Social Animal

Montauk Mingles without Meddlers at No. 50

2012-07-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

Any remnant animosities were thrown into the oubliette on Saturday, as new owners Chris Jones and Larry Siedlick put on an extravagant Grand Opening Party of the No. 50 club at the Montauk Beach House.

Flown in on a sea plane, Electro King DJ Paul Oakenfold kept guests in an eternal trance. Eye-popping bikinis invaded the visual field. They were lounging by the poolside, prancing on the dance floor, frolicking in the pool, and sipping cocktails in every imaginable position.

I nattered with a couple of reluctant guests who were still pondering over the polemical makeover of the former Ronjo motel, but the chit-chat was interrupted by what turned out to be the highlight of the party. A performance by eight long-legged beauties, wearing colorful Minnie Rose dresses, who awed us with a stunning can-can dance. My only disappointment... a can-can glimpse under the dresses revealed a couple of ill-assorted bikinis and eight pairs of hideous beige shoes.

Neverlodge: You'll never know, if you never go

2012-03-07T15:30:00.000-08:00

My dear readers,

Exceptionally, on a personal note, I would like to express my profound joy as I write these lines. As you all know, I have been away from my Social Animal blog for a while, and as some of you are already in the know, I have been recently freed from my golden cage, and I am once again a free bird, free to fly, free to write! On this note, I shall resume my duties...

Yesterday evening was a family affair at Aby Rosen's spectacular "For Sale" mansion on East 71st Street. Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld was hosting an Opening reception for his good pal Nicolas Pol's latest exhibition entitled Neverlodge. This was an event worthy of the presence of the Restoin Roitfeld royalty. Maman Carine Roitfeld was totally slim in down-to-the-floor black, while daughter Julia was totally pregnant in mini black.

This was also an event that attracted the usual suspects: the snazzy Shvo duo (Michael and Seren) made a dazzling entrance, Alexandra Richards wandered through in faux-fur, Stavros Niarchos worked the crowd with his hopefully-faux-fur-clad Jessica Hart, and all this under the watchful eye of Simon de Pury, while longtime friend Giovanna Battaglia was snapping photos faster than Patrick McMullan.

The art itself also presented a fashionable element of fur, in the form of a taxidermy leopard wearing a sparkling red cap. My first reaction was Quel horreur! On second thoughts, it might have been a piece that came with the mansion, and apparently, it was not the only taxidermy object on display around the abode. Nicolas Pol described his new series of paintings as a fictional theme park called Neverlodge. This imaginary world is part brothel, part amusement park. Personally, I found it quite difficult to find any sense to the multicolored doodles, and even the artist himself seemed lost trying to explain to several guests: "It’s both something and absolutely nothing, the Neverlodge thing."

Liaisons Dangereuses at the Frick Collection

2009-02-27T16:31:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a perfect spring day, one of those “sunny and mild” concoctions. No wonder, signaling so rightly a fresh start to the social season, was the Frick Collection Young Fellows Ball!

This year’s theme… Les Liaisons Dangereuses, inspired by the recently reopened and relit Fragonard Gallery at the Frick mansion. “The Progress of Love”, a remarkable series of paintings by the 18th century French artist Fragonard, was commissioned by the infamous mistress of Louis XV, Madame du Barry. The panels were to be installed in one of her smaller salons at the Château de Louveciennes. However, Fragonard objected to her request to make the young lovers in the pictures to look like her and the not-so-young king. When the panels were completed, Du Barry declined to take possession of the commissioned work and Fragonard was paid an indemnity of 18,000 livres!

Fragonard kept the panels at his home in Grasse, never selling them, and where more than a century later they were discovered by the British art dealer Sir Joseph Duveen, who then brought them to Henry Clay Frick, the latter purchasing them and installing them in his new mansion.

Last night love was definitely in the air, or at least a craving for weddings, judging by the surplus of huge white dresses! The exception, as always, was Ivanka Trump, who opted for a dreamy beige Monique Lhuiller Spring 2009 strapless gown, that had a ruffled skirt, and a contrast sash tied to the waist. She looked stunning! Monique Lhuiller herself wore of course her own designs, but her strapless teal gown looked so out of touch! I couldn’t help but wonder whether she really did design Ivanka’s dress…

The evening was an enormous success, with over 600 gorgeous people ignoring the Uptown seat prices, in order to mingle in the Galleries and in the splendid blue-lit Garden Court. The Education Program of The Frick Collection received a boost of nearly $300,000 thanks to all the generous guests!

After grooving through some DJ DL’s handsome tunes in my Valentino gown on a moving-light rococo projection on the floor, and then realizing that my sudden dizziness must be also somehow related to those Ivanka-sponsored Vodka lemony drinks, it was time to dash off to the La Perla after party at St Regis. Upon arrival, there was Champagne, and encore …Champagne! Enough for me to join in the singing next to the piano in an impromptu sing-along!

