The Mellon Family Dinner

The banquet was held in the garden courtyard at night.

Contrary to what most people imagined—that gardens could only be enjoyed during the day and became pitch-black at night, leaving nothing visible—Rachel Lambert, as a master of garden landscaping, had put considerable thought into the nighttime lighting arrangements.

It was neither like a stadium, with massive floodlights turning the entire venue as bright as day, nor like strings of Christmas-tree bulbs stretched out and hung up in some simplistic display.

Most of the lighting was directed at the plants. The reflected light from the foliage then illuminated the surrounding areas. This method made the garden's nighttime lighting exceptionally soft, while naturally drawing people's eyes toward the plants.

The artworks, meanwhile, received different lighting effects depending on their nature. Antique oil paintings in particular were unsuitable for direct exposure to intense light; prolonged high-temperature illumination could melt the pigments and damage the paintings.

Other modern artworks, especially three-dimensional pieces or sculptures, required consideration of how they would look under the lights. Some original artists came in person to help, or provided reference suggestions.

But most of the time, it was Rachel Lambert's distinctive eye that designed the arrangement, allowing these works to gain a second life under the lighting and reveal a charm entirely different from their daytime appearance.

Henry's crystal projection was one of the rare exceptions, because the piece itself made use of a light source. The projected three-dimensional image looked even more vivid at night. Details in color differences that could not be seen during the day also emerged as the ambient brightness diminished.

The banquet was buffet-style, with servers weaving through the crowd to offer low-alcohol drinks and collect empty glasses.

Since it was being held outdoors, there was naturally a contingency plan for rain or bad