AVENUEinsider December 1, 2011 by AVENUE Magazine

AVENUE

DECEMBER 2011

Kelly’s New Reality Kelly Bensimon gives us the scoop on what really happened with The Real Housewives of New York City

2011’s Most Talked About People: Beyoncé, Jessica Chastain, John Galliano, Rupert Murdoch, Ai Weiwei, Rachel Zoe and more

Kelly Bensimon, entrepreneur

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AVENUE

DECEMBER 2011

VOL. 35 NO.12

FEATURES 50

KELLY ’S NEW REALITY Kelly Bensimon may have gotten fired from The Real Housewives of New York City, but this mom of two is hardly slowing down—she has much more to check off of her bucket list. And getting back into the grove of a “real” New York life is her top priority. by carson griffith photographs by juan algarin

MOST TALKED ABOUT . . . 2011 A round up of New York City’s biggest headlines—and headliners—of 2011: Jessica Chastain, Anderson Cooper, Steve Jobs, Jenna Lyons, Rupert Murdoch, Anthony Weiner and Kanye West, to name just a few. by debbie bancroft, maria bartiromo, peter davis, adam lisberg, jasmine lombardi, martin marks, alexandria symonds illustrated by matt collins

COLUMNS 28

CHRONICLES It was a night of glitz and glam (for a good cause!) at the Alzheimer’s Association Rita Hayworth Gala. by debbie bancroft

BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG PARTY Carson Griffith recaps the late nights where friends, girlfriends and boyfriends, husbands and wives, moms and dads, sisters and brothers reaped the benefits of their famous counterparts. by carson griffith

this page Navy wool mini dress by Louis Vuitton. Neon-colored stone necklaces and multi strap shoes by Max Mara

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AVENUE

DECEMBER 2011

VOL. 35 NO.12

CRICKET ’S CRUSH Major mittens that will keep you warm all winter long.

SCANDAL SHEET One of Salvador Dalí ’s trips to Manhattan ends with trouble at Bonwit Teller.

108 WORLD ACCORDING TO . . . Founder of the National Jewelry Institute (and AVENUE), Judy Price, talks about curating exhibits all over the world and about the city she built this very magazine around.

DEPARTMENTS 17

ON THE AVENUE The best parties of the month.

ARTS CALENDAR What’s on view at galleries and museums.

on the cover Grey cashmere and fox fur shrug by Devi Kroell. Photographed by Juan Algarin. Styled by Cricket Burns. Fashion assistance by Daniel John Hardy. Hair by Bradley Irion for Timothy Priano. Makeup by Bill Westmoreland for www.artandcommerce.com

AVENUEinsider For the latest on people and parties, visit www.avenueinsider.com

letters to the editor AVENUE welcomes “Letters to the Editor” Please address to Editor Peter Davis 79 Madison Avenue, 16th Floor New York, NY, 10016 pdavis@manhattanmedia.com 8 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

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letter from the editor

Dear Readers, Editor Peter Davis

IN MANHATTAN, we love to talk and talk and talk some more. I don’t know about you, but I ingest Page Six with my breakfast. News and gossip is the fuel that keeps New York buzzing all day and all night—from power lunch in The Grill Room of the Four Seasons Restaurant to the smoky balcony of the Boom Boom Room. Everyone wants to know the who, what, where, when and why. As 2011 comes to a close, we look back at the stories, personalities and, of course, scandals that defined the year. Welcome to our famous “Most Talked About” issue. From breakout movie stars like Jessica Chastain who seemed to appear out of nowhere to become the heir to Meryl Streep’s thespian throne to Rupert Murdoch’s “Hackergate” (quick—make sure your cell phone is off) to a whole new world of marital bliss in New York state which now includes same sex couples, like designer and TV star Michael Kors and his boyfriend Lance LePere who tied the knot in the Hamptons. We sadly say goodbye to our heroes like painter Lucian Freud, iconic Elizabeth Taylor and the seminal alternative band R.E.M., while saying hello to Rachel Zoe’s new baby, Anderson Cooper’s eponymous talk show and the city’s newest style starlet Michelle Harper who has enraptured both party photographers and the fashion world with her daredevil style. On the subject of what’s new, former The Real Housewives of New York City star Kelly Bensimon gives us the exclusive scoop on being canned from Bravo’s guilty pleasure