Caribbean Holidays

2009-01-05T18:36:00.000-08:00

I have just returned from the sunniest & most delightfully entertaining St Barths. And what a long party that was! I can’t remember the last time I drank so much champagne! Oh yes I do actually… ;-)

I flew in with my darling friend Miss V, who had invited me to stay at the gorgeous Aigue Marine villa overlooking St Jean Bay. Our first stop was the Hermès store in Gustavia, as I once again forgot my clutch at home! And because it was supposed to match my orange Narciso Rodriguez dress, I simply could not show myself at the Gagosian party without it! So we ended up purchasing a few other items of interest. Who can resist Duty Free? Just as we were walking out of the boutique, in comes Satsuki! That’s Daniel Craig’s Satsuki. We discovered that they were also going to Larry’s party, so since we were going to catch up with her at the party anyway, we didn’t want to take up anymore of her precious shopping time.

On Sunday night, Larry Gagosian’s party at Nikki Beach was truly spectacular. The Kings of Leon flew in for the occasion, and even Roman and Dasha disembarked off the Pelorus. I met up with some very familiar faces, spent a couple of hours gossiping with friends on the deck, and drank way too much champagne! Unfortunately that’s all I remember. Next morning over breakfast, the always excessively frank Miss V was reciting to me the next sequel to my nightly adventures, but I couldn’t believe my ears, so from that moment on, I decided to ignore whatever was said or whatever might have happened on that sultry night. And to drink a little less champagne next time…
I spent most of my daylight hours catching up with friends at the Case de l’Isle for lunch or lounging by the Isle’s pool. My disappointment for Taiwana remains, so I was definitely not to be seen on their territory. Then on Tuesday night, it was la grande fête aboard Octopus. Paul Allen had once again surpassed himself with the guest list, and it was truly a feast for the eyes! The highlight was undeniably Bon Jovi’s jam session! Oh, and naughty Miss V managed to snap a redhead girlfriend of hers sitting next to Mr Soros. Over breakfast next morning, I was told that apparently she wasn’t just sitting next to him… Shall I really believe everything I hear over breakfast?
On that same morning, being New Years Eve, my dear Miss V announced that she was jetting off to Aspen for the evening’s celebrations, as she simply could not refuse a last minute dream invitation. So I had the villa completely to myself, and was instructed to do absolutely anything I wanted! Anyway, I was planning on attending Saif’s party at Nikki Beach that night. I did end up drinking too much champagne though, but it was such a great party! Mariah Carey sang a few songs while Beyoncé was waving her arms around, visibly enjoying herself. Timbaland and Jay-Z did a little rap number just after midnight. Then halfway through the night, while dancing my heels off, I bumped into Charlotte! No, it wasn’t my excessive champagne drinking, it was indisputably the other Charlotte! I hadn’t seen her for a whole year, and we had a lot to catch up on. But I just couldn’t work out why I hadn’t seen her earlier at the party!

By the time I woke up on the 1st of January, it was already dinner time. Miss V had left me a Happy New Year message, informing me of her prolonged stay in Aspen. So I invited Charlotte to take advantage of my empty villa for the remainder of my stay, and since she was going back to New York in a few days time too, she agreed to replace Miss V as my jet buddy…

Happy Birthday Joshua Bell!

2008-12-11T16:45:00.000-08:00

Last night was a musical marvel!

On such a cold and rainy evening, I could not think of a better place to be than in Joshua Bell’s recently completed and gorgeous apartment. I arrived about 20 minutes late into the champagne reception hour, and embarked on mixing with many familiar faces including Renée Fleming and Glenn Close. Clutching a small birthday present for the Virtuoso in my hand, I was trying to scramble through a crowd of about 150 people in order to capture Kipton Cronkite’s attention, who was chatting with several people simultaneously. Joshua celebrated his real birthday on Tuesday, and with some effort I managed to bestow my gift on Kipton who promised to pass it on to the birthday boy.

My friend Candice and I sneaked around the rooftop terrace (check out the view on the photo), and at about 9 pm I was lucky to find a spare seat facing the curtains that were about to reveal the star of the soirée. Joshua spoke about his choice of pieces that he was going to play with the help of his recital partner Simon Mulligan. I enjoyed listening to the first two compositions, the Ravel and the Massenet. The concert ran for about 40 minutes, and ended with two popular pieces from Bernstein’s “West Side Story”. Everyone stood and cheered, but I had the strong impression that the majority were particularly inspired by the last two renditions. Contrary to my tastes…

Afterwards, as the crowd was dispersing, I chatted to Joshua’s lovely mother Shirley, who took me on a short guided tour of the photographs hanging on the walls, and the Grammy Award sitting near the piano. I then drank a final glass of champagne with Candice, and jumped into a cab for my late evening rendezvous at Doubles…

A Chic Chanel Wonderland

2008-12-07T15:17:00.000-08:00

It was a magical Friday evening sponsored by the greatest of them all, Chanel Fine Jewelry. Stepping out of my cab outside the Botanical Garden Conservatory, I could feel the Parisian winter chill sweep past my shoulders and through this Bronx neighborhood.

