LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION paying tribute to Pratt Institute upon the occa-
sion of hosting its Legends 2010 Awards Ceremony and Scholarship Benefit
on October 20, 2010

WHEREAS, It is the intent of this Legislative Body to commemorate those
events of historical significance which add strength, vigor and inspira-
tion to the cultural diversity and quality of life in the communities of
the State of New York; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-
standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to commend
Pratt Institute upon the occasion of hosting its Legends 2010 Awards
Ceremony and Scholarship Benefit held on Wednesday, October 20, 2010, at
7 World Trade Center, Manhattan, New York; and
WHEREAS, The mission of the Legends Awards, which were conceived in
1999 by the Board of Trustees to celebrate distinguished figures in the
world of art, design and the humanities, is to raise funds to provide
financial aid to Pratt students based on need and merit; and
WHEREAS, The 2010 honorees are: fashion designer, Tommy Hilfiger;
artist and alumnus, Ellsworth Kelly; and philanthropist and patron of
the arts, Emily Fisher Landau; and
WHEREAS, Tommy Hilfiger has brought classic, cool, American apparel to
consumers around the world for 25 years; the self-taught designer opened
his first chain of stores while still in high school, and in 1985
launched his first signature collection in New York City; since then,
the Tommy Hilfiger Group, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year,
has become one of few globally-recognized designer brands offering a
wide range of American-inspired apparel and accessories in more than
1,000 stores worldwide; and
WHEREAS, In 1995, Tommy Hilfiger launched The Tommy Hilfiger Corporate
Foundation, which in 2009 significantly contributed to Millennium Prom-
ise, a non-profit organization founded in 2005 to help end extreme
poverty; and
WHEREAS, Ellsworth Kelly, who graduated from Pratt Institute in 1944,
is regarded as one of the most important abstract painters, sculptors
and printmakers working today; spanning six decades, his career is
marked by the independent route his art has taken, diverging from any
formal school or art movement, and by his innovative contribution to
21st century painting and sculpture; and
WHEREAS, Ellsworth Kelly has been the subject of major exhibitions at
The Museum of Modern Art; the Whitney Museum of American Art; the Solo-
mon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; the Centre Pompidou, Paris; and Tate
Modern, London; in addition, his work is held in many public
collections, including those of the Art Institute of Chicago, San Fran-
cisco Museum of Modern Art, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina
Sofia, Madrid and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; and
WHEREAS, Emily Fisher Landau's contemporary art collection contains
key works of art of the last 50 years; in 1991, she opened the Fisher
Landau Center for Art to the public; located in Long Island City,
Queens, the center is devoted to the exhibition and study of her contem-
porary art collection, which includes works by such renowned artists as
Artschwager, Baldessari, Johns, Longo, Prince, Ruscha and Kiki Smith;
her insightful selection of works and her ongoing commitment to emerging
artists and graduate visual arts students are reflected in exhibitions
presented there; and
WHEREAS, Emily Fisher Landau's generosity includes gifts to other
institutions, notably the Whitney Museum of American Art, where the
fourth floor galleries are named in her honor; she has served on the

Whitney's Board of Trustees as well as on the boards of other cultural
institutions, such as the Metropolitan Opera; last May, she pledged to
the Whitney a donation of over 400 artworks from her collection, which
is slated for exhibition in February 2011 with an accompanying catalog;
and
WHEREAS, It is most fitting that we take time to celebrate the arts of
our Nation, to honor our artists and to express our appreciation to
everyone who patronizes the arts; and as we celebrate the arts, we cele-
brate and give thanks to our American freedom, the only atmosphere in
which artists can truly create and in which art is truly the expression
of the soul; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend Pratt Institute upon the occasion of hosting its Legends 2010
Awards Ceremony and Scholarship Benefit; and be it further
RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the Pratt Legends 2010 Honorary Committee, and this year's
honorees, Tommy Hilfiger, Ellsworth Kelly and Emily Fisher Landau.