10 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

reality series/train wreck and what her next move is. Bensimon, who has been on the New York scene for years before Bravo ever caught a second of her on film, is ready to reclaim her life, sans a reality TV crew trailing her every move. Once an Elle Accessories editor in the front row of fashion shows and at every A-list party in town, Bensimon disappeared from that world when she became the “crazy” housewife (she can probably thank Bravo’s editors for that) and found herself a topic for the tabloids that covered the Housewives’ catfights like a world-class boxing match. But the former model and mother of two is a knockout on and off camera and has plenty of punches left to pull. So get ready for take two in the always-entertaining world of Kelly Bensimon. See you in 2012. And until then, keep doing the things that keep us talking. Peter Davis

Editor For more of our December issue, visit www.avenueinsider.com

速

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Martin Marks

Peggy Siegal

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On the

AVENUE

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DAVID X PRUTTING Nicki Minaj and Donatella Versace For more parties and events, visit www.avenueinsider.com

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on the avenue

DISCO’S COMEBACK

Studio 54 reopens for one night

Legendary den of disco decadence Studio 54 reopened for one night for a special event hosted by Sirius XM Radio. Naomi Campbell, Cameron Diaz, Fern Mallis, Keith Richards and Patti Hansen all made it past the throngs and policemen outside to dance under the strobe lights. 3

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1. Tom Brokaw and Diana Taylor 2. Michael Schlein and Faye Wattleton 3. Tina Brown and Sir Harold Evans

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TAKING ACCION ACCION International celebrated its 50th anniversary with a gala at Cipriani 42nd Street. The nonprofit organization helps provide people with the financial tools to work their way out of poverty. Board Chair Diana Taylor was joined by the gala’s emcee Tina Brown, Vikram Pandit, who was honored that evening, and guests such as Tom and Meredith Brokaw. 18 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

5 7 1. Liya Kebede 2. Jayma Cardoso and Patrick Taylor 3. Tony Shafrazi and Clive Davis 4. Brad Goreski 5. Lance Bass 6. Donna D'Cruz 7. Marc Benecke

PATRICK MCMULLAN/PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

ACCION hosts a gala to celebrate its 50th anniversary

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THE NEW

NEWEL Newel celebrates its reopening

Lewis Baer and Guy Regal celebrated their partnership with the re-launch of Newel Antiques at the store’s six story building. Guests included Linda Fargo, Geoffrey Bradfield, John Meeks, Lisa Cohen and Sue Chalom.

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3 5 1. La La Anthony 2. Andrew Saffir, Michelle Monaghan and Daniel Benedict 3. Lynn Collins and Ari Graynor 4. Sophia Bush and Bryce Dallas Howard 5. Nur Khan and Pernilla Fransander

The Cinema Society, Dior Homme, GQ and Grey Goose hosted a screening of Restless at the Landmark Sunshine Theater, followed by an after party at Nur Khan’s Electric Room at Dream Downtown. Director Gus Van Sant, Amy Sacco, Bryce Dallas Howard and Dior’s Karen Watkins all showed up. The Cinema Society also hosted a screening of Straw Dogs at the Tribeca Grand Hotel where James Marsden, Kate Bosworth, Alexander Skarsgard and Julie Henderson made the scene. 20 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

1. Lewis Baer and Guy Regal 2. Paula Scott and Jim Maher 3. Meredith Aman and John Meeks

J.T. WHITE/ PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

Recent events hosted by the Cinema Society

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ART PARTY Stefano Tonchi and Tamara Mellon host a party for ICONS Collection Jimmy Choo’s Tamara Mellon and W’s Stefano Tonchi hosted a private dinner at the Lehmann Maupin Gallery for ICONS Collection: Photographs by Nan Goldin. China Chow, Leighton Meester, Lake Bell, Karlie Kloss, Cynthia Rowley and Arden Wohl all toasted the artist.