For the tenth year of the Winter Wonderland Ball, my favorite crystal palace was once again filled with a fabulous display of très chic guests and the magnificent Holiday Train Show. Thanks to my geographically literate taxi driver, I arrived earlier than any of my friends. So with cocktail in hand, I escaped into an enchanted wander through designer Paul Busse’s décor of model trains winding through a mix of tropical flora and historic New York buildings made entirely of dried plant material.

I had opted for the Chanel gown recently purchased in Monaco, while most of the lovely ladies were dressed in Escada. Margherita Missoni was sporting Missoni with shoulder ruffles, and the most courageous was the gorgeous Byrdie Bell, in a sparkling Chanel jumpsuit that matched well with the NY landmark replicas.

The trademark Camellia flowers were everywhere you turned! On chandeliers, on the black & white table centerpieces, on wall projections. On the menu, filet mignon and mashed sweet potatoes. The after party was hosted by Alex Kramer, Danny Baker and Christian Leone at Greenhouse. On the menu, organic vodka…

Love Lucy Liu

2008-12-04T16:20:00.000-08:00

Lovely Lucy was the shining snowflake at last night’s Unicef Ball. She looked stunning in that J. Mendel “Unicef Blue” gown! She received the Danny Kaye Humanitarian Award, and she’s gorgeous, smart and human!

After my last year’s catastrophically late arrival, I was determined to zip up my Dior gown in time for the Reception that starts at 6.30pm. Well, let’s say 7… And you’ll have to believe me, I was actually running on time! Until I realized my Bottega Veneta clutch had vanished and was nowhere to be found! Fortunately I found a Roger Vivier substitute, yes that’s right, the Pluton… Lucy darling, I forgive you for wearing the same one, but only because it’s you!

The dinner was absolutely délicieux, thanks to the Chefs’ Committee: Marcus Samuelsson, Matt Hoyle & Charlie Trotter. While Michael Bloomberg toasted the room, I just had to take a sneaky photo.

It was a superb evening! Now back to that BV clutch search…although I think I should just call the maid and ask her…

Back from Monaco

2008-11-30T19:40:00.000-08:00

Usain Bolt is the new Prince of Monaco!
Pardon Albert, I know you will forgive me…

I must say, almost every one of my whims has been satisfied on this latest trip to La Principauté. Surprisingly, I have almost nothing to complain about…

Conscious of your hectic lifestyles, I shall not enervate you with lengthy details, so here are strictly the highlights:

Last Sunday’s IAAF awards dinner was dazzling! And I just can’t bring myself to tell you who was sitting next to me… It was a truly superb evening indeed!

Bumped into my darling friend Victoria at the Chanel store, just as she was trying on the same shoes I wanted! Typical Victoria, but I still love you chèrie.

Dined at the Louis XV with Emmanuelle and her new boyfriend, a certain Mr D, he is gorgeous but I really can’t reveal any more than that. I had ordered the Blue Lobster and it was a little too salty. Nonetheless, thanks to Mr D, I avoided the restaurant’s mind boggling waiting list.

The weather was absolutely lovely and sunny, but that’s a Monaco classic! I am glad to be back in New York though, despite the fact that it’s cold and raining here, so I think that I’ve got a good excuse to skip my morning run tomorrow…

The Best Diet is Marco Perego

2008-11-15T15:04:00.000-08:00

Last night was a complete loss of appetite!

I was invited to Bill Powers’ Half Gallery on the Lower East Side to the opening reception for Italian artist Marco Perego. Having heard from several friends about Perego’s exclusive 3-day June show at the Nikki Diana Marquardt Gallery in Paris, I decided to go and appease my curiosity.

Upon my arrival I was struck with a horrific image which is unfortunately still haunting me. I’m afraid that in order for the dear reader to comprehend, I will have to go into a minimum of detail, but at least some detail. Lying on the floor, a mannequin of a murdered Amy Winehouse, shot in the head, whose splattered brain stuff decorates the wall on which hang three inconsequential ink drawings. Next to Amy’s head, more blood, and the infamous apple. On the other side, a seated William Burroughs, resting a rifle on his lap. “I hope everyone gets it. It’s funny, no?” says Perego quite loudly. The gallery was so packed, I began to feel rather faint. On the brink of passing out, Andy Spade grabbed my hand and drew me into a corner where the bloody exhibit was out of my sight. We chatted, and when Andy asked for my opinion on the ‘art’, all I could say was “Pardon the pun, Andy, but Ms Winehouse wouldn’t be caught dead wearing those jeans!” I then agreed to accompany the Spades to the RowPow West Village residence for dinner & drinks.

