CULTURE & COCKTAILS At The Colony Returns on 1/9 with HERITAGE VALUES

Rena Blades, President & Chief Executive Officer of the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, today announced that season 12 of the popular series CULTURE & COCKTAILS will continue early next year at The Colony Hotel Pavilion in Palm Beach.

Monday, January 9

HERITAGE VALUES

A Conversation with Two Star Appraisers from America's Favorite Art & Antiques Show on PBS

Both panelists are 20-year veterans of Antiques Roadshow:

+ Kathleen Guzman, Heritage Auctions, Managing Director, New York

+ Nicholas Dawes, Heritage Auctions, Vice President, Special Collections, New York

Now with an office in Palm Beach, Heritage Auctions is the third largest auction house in the world and the largest auction house founded in the United States, Ms. Guzman is a recognized appraiser and auctioneer with over 25 years experience, who auctioned over 1,500 sales with over 500,000 objects valued at over a half billion dollars (including a Monet watercolor for $4.3 million and the Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz for $600,000). Mr. Dawes has over 35 years as an international antiques dealer and is a leading authority on Lalique Glass, Majolica and Art Deco.

Interviewed by Scott Simmons, Editor of Florida Weekly and "Collector's Corner" columnist

CULTURE & COCKTAILS is generously sponsored by The Roe Green Foundation, Roe Green, Founder and The Milton and Tamar Maltz Family Foundation. Additional support for the series is provided by the Palm Beach Post/Palm Beach Daily News, First Republic Bank, and PR-BS, a Boca-based public relations firm.

Please Note:

Admission to each CULTURE & COCKTAILS event is $65 for advance RSVPs and $75 at the door, and FREE for members of the Cultural Council ($250 level and above). All proceeds go to support artist programs of the nonprofit Cultural Council of Palm Beach County. For membership information, please contact Debbie Calabria at 561.472.3330.

Each event will run from 5 to 7 pm, with registration and cocktails from 5 to 5:45 p.m., and the "Conversation" from 5:45 to 7 pm, including audience Q&A. The Colony will serve complimentary beverages and an array of specially prepared hors d'oeuvres before each CULTURE & COCKTAILS conversatio

People interested in attending CULTURE & COCKTAILS can RSVP before each event by calling the Cultural Council at 561.472.3330.

Topics and speakers are subject to change depending upon the availability of scheduled participants.

About the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County:

The Cultural Council of Palm Beach County is the official support agency for arts and culture in The Palm Beaches, serving non-profit organizations, artists and arts districts. The Cultural Council administers $4.5 million in grants annually, supports arts and cultural education, provides capacity-building training, and advocates for arts funding and arts-friendly policies. The Council promotes Palm Beach County's cultural experiences to visitors and residents through multi-platform marketing and public information programs, including its one-of-a-kind Cultural Concierge service.

The Cultural Council presents exhibitions featuring Palm Beach County artists and provides additional programming at its headquarters in the historic Robert M. Montgomery, Jr. Building, an iconic Streamline Moderne former movie theater in Downtown Lake Worth. Also at the Cultural Council headquarters are the Roe Green Uniquely Palm Beach Store featuring products by Palm Beach County artists and the Jean S. and Frederic A. Sharf Visitor Information Center, a VISIT FLORIDA designated Florida Certified Tourism Information Center.

The Cultural Council galleries, visitor information center and store are open 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. For a complete calendar of cultural activities in The Palm Beaches, connect with the Council at www.palmbeachculture.com or (561) 471-2901. To plan a personalized cultural itinerary, connect with the Cultural Concierge at www.palmbeachculture.com/concierge.