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1. Jay McInerney, Janna Bullock and Couri Hay 2. Candace Bushnell and Anne Hearst McInerney 3. Tony Peck, Paula Rice and Jon Lovitz

ROYAL

COURTING Anne Randolph Hearst McInerney hosted a benefit for the famed Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. Jay McInerney, Jon Lovitz, Candace Bushnell, Janna Bullock, Alison Mazzola and George Farias attended the weekend festivities to raise funds for the Hearst Castle Preservation Foundation, dedicated to the restorations and upkeep of this National Historic Landmark. 22 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

6 1. China Chow 2. Cynthia Rowley 3. Stefano Tonchi and Tamara Mellon 4. Blair Voltz Clarke and Dana Gers 5. Lake Bell and Leighton Meester 6. Arden Wohl 7. Teresita Fernandez and Anh Duong

BILLY FARRELL/BFANYC.COM

The third annual Hearst Castle Preservation Foundation Benefit

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REVERING RALPH

Oprah Winfrey hosted a black tie dinner party to celebrate Ralph Lauren at Lincoln Center with a retrospective fashion show celebrating Laurenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s illustrious career. The evening benefited the Ralph Lauren Center for Cancer Care and Prevention and the Lincoln Center for Performing Arts and gathered quite the star-studded crowd, including Jessica and Jerry Seinfeld, Naomi Watts, Matt Lauer, Barbara Walters, Andy Cohen, Tracy Pollan and Michael J. Fox and of course, the Lauren clan: Dylan, David, Ricky and Andrew.

10 1. Ralph and Ricky Lauren 2. Barbara Walters 3. Julie Macklowe 4. Diane von Furstenberg and Barry Diller 5. Mary Alice Stephenson 6. Linda Fargo 7. David and Lauren Bush Lauren 8. Dylan Lauren 9. Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld 10. Wendi Murdoch 11. Uma Thurman

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Oprah hosts an evening honoring Ralph Lauren

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MAGS AND

MAKE-UP Patrick McMullan launches PMc Magazine

Patrick McMullan celebrated the launch of his new magazine along with Maybelline Great Lash Mascara’s 40th birthday with a party at Dream Downtown. The festivities continued with an after-party at Pop Burger. Guests included Jessica White, Liam McMullan, Michele Gerber Klein, Paul Guevara and Frederick Anderson.

1. Olivia Palermo 2. Graziano de Boni and Jennifer Creel 3. Zani Guglemann 4. Richard and Renée Steinberg 5. Sarah Howard and Charlotte Ronson

A PERFECT FIT

Giorgio Armani and Departures celebrated the Giorgio Armani made-to-measure collection at the Core Club. Guests included Graziano de Boni, Olivia Palermo, Zani Gugelmann, Sarah Howard, Jennifer Creel and Richard and Renée Steinberg. Afterwards, VIPs had dinner at Armani Ristorante. 26 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

