the invited guests of Christa Frosch of Sotheby’s International Realty Canada.
From the first moment we arrived on the evening of September 8th, to our departure it was an exquisite event. Words almost can’t describe the beauty of the evening, the marvellous sculptures, the quality wines of which there were so many, the music from classical quartets to a great jazz group in the Chagall room with ice wines and coffees to the gift bags as we departed.
A 2.6 million dollar Bugatti greeted everyone on arrival. You can see two of the sculptures on the right.
This was Parisian sculptress Nathalie Decosters’ first exhibit in Canada. It took almost nine years for Mission Hill to persuade her to come. She arrived from her recent exhibition in Sao Paulo, Brazil with more than 50 monumental works of art. “Through recycled bronze, aluminium, stainless steel, concrete and glass media, Decoster offers visions of time as opportunity. She shows the futility of the fight against time imposed by modern life…………..her sculptures breathe a secret of life, an access code for serenity.”
I have to thank Colin Jewall Photo Studios Inc. for sharing photos with me.
Within seconds of arriving we were handed a light & crisp rose with a choice of appetizer. It soon became apparent that we were on a tour of the winery as well as all its fine wines and gourmet appetizers, from a complex Viognier with a crab/ apricot appetizer to a robust pinot with the duck. I’m sure I missed a few but the tour with wine in hand was not of just Mission Hill but also the sculptures strategically placed throughout. Some where huge and yet others were tiny.
This one is end table size and entitled "HAVING TO WORK ON IT", the tittle in French below is "ca se merite" , 2003. I found I preferred the French titles as the English translation seemed to loose a little something. The bristle material is similar to an old wire brush which is where Nathalie likely recycled it from. This particular piece was selling for $9000.00. The prices ranged from $8,000.00 to $56,000.00.
After the tour and endless ‘sips’ of wine and appetizers it was time for a lovely dinner, lamb to lobster and all in between. Needless to say the food was marvellous.
My dinner companion was the Mayor of Kelowna, Sharon Shepherd & across from her, one of our clients, developer Kathleen MacKenzie and her business partner Wendy.
The evening continued in the wine cellar where we were invited to stroll through the huge casks, each holding about 300 bottles of wine. At one end a variety of cheeses, tea & coffee were served while at the far end we were treated to sculpted pastries and ice wine.
This is where I finally had a moment to converse with Nathalie. In French of course!
From here it was up to the Chagall Room, so called for the one of a kind tapestry by Marc Chagall hanging on the wall. Another example of Anthony Mandls’ support of the arts. Here we listened to the top Kelowna jazz group while feasting on a variety of chocolate treats, specialty coffees, more wines and on and on.
The magical evening ended with an unexpected but so very special gift bag. Inside we each received a book called ‘Petit Manuel” filled with photos of Natahlie’s art works as well as an individually numbered Limited Edition bottle of Mission Hill Family Estate 2010 Rose to commemorate the occasion. What more can I say………………….
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What a divine evening..wow..you must have been thrilled…looks and sounds like you were treated like royalty. Impressive evening to say the least 🙂
Hi Contessa And Colin:
What an intersesting read!!! We have been following your site on a regular basis and so enjoy it!
We are looking forward to another winter in Maz, as you are too!
Have had a great summer, with the high light of celebrating our 45th wedding anniversary of which our son and daugher in law had a great party for us at their farm.
Will be seeing you soon in Maz.
Once again, thanks for the interesting articles of which you have written.
Don and Barb
What an evening! After that many wine tastings, I would have had to have help getting back home! That Bugatti would make a nice replacement for the ailing Beemer. It would look good getting towed through Mexico!
WOW!! Definitely an exciting time.
How exciting! Something to really remember. Glad Colin got a few pics of you as proof you were there-LOL!
Looks like you had a fab evening. Know the winery of course but to add the artistic showings and the wine and the food all together must have been delicious! It will be tough to duplicate in the future. All the best K&M&H
Sounds like a very special day for you.
Awesome !! What a treat and experience !