NORWAY – After a two-year hiatus, the Matolcsy Arts Center will light up again this December for an annual holiday party.

The event will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $15 until Saturday, or $20 at the door.

“This party was a very popular favorite event for many, many years,” said Aranka Matolcsy, executive director of the Western Maine Art Group.

Matolcsy said partygoers may view items that will be sold at the Cyr Americana Auction in January. The party will also feature an original Lajos Matolcsy painting as a door prize and a silent auction with over $600 in prizes.

Jill Fratianne will provide music on the violin and viola. The admission price includes a buffet and open bar.

Artwork to be sold comes from Richard Durnin’s private collection, which features over 200 pieces from artists such as Minnie Libbey, Vivian Akers, and D.D. Coombs. Durnin, a New Jersey resident with a home in Norway, died in April and gave the art group the option to sell the works at its discretion to raise money.

“He was a lifelong supporter of the Western Maine Art Group,” Matolcsy said.

Matolcsy said the group will retain a core collection of about 100 pieces. The other artwork will be sold at the Cyr auction and at a private auction for local residents. Matolcsy said the latter auction will take place this winter or spring and feature locally significant works.

The money raised at the auction and party will be used to fund renovations to the arts center, operations costs, arts programs, and Matolcsy’s salary.

Matolcsy said the artwork to be featured at the party will also be on display during December, and that she is setting a schedule when the arts center will be open.

For more information, e-mail the Western Maine Art Group at [email protected] or call 739-6161.