MATTEO PRANDONI/BFANYC.COM

Giorgio Armani celebrates his made-to-measure collection

1. Chelsea Leyland 2. Jessica White and Patrick McMullan 3. Alexa WInner 4. Liam McMullan and Aesha Waks

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chronicles

DEBBIE BANCROFT

Glamour Gala H

ow often do you respond to an invitation from a pal who is a descendant of the leader of the Ismaili Muslims (Aly Khan), the daughter of the all time icon of Hollywood glamour (Rita Hayworth), who spends her time golfing, horse back riding, skiing and hiking, far from this madding crowd, when she’s not raising money to combat the disease that robbed her beloved mother of her thoughts and life? Multiple choice not needed. It is of course, Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, who 28 years ago, established this tribute to her mother: the Alzheimer’s Association Rita Hayworth Gala. “When my mother and I stood next to each other, in front of a mirror and she said, ‘Who are you?’ I knew I had lost her.” Her mother was 66 years old. “It’s not an old person’s disease,” Yas told me. “Our biggest problem is denial! Family members don’t want to deal with it. A diagnosis must be made by a neurologist, and there are meds that can slow down the process.” This year, the “Hollywood Glamour” party raised $1.6 million towards that end. David Hyde Pierce, who gave tribute to the late Claudia Cohen’s Initiative to End Alzheimer’s, lost both his father and grandfather to Alzheimer’s. Victor Garber, who also spoke, lost both parents to this miserable disease. We all nodded knowingly. I lost my beloved mother to it over the course of six heart-wrenching years. Corporate Award winner and CEO of HSNi, Mindy Grossman, lost both of her parents within 72 hours of each other. HSN will be debuting a jewelry line in March with proceeds going to fight Alzheimer’s. Somers Farkas Mindy Grossman and Somers Farkas received the Rita Hayworth Award and 28 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

was saluted in a video by her great friend, Senator Mark Warner, whose mother suffered from Alzheimer’s for 10 years. But hey—this was a party, and party we did! Patty Smyth grabbed the mic and our attention saying, “You all look really beautiful . . . even you!” Governor Paterson leaned to me and whispered, “Did she mean me?” She didn’t. “Was that for you?” I asked her husband, John McEnroe. “Nope,” he said, “I got here after that,” though he was razzed by Regis Philbin. “It took Joy 15 minutes to get me into this tie . . . and you’re not wearing one?” he told John. Regis then told Patty that her $1.8 million (loaned) Van Cleef necklace “kicked all the other necklaces’ asses.” Now that’s rock talk. Patty then gave us rock music—great rock music. We shimmied among David Monn’s striped, cabana umbrellas and palm tree centerpieces, reminiscent of The Beverly Hills Hotel. Charles Askegard (who has just launched the new dance company Ballet Next) performed a pas de deux for us with his partner Georgina Pazcoguin, dressed by tablemate, Nicole Miller. Bryant and Hilary Gumbel told me the good news: he is healthy, cancer free, and boy, do they look good. They were joined by stalwart supporters: Muffie and Sherrell Aston, Susan and John Hess, Andrea and John Stark, Ken and Kathryn Chenault, Rolex’s Stewart Wicht, Martha Webster, Anne Bass, Libet Johnson, Ana Cristina Alvarado and many more. An anonymous donor (aren’t they the best kind?) offered to match the first $50,000 raised, which was further insured by the live auction conducted by Jay McInerney and featuring Roger Waters’ and Glen Campbell’s guitars. The silent auction offered tennis with John McEnroe and a

CLINT SPAULDING/PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

New Yorkers honor Hollywood icon Rita Hayworth for an evening of charity

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chronicles

Anne Hearst and Jay McInerney Amy Fine Collins and Alex Hitz

Hilary and Bryant Gumbel

Devon Aoki

Patty Smyth

David Paterson, and Patricia Duff

Princess Yasmin Aga Khan Nicole Miller

“Brooke Shields raced in [...] and standing there in her shimmering long, red dress—reflected in the soaring, three story windows, she helped us finish our evening with true Hollywood glamour.” Savoir bed to sleep it off in. Anne Hearst McInerney regularly popped her card in to a bidding device for a Lyford vacation, until she realized she had been using Governor Paterson’s by mistake. I’m sure they will have a fun week. After my ritual dance to “It’s Raining Men” (though in fact, it’s been a trickle for years), we meandered spontaneously back to Laurie Durning’s fabulous house. Fiancé, Roger Waters was fishing while we fished for champagne, successfully. Brooke Shields raced in, breathless from her performance in The Addams Family and standing there in her shimmering, long red dress—reflected in the soaring, three story windows, she helped us finish our evening with true Hollywood glamour. F