Everyone knows that Cynthia Rowley is brilliantly imaginative, but who would have thought of mini cheeseburgers and mini milkshakes to satisfy her guests? But even these petite delights were unable to restore my appetite. After viewing Perego’s show I was only capable of approaching the antique grand piano, and reaching for an Il Prosecco chilled on ice. The RowPows have an impressive full length swimming pool in the backyard. So I spent the rest of the evening sipping Proseccos by the pool…

Lunch rendezvous at Michael’s

2008-11-14T15:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a rainy Thursday but a memorable one!

My darling friend Isabella flew in from Geneva. So I started my day in a cab, being driven down 5th Avenue to Michael’s for the lunch rendezvous. Approaching 57th St, there was complete gridlock. After listening to a symphony of police sirens for a few nerve-wracking minutes, and realizing that I was already 40 minutes late for my lunch date, I decided to walk the remaining 2 and a half blocks.

An entire lane of 5th Avenue was blocked off for the Bush motorcade. Thankfully I had decided to leave the Manolos at home, and had opted for the new Celine boots at the last minute! The street was soaking wet!

Upon my arrival at Michael’s, my dear Isabella had completely forgotten about me. But who could blame her? She was busy giggling away with Christine Taylor, who was sitting with her hubby Ben at Sir Elton’s table, just opposite ours. Their table was bursting with laughter, and we couldn’t help but listen in! Sir Elton and David are in town for last night’s opening of Billy Elliot.

We had a superb lunch and Isabella filled me in on her latest gossip. I then slipped into the ladies room, and just as I reached for the soap, I was startled by a woman with a perfect haircut - Anna Wintour! I am not acquainted with this great lady, but I knew that Isabella was on quite familiar terms with her. Did she know that Isabella was here? Hesitating whether to address her, I managed to mumble something out to her. “Oh, Isabella? Really?” She thanked me most kindly, and briskly walked out.

When I returned to our table, Ms Wintour was chatting with Isabella. She said that she had already finished her lunch and was preparing to leave. I had been dreaming of ordering the hazelnut tart for dessert, but Ms Wintour was adamant that we accompany her back to the office. We climbed into the black SUV that was waiting for her out front. The rest is sealed in secrecy…

Cut-and-Paste Richard Prince

2008-11-10T16:25:00.000-08:00

On Friday I received a disappointing phone call, subsequently canceling my weekend in the Hamptons. A few days earlier, I had already turned down Viv’s “shopping in LA weekend” proposal, so I decided to stay in the 212 and be productive! I had an invitation to the Opening Reception for Richard Prince’s new show at the Gagosian Gallery on Saturday, so I invited a friend, and we showed up all dolled up at THE Chelsea address.

Lady Cavendish was already there, gawking at the numerous pornographic ink jet collages on canvas. The whole show was teeming with copied photographs and obvious recurring themes: sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll in the form of topless chicks, marijuana leaves, and electric guitars. Patrick Demarchelier came up to us, and asked what we thought of the 1987 Buick Grand National decorated with blown-up images of biker girls. I thought it looked pretty original, in fact, it was the only acceptably creative item on display. My friend Liz chose to be more blunt, and looking Patrick right in the eye, she said, “In my opinion, this show is nothing new. Richard Prince remains an appropriation artist. And that’s so frustrating!”

We left the buzzing gallery around 8 pm, and headed Downtown to Cipriani for dinner. I had about 7 Bellinis, and that’s before we got Upstairs!

Birthday Party by Donna Karan

2008-10-03T15:47:00.000-07:00

Last night was a total surprise for Donna Karan! It was her big and round …th birthday, but she definitely looks 20 years younger, so I can’t bring myself to type these digits… Her friends, some of whom happen to be my friends, decided to organize a surprise birthday party for the Fashion Queen! The venue was The Box, absolutely gorgeous: we knew Donna would love it!

Walking in with Gabby, Donna looked completely stunned to find all of her friends already waiting for her inside. She genuinely didn’t expect this! We all had such a great time, and the exquisite birthday cake was to die for. It was made up of 5 different layers, with a gold and black color scheme on the outside, but a creamy white sponge cake on the inside. At one stage, Donna became absolutely smitten with the sexy blonde male performer, who was in possession of a muscular torso, numerous tattoos, and an extremely tight pair of pants.

David Furnish stayed till very late, so did André Balazs with his mystery blonde. And just as I was about to leave, Donna came up and hugged me. I was wearing the DK vintage Bandage dress: very black, very fitted, and very mini! Donna looked so pleased…