This was my first year experiencing the Sodom and Gomorrah that is the Basel Art Fair in Miami.
In short- as Justin said- Basel is like PR speed dating- you see all the editors, stylists and dealers you could possibly imaging in 4 short days. Why do you think everyone stays up all night- business is business!
Justin who has been before (always ahead of the game) and I hopped on a plane on Thursday night December 7th and fell back off the plane at JFK on Sunday night.
What happened in between was quite simply legendary. Or at least that's what we thought while watching the sun rise with all of our new friends.
Believe it or not we DID work. On four hours a sleep a night we hit the massive Basel art fair as well as 2 of the satellites, Pulse and Nada. Pulse was by far our favorite with fresh new talent and a manageable area to walk without betting lost in the endless maze that is the Big Mama Basel.
But from 5Pm to 5AM we were rock stars.
We would start off with cocktails and light fare at the Delano, usually running into some friends. Then we would siesta from 7-9 at the room where we gazed at Boomerang and The Polar Express.
Our first night out we met up with out Beatrice Inn gang- Paul, Rebecca, Clare and the lot at Le Baron where we danced to 'Hit the Road Jack'. From there we went to Paul's rooftop at the Townhouse to watch the sun rise.
The second night we hit ELEVEN places in one night. Not by choice. Wild goose chases ensued to find friends, boys and booze. We did bump into Keith Richards at Duce, a dive bar where he was shivering in the corner in a pink lace shirt and leather vest. Other highlights included the Harper's Bazaar/Swarovski soiree, The Arrive party and a movie screening at the Raleigh. What was not fun was $200 in cabs, cocktails in the rain next to a bon fire and a riot at Le Baron.
Waking up at 12 we would indulge in BLT's on bagels at the local bar and eat them on the beach with Seagulls dive-bombing for scraps. On Saturday night we met up with Jamie Drake and his crowd for drinks at the Sagamore, then we hit the Whitney Party at the Shore Club (Thanks Susan Joy for getting us in before it was open!). Finally we zipped over to the Visionaire party at the Raleigh until 3 am and then drank next to the pool until 5. Quel night! No cabs, lots of friends and many hysterics.
Visionaire was quite a riot simply because we swore our friend Casey Spooner was hosting. I even had a text from him- No line, just come see me! -
The door gal didn’t have any list from Casey but since we were so sugary sweet and I showed her my text from him, she breezed us through in front of the block long line. When we are inside Casey comes up to us and says- Where were you at my party?
This is your party, right?
No, mine was at the Delano!
Oops.
It must have simply been our tees we bought on the street that got us in.
Now those are Legendary (see image attached or Style.com or gayzofourlives.com)
There is so much more to tell but lets just say, we are definitely back for more next year.
Hoorah!