CLINT SPAULDING/PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

Ro bi n Me ltzer an d Al exan dr a Le be nt ha l

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bright lights, big party

CARSON GRIFFITH

Familiar Faces Petra Nemcova

Hugh Dancy

Chace Crawford Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen

Terry Richardson

Family ties are the driving force behind these stars in the spotlight this month

here have always been celebrities, but the term itself is ever-evolving. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word as “the state of being celebrated” or “a famous or celebrated person.” But enter the 21st century, where reality stars and the offspring and entourages of A-listers roam Los Angeles and New York freely. And so the Celebrity Appendage is born. The Celebrity Appendage in its own right has become somewhat of an anomaly. The spouses, daughters, sisters, boyfriends of famous folk have made names for themselves first by their association, then by their talent. We’ve come to accept it. So I’m not surprised when I’m invited to the Off Broadway play of La La Anthony (née Vazquez), the wife of New York Knick Carmelo Anthony, with a cocktail party following. The former MTV veejay and VH1 host made her theatrical debut at the Westside Theatre in Love, Loss and What I Wore. “What I really want to do is act,” Anthony, clad in a little black dress, tells me over X-Rated Fusion Liqueur cocktails at the 48 Lounge. She’s Elizabeth well on her way: “When I heard that Love, Loss, and What I Wore was Olsen looking for new people, I went in and auditioned,” she says. Anthony recounts her daily routine, which includes one to two shows, and waking up early to take her 4-year-old son with the famous b-baller, Kiyan, to school every day. The small fête, filled with colorful candy and cocktails, is being filmed for her reality show, La La’s Full Court Life. “[Looking like this] is part of the job,” she confesses. “It takes work.” That same evening, I catch a cab even further uptown to the Empire Hotel where another Celebrity Appendage is being fêted: the younger sister of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen—22-year-old Elizabeth made her sophomore debut in Martha Marcy May Marlene—a flick about Julianne a creepy cult in upstate New York that is better than the title. Hough and Olsen, herself, is fantastic in the film, making me think she’s more Kenny Wormald than just an off-shoot of her older sisters. Speaking of, the two nearly-billionaires hold court in a back corner of a rooftop, smoking cigarettes, with their younger sister square in the middle. While Elizabeth, or “Lizzie,” as her friends call her, walks from Alice Tully Hall when her chauffeured car didn’t arrive, M.K. and A.’s security takes up more real estate on the roof-top than most East Village walk-ups. Luckily, there’s still room for Parker Posey, Ally Hilfiger and Hugh Dancy (sans Claire Danes) to breeze around the open-air area.

©PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

Ally Hilfiger and Steve Hash

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bright lights, big party The next night, I have a run-in with a different sort of Celebrity Appendage. At the Cinema Society’s after-party for Footloose at Catch in the Meatpacking District, Julianne Hough is holding court. The Dancing with the Stars ingénue first made a name for herself as a sunny-faced virgin prancing across the stage on the ABC competition show. But instead of fading into obscurity, her career has catapulted into country music ambitions, the lead in the Footloose re-make, and maybe her most important role of all: Ryan Seacrest’s girlfriend. Hough became tabloid bait when she started dating the 36-year-old television host, but tonight she just looked like another pretty club-goer in the Meatpacking District, albeit a better dancer than most. She is even moving her feet, while her upper body remains at rest, as Stephen Baldwin chats her ear off (his sister-in-law, Chynna Phillips, had recently been eliminated on the show). After grinding on the

America Olivo

Mamie Gummer and Grace Gummer

Kevin Spacey

Zoe Kravitz

“While Elizabeth, or ‘Lizzie’ as her friends call her, walks from Alice Tully Hall when her chauffeured car didn’t arrive, M.K. and A.’s security takes up more real estate on the roof-top than most East Village walk-ups.”

Penn Badgley

Parker Posey

Joe Zee and Brad Weston

Demi Moore

dance-floor with Kenny Wormald, her co-star and another professional dancer, she makes her way around the room, inciting party-goers to join her on the floor. I find myself with my hands in the air awkwardly trying to keep up with the beautiful blond, as she approaches our table, insisting we move along with her. Now if only I watched the show . . . Considering October is a month of movies (thanks to the New York and Hamptons Film Festivals), less than a week later I’m at another flick fête, this time thanks to Peggy Siegal, for the after-party for Margin Call at The Top of the Standard (aka The Boom Boom Room). While everyone is eagerly watching the door in hopes that Demi Moore, who plays the leading female role in the film, makes an appearance due to the recent splattering of rumors about her rocky marriage with Ashton Kutcher, I have my eyes on the only Celebrity Appendage in the room. Taking the cigarettes out of Penn Badgley’s coat pocket while he chats with another party-guest is none other than Zoe Kravitz, daughter of rocker Lenny Kravitz, and until then, the rumored girlfriend of the Gossip Girl actor. The 23 year-old has made a name for herself, trotting around NYC with Alexander Wang (she was the face of his T Fall campaign last year) and starring in X-Men: First Class. Badgley and Lenny’s little lady hold hands throughout the evening, but refuse to be photographed together, as they mingle with Badgley’s co-stars, Kevin Spacey and Zachary Quinto. As if that ever kept the rumors at bay. F

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Benevolent Bashes New Yorkers show their charitable sides with various fundraisers

ay McInerney introduced Princess Yasmin Aga Khan by saying “The Rita Hayworth Alzheimer’s Ball has become one of the signature fund-raising events on the New York social calendar, to the point that I used it as a backdrop for a scene in my last novel, The Good Life.” Jay and his wife Anne Frances Hearst co-chaired the gala, which raised $1.6 million and honored Somers Hayward at the Rita Farkas. Suzanne Murphy placed the winning bid for the Savoir Bed, which was Hayworth the night’s most coveted auction item (www.savoirbeds.com). The best dressed Gala list included Patricia Clarkson in Douglas Hannant, Brooke Shields, Janna Bullock, Nicole Miller, Sharon Bush, Lady Liliana Cavendish, Lucia Hwong Bryan Eure and Bill White Gordon, Helen Schifter, Marcia Mishaan and Alexandra Lebenthal at their wedding at the Four Seasons with Barbara Walters (www.alz.org). Animal advocate Frances Hayward, who owns the rights to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, said the musical will be presented by Encores! Great Michele Gerber Klein at the American Musicals in Concert this Spring. Haughton Antique Show Liza Minnelli reminisced about flying on Frank Sinatra’s private plane with JFI Jets owner Arik Kislin, who also co-owns the Gansevoort Hotels. Kislin surprised Liza by telling her he recently bought Sinatra’s jet from Harrison Ford (www.jfijets.com). Muffie Potter Aston was honored by the Children’s Cancer & Blood Foundation Leesa Rowland (www.childrenscbf.org). Muffie’s moving speech highlighted the fact that no child is at the ever turned away for services regardless of their ability to pay. Supporters included Memorial Sloan Tory Burch, CeCe Cord and Dr. Sherrell Aston. The benefit raised $1.2 million. Kettering Richard Steinberg, the Warburg broker and star of Selling New York, celebrated Antique Royal Highness Show his 60th birthday at Doubles. His wife Renée introduced her dashing husband, Prince Andrew at the Savoir who hit the dance floor in a choreographed piece worthy of Dancing with the Bed store in Stars. Leading the applause were Wendy Carduner, Andrea and John Stark, Soho Geoffrey Bradfield and Roric Tobin. Jean Gwyneth Paltrow and Tinsley Mortimer are both supporters of the American Shafiroff at the Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge, where attorney Jonathan Goldberg’s comedy troupe Antique Cherub Improv entertains the patients (www.cherubimprov.org). The Cherubs held Show their Gala at Tribeca Cinemas. Guests included the organization’s co-founders Steve Van Ooteghem and Joy Copeland, Maggie Norris, Marcel Goodman, Cassandra Seidenfeld, Mark Smith, Dr. Laura Torrado and Ashley Turen. Sabina and Lorraine Belkin accepted kudos for the reception they gave at their stylish Harriette Rose restaurant DUO for photographer Rose Hartman following her show at FIT. Katz at the Four Seasons Michele and Larry Herbert gave a Studio 54 themed dinner at the Four Seasons that had everybody talking. The soirée’s climax featured a dozen chorus girls with Michele personally leading the high kicks. Among those hitting the Michele Herbert and Princess dance floor were Denise Rich, Nathalie von Bismarck and Thomas Leclercq. Yasmin Aga Khan at the Rita Hayworth Gala The party was choreographed by event planner Harriette Rose Katz who also staged the wedding of Bill White and Bryan Eure (www.gourmetadvisory.com). The couple were married by attorney David Boies in front of Georgette Mosbacher, Karolina Kurkova, Elaine Barbara Walters, Christine Quinn, Emily Smith and Gayle King Sargent at Muffie Potter the MSKCC (www.marriageequality.org). Aretha Franklin performed. Aston and Show Somers Farkas The Society of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center hosted its Preview at the Rita Party for the Haughton International Fine Art and Antique Dealers Show. Hayworth Gala. The event’s chairmen included Daisy Soros and art expert Michel Cox Witmer, who is an American trustee of TEFAF, Europe’s most prestigious Tony Ingrao and Randy Kemper antique fair (www.mskcc.org). Who else would tell you these things? F at Memorial Sloan Kettering Antique Show

