How An International Summit Can Shut A City Down

Well I didn't know what to expect from the summit, but from what I've seen yesterday, the city is effectively shut down. Port of Spain was a ghost town and it seems like people were on the beach (Maracas Bay) or at parties out side the city. Check points on the road were part of the security measures taken for the dignitaries and heads of states in town for the summit. From the Caribbean Airways plane taxing in to the gate, we could see Airforce One on the tarmac at Piarco Airport. It was cool to see it though Obama was nowhere in site and I heard he left the airport later than we did.

Tonight is the exhibition opening for Anne at The Corner Bar. I hope people brave the check points and come out.

Photos from Modern Modern and Yayoi Kusama at Gagosian

Fun fun and more fun describes our opening the other night for modern modern. Pati Hertling curated the show and everyone seems to think she did a fabulous job. There was a great turn out at the museum, with Barbara Gladstone and Stefania Bortolami attending, along with Daniel Reich and some other dealers I hadn't seen there before.

At Gagosian, the usual suspects, but Mr. G was friendly to me and I was happy about it, and introduced Anne Herzog, the French artist I'm doing the exhibition with in Trinidad, to him. She is so innocent, doesn't even know who he is, what his gallery means for art sales. Some people at the opening at Gagosian, I was happy to over hear saying to each other: "Chelsea Art Museum. There's something happening there. We're going over." I heartily affirmed it and saw them later at the museum, where the bar was overwhelmed later in the night as there were so many people crowding into the galleries. The first photos here are of me with Dorothea, the founder of the museum, and some of my colleagues.

Tonight!

After party at Santos Party House...Of course there's Yayoi Kusama at Gagosian too; new work. Will be there, camera in hand.

Anne Herzog: Fractures and Faults at The Corner Bar, Woodbrook, Trinidad, West Indies

If you're there, make it over to The Corner Bar Saturday night, 6-8. If you're not there, well, spread it around anyway.

Easter Weekend

This weekend was a bit of a blur, but what I'm sure about is that I'm exhausted. Here are some pics from the 1 year old birthday of Salome, Stephan's and Kaiama's cute kid, and then some others from Nobu, where I met up with my partner, Christopher, and a couple of his friends. The one of the Asian dancer is Loan Tran, accountant by day, street dancer by weekend. She is apparently there every Saturday and Sunday on West Broadway outside of Cipriani's!

Saturday night I had a birthday dinner at Indochine (love that place!) where I knew people at 4 other tables...Crazy. Tony Shafrazi was there with Owen Wilson and some other Lebanese I knew were there as well as my friend Zubin Khan. It was a fun night with a limo and dancing till the sun came up.

Sunday I had brunch at a friend's house around the corner on Broome Street. Apparently the building is the one in which Heath Ledger o.ded. It was a fabulous apartment with 5 terraces. That alone should tell you how large, 3 terraces up top and 2 below. Gwendolyn invited me. She's in the pic with her friend on one of those terraces.

Sunday night I went to a "Trini" party where my friend Chris Deejayed. It was Colin "Soulboy" William's event, and for someone like me not familiar with the Trinidadian expat crowd, it was fun. Ashley Christmas, I swear that's his name, told me a lot of those people are in Trinidad for Carnival.

Che Lovelace opens at Half Gallery

I have to write about this exhibition for the M mag so won't give much away here, but if you are on the LES or have a desire to see some contemporary art from a Trinidadian artist, well, there it is. Che had a great turn out yesterday, with critics, curators, collectors, dealers, artists and other people unrelated to art showing up. There was a good representation of Trinidadians there, some I knew from Carnival.

My friend Chris arrived too late last night to come to the opening, but I'm sure he'll catch up with whatever he missed.

The other pics are from a fashion party at a loft on Broadway and the bar at the back of Cafe Select.

Three openings, one night, at the Chelsea Art Museum

Three exhibitions opened last night; Mark Amerika (formerly shown at Tate), 12 Asian artists in a group show and two Mexican women artists. Mark Amerika made the first film on a cell phone. I loved the 12 Asian artists too. Jose Cuervo Tradicional sponsored the Mexican opening party. Apparently this was the tequila that Frida Kahlo drank. They sponsored her exhibition at the National Museum of Philadelphia last year. I restricted myself to two margaritas though the lovely Columbian producers of the event, Claudia and her two sisters, were definitely an enticement to have more.

Jean Miotte was there signing books. Power, of Wu Tang Klan fame, was there. He's the friend of Derrick, my intern. Finally there's a pic of his here. Tonight Che Lovelace opens at a lower east side gallery. I think I will write a review of his show for the M magazine.

Botanica Brooklyn

One of the owners of Botanica, Daniel, told me about his bar in Red Hook, Brooklyn, some time ago. I finally got there today because Joseph, the brother of Sunny and Joy, the twins, was spinning. We had to take the Ikea ferry to Brooklyn (free) and then walk about 5-10 mins but it was so worth it. A cute crowd, good music, excellent cocktails and the freedom to do what the hell you felt like. No one to say turn the music down, no one to say no dancing allowed, a truly old school New York freedom that was missing in Manhattan in the last decade and which now seems to be coming back to Manhattan, but which is definitely part of the Brooklyn (remote Brooklyn) scene.

Besides Sunny and Joy, there was another set of twins. Didn't get their names but there's a pic here.

Today was the first real spring day I felt. Everyone was out and happy and kissing in the streets. I'm going to get a bicycle to go around with I decided. Costs only $25 from a guy I know in the East Village; an old guy who is the super of a building on 3rd and Ave C. Cholo "refurbishes" old bikes and resells them. Makes sense what he said, "If it gets stolen, you won't lose anything." (Wink)