Dinner to honor achievements in arts

The Orange County Arts Awards, celebrating and honoring individual achievements in the arts community, will be given at a dinner and reception at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Balboa Bay Club and Resort, 1221 W. Coast Highway, Newport Beach.

Headlining the event will be KOCE-TV’s “Real Orange” host Ed Arnold and Julia Argyros, honorary Master of Ceremonies. Tickets are $195, with proceeds benefiting Arts Orange County’s programs and initiatives.

Receiving the 2007 Arts OC Helena Modjeska Cultural Legacy Awards that evening will be Artistic Visionary winner Dr. Ralph Opacic, the founder, executive director and president of the Orange County High School of the Arts. Artist winner will be Ramya Harishankar, dancer, teacher and performer of east Indian traditional dance.

The Community Visionary Award will be presented to Joan Irvine Smith, founder of the Irvine Museum, writer, art patron, philanthropist and preservationist.

In addition to the dinner and ceremony, guests can participate in the Arts Awards artful auction, which raises funds to support educational programs, projects and services for the visual and performing arts in Orange County.

New this year, an online auction opened to bidders Aug. 20 and will conclude at 5 p.m. Thursday at www.artsocauction.org.

For more information, call (714) 556-5160, ext. 15 or e-mail auction@artsoc.org.

— Sue Thoensen