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arts calendar

compiled by

KRISTINA MONLLOS

Feasting the Eyes This month’s selection of art and antiques on view or for sale

auctions BONHAMS NEW YORK

Dec. 14: 20th Century Decorative Arts 580 Madison Avenue 212.644.9001 CHRISTIE’S

The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor Dec. 13-16 20 Rockefeller Plaza 212.636.2000 DOYLE NEW YORK

Dec. 7: The Estate of Joan Crawford 175 E. 87th Street 212.427.2730

galleries GAGOSIAN GALLERY

The Private Collection of Robert Rauschenberg Nov. 3-Dec. 23 980 Madison Avenue 212.744.2313 GREENBERG VAN DOREN GALLERY

Highlights from the Ernestine and Bradley Wayne Collection Nov. 3-Dec. 23 730 Fifth Avenue 212.445.0444

exhibitions

JONATHAN LEVINE GALLERY

Sam Gibbons Dec. 10-Jan. 7 529 W. 20th Street, 9th Fl. 212.243.3822

THE FRICK COLLECTION

1000 Fifth Avenue 212.532.7710

White Gold: Highlights from the Arnhold Collection of Meissen Porcelain Dec. 13-April 29 1 E. 70th Street 212.288.0700

MOMA

SPANIERMAN GALLERY

THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART

East End Artists II Dec. 15-Jan. 14 45 E. 58th Street 212.832.0208

Duncan Phyfe: Master Cabinetmaker in New York Dec. 20-May 6

Museum as Hub: Beirut Art Center: Due to unforeseen events… Dec. 14-Feb. 5 235 Bowery 212.229.1222F

KOUROS GALLERY

Bill Barrett:Paintings and Sculpture Dec. 1-Jan. 14 23 E. 73rd Street 212.288.5888

38 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

Sanja Ivekovic: Sweet Violence Dec. 18-March 26 11 W. 53rd Street 212.708.9400 NEW MUSEUM

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11/11/11 11:41 AM

cricket’s crush

CRICKET BURNS

THE BIG CHILL 40 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

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CRICKET BURNS Andy Warhol by Bond no. 9 www.bondno9.com

EAU DE LACOSTE L.12.12 Collection www.lacoste.com

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Jingle G by Harajuku Lovers www.sephora.com

Bottega Eau De Parfum www.bottegavenetaparfum.com

The Velvet Collection by Dolce & Gabbana www.dolcegabbana.com

42 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

ANTIQUE SILVER AND JEWELRY

Antique diamond Baroque pearl

Antique gold and basse taille enamel cross

Van Cleef & Arpels zipper brooch and earring set

French gold and enamel beetle watch

Van Cleef & Arpels gold and diamond suite

Carol Giuliano gold enamel cameo pendant

Antique Victorian gold suite

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scandal sheet

DALÍ’S DILEMMA The Spanish artist made quite a splash during one of his visits to Manhattan

An illustration of the infamous incident, from the September 1992 issue of AVENUE

hen Bonwit Teller—the famed, though expired, New York City department store—asked Salvador Dalí to design the display windows in 1939, he was given complete artistic freedom. Or so he thought . . . Dalí scoured the store and found wax mannequins coifed with real human hair, dating from the turn of the century, which he positioned inside a water-filled bathtub, holding a mirror to symbolize the myth of Narcissus. Adding onto that: a bloody pig held in a buffalo’s jaw and

44 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

burnt satin sheets, Dalí called his surrealist piece Night and Day. Needless to say, the crowds flocked to the department store once the display was unveiled. But when the growing mass of onlookers started to obstruct the traffic, Bonwit Teller’s management decided to change Dalí’s display, removing some of its controversial features. Upon laying eyes on his defaced work of art, Dalí ever-so-calmly climbed into the window display and tipped over the bathtub, breaking the glass and soaking part of the crowd.

Oh, to be an artist, with all that creative temperament! Those pesky storeowners— how dare they mess with someone’s artistic vision! A few measly complaints from customers and suddenly the meaning of surrealism is compromised? After all, according to Dalí, he wasn’t hired to create a window display, he was hired to create Art with a capital “A.” Lucky for him, the judge agreed, noting that artists have the right to defend their work to the limit. The incident was ruled as excessively violent and Dalí had to write a check to Bonwit Teller for the broken window. F

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Kelly’s New Reality Fresh from being fired from The Real Housewives of New York City,

Kelly Killoren Bensimon dishes about the reality of what happened, how she felt and what’s up next by CARSON GRIFFITH photographed by JUAN ALGARIN styled by CRICKET BURNS

Hair by BRADLEY IRION FOR TIMOTHY PRIANO n Makeup by BILL WESTMORELAND FOR WWW.ARTANDCOMMERCE .COM n Fashion assistance by DANIEL JOHN HARDY

This page: Grey cashmere and fox fur shrug by Devi Kroell 50 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

DECEMBER 2011 路 AVENUE MAGAZINE | 51

n September 17th, at 7:30 p.m., Kelly Bensimon was home alone in her loft when she received a call from the Bravo network telling her that she would not be asked back for another season of The Real Housewives of New York City. Upon hearing the news, she called a friend who was in the East Village with some other acquaintances from one of the many charities Bensimon associates herself with, the Clinton Foundation. “So I went and had a glass of wine with them,” Bensimon recounts casually. “It was so weird because at that moment I recognized I can’t control what other people do but I can control what I do.” But what could have potentially been a defining—or unraveling—moment in her career seems to have merely been just another blip in time for Bensimon. “It would be different if you were asking me something about my kids, but you’re asking me about [Bravo] going in a different direction. How should you respond to that?” She shrugs. If anything, the brunette beauty seems grateful for the opportunity—especially to the Bravo network. “I’m a 43-year-old woman who they [Bravo] have empowered, who can now support herself and her kids.” There are no regrets in her demeanor, or her words. “The show is going to be on for a long time, it’s like Baywatch,” she smiles. “It’s on all over the world. Angela Missoni literally texted me from Italy and was like ‘Dahhllingg, I see you on television!’ I was laughing my head off.” As we sit at Delicatessen in Soho, everything about Kelly Killoren Bensimon—her gestures, her posture, her long, slim legs—is as graceful as a purebred race horse. So it is ironic when she tells me the reason for her recent uncomfort is due to falling off of one. “My back really hurts,” she says, apologizing for her slight neck-rubbing, which prompