Mr. Chow, Mickalene Thomas, Hassan Pierre, and Stefano Tonchi
It’s that time of year once again! Miami is being swarmed by art lovers and cool hunters from New York (for the week, Miami is New York City’s 6th district), London, Los Angeles, and beyond. Call it their yearly expedition to Art Basel Miami Beach and the numerous other art fairs (like Nada and Untitled) concurrently happening today.
It’s a week of art, and so much more. (Just one day into the fair, critics are buzzing about professional photographer Wolfgang Tillmans’s brand-new works at David Zwirner, gallery 56 Henry’s Basel launching, and a vast display of Louis Vuitton’s partnership with Frank Gehry.) After the art comes the celebrations and the after-parties. Basel offers an extravagant amount of options for those looking to clink cocktail glasses and dance on the beach until the early hours of the night. On the docket for this year? White Cube’s annual rager at Soho House Miami Beach, a Gagosian fete cohosted with Positano hotel Le Sirenuse, and a Mickelane Thomas celebration with Janelle Monae at the Miami Beach Edition. Fashion-wise, Dior, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Ssense x Marni, and Farfetch x Dolce & & Gabbana have also joined in on the fun with parties of their own. It’s a celebratory whirlwind all in the name of art; a roundup of the most stylish fetes, listed below.
Tuesday
Hassan Pierre Celebrated Mickalene Thomas at Mr. Chow
On Tuesday night, Hassan Pierre– the CEO and Co-founder of Maison De Mode– conducted his yearly Art Basel Miami Beach dinner, cohosted together with Lola Ogunnaike and Shop with Google. This year, the honoree was the inimitable Mickalene Thomas; dripping in Gucci, she exuded an incredible palo-santo scent by Costa Brazil (Francisco Costa was also present), which she had in the pocket of her studded suit. The night, which celebrated Thomas’ new fashion collaboration with Shop with Google, began with an hour-long intimate cocktail reception on a secluded terrace followed by a family-style dinner in Mr. Chow’s marble-clad private room. Mr. Chow himself even made a surprise guest appearance rocking a floral Mickalene-designed hat, which was gifted to every attendee. After the first course, a conversation between Lola and Mickalene took place, while James de Givenchy of TAFFIN, Nathalie Obadia of Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Dominique Lévy of Lévy, Gorvy Dayan, Vito Schnabel of Vito Schnabel Gallery, and François and Olivier Sarközy dined. Karolina Kurkova, who rolled in fashionably late as she was enjoying an evening on Whitney Kronke’s mega-yacht, enhanced the evening along with Stefano Toncchi, Barbara Becker, Luis Morais, Robert Verdi, Mckenzie Liautaud, Alexis Stoudemire, Aurora James, and Isolde Breilmaier, the deputy director of the New Museum. – Erin Newburg
