Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1543122
Samantha Mundinger Michel Miller Stacey Thompson Elsian Cozens Sara Kellner november | page 10 | 2010 B y C a t h e r i n e D . a n s p o n . p h o t o g r a p h y s h a u L i n h o n , D u s t i n M a n s y u r , J o h n D a v e y . At the Menil Contemporaries' second annual fall membership mixer, Magritte and Martinis, the luminous evening might have been painted by René himself. But since the late surrealist master's canvases are often devoid of people or hauntingly silent, the analogy ends here. For on this particular night, 500 bright and beautiful young things came out to gaze upon Michael Heizer earthworks, marvel at a crimson Jim Love sculpture that resembles a gargantuan jack, not to mention explore one of the world's greatest private museums. Inside, the action continued, with DJ Brasko spinning tunes and slideshow images by Brian Eno flashing upon walls that normally showcase Rauschenbergs. Other nifty, artful touches: Warholian photo-booth portraits by Photo Con Queso, cocktails curated by Anvil Bar & Refuge, hand-picked wines by 13 Celsius, cupcakes crafted by Celebrity Cupcakes and goody bags stocked with chocolates shaped like tiny palettes, courtesy of The Chocolate Bar. On hand to address the throng of current and future Menil Contemporaries was museum director Josef Helfenstein, who offered welcoming remarks while praising the vision of late founders Dominique and John de Menil. (His upcoming Art and Activism book on the de Menils, penned while serving as co-curator of the now-on-view Kurt Schwitters collage show, is among fall's must-have volumes.) Enthusiastically applauding were colleagues, the party's organizers Elsian Cozens, Amanda Shagrin, and Jennifer Hennessy; and Menil curators Kristina Van Dyke and Michelle White. Among the tribe of gallerists, burgeoning collectors and hot Texas artists: Christie's Jessica Phifer; Connie McAllister from the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston with Whitney Biennial- exhibited beau Dario Robleto; Wade Wilson Art gallerina Susanna Kise; Tina and Josh Zulu with artist pal Selven O'Keef Jarmon, who dropped in from South Africa; Claudia Solís; Samira Anne Salman; Mitchell Center's Karen Farber, who told us about her newborn daughter; Annie Criner; Adrian Patterson; Ramon Manning; about-to-be-wed Lauren Creager and Will Page; Art Palace's Arturo Palacios; Hanh Nguyen dishing with JeMille Javier; dashing artist Kyle Henricks, whom we remember from his Commerce Street Artists Warehouse days; installation artist/ photog/after-party hostess Molly Gochman, with Chip Schneider; gallerist Barbara Davis, spotted in an earnest dialogue with Robert Burnside (the pair later headed to Armandos for salsa dancing); Box 13–exhibited artist JoAnn Park; Cecilia Alatriz, who arrived with Rice's Kevin Foyle; Adriana Perez; Aurora Picture Show's Delicia Harvey; Christina Solís with her dashing gent Graham Gaskill; photographer of icy climes Libbie Masterson; husband-and-wife creative types Mick Johnson and the Menil's Melanie Crader; former DiverseWorks director turned art advisor Sara Kellner, who promised to give us the scoop on METRO's latest art commissions; Michelle Aviña with Peel Gallery's Steven Hempel; and sculptor Haden Garrett — whose best gal is Menil curator Miz White, in case you didn't know. Caroline Starry LeBlanc: The Jim Love sculpture titled Jack. Love was a beloved and very talented Houston artist, and I love that the Menil displays his work so prominently and also worked with another museum [CAMH] to make his much-deserved retrospective happen a few years ago. It takes a village! Joi Maria Probus: The de Menil house. Jessica and Jay Earnest: The bodysuit with nails in the Wunderkammer. Eric Wolf: Barnett Newman's Broken Obelisk at the Rothko Chapel. Courtney Leverette: Magritte's L'empire des lumières. Hugo Chambon: The Greek statues. Jessica Ninci: The Cy Twombly Gallery. Chip Schneider Molly Gochman Josef Helfenstein Eddie Allen JoAnn Park Barbara Davis Kyle Henricks Domenico Luciano Karen Farber Melanie Crader & Mick Johnson Miranda Orr Annie Criner Kristina Van Dyke Michelle White Omar Higgs Charles Adi Jarrett Cohen Lauren Stephens Allison White Sarah Jones Brian Neal Sensabaugh Chelsea Cunningham Anat Kaufman Ford Gunter PaperCity's Jenny Antill Brad Lacy Carlton Ahrens Steven Hempel Susanna Kise Amanda Shagrin Adrian Patterson Lucy Anderson Ramon Manning Tricia & Michael Dinh Lauren Creager Page & Will Page Dario Robleto Connie McAllister Dominic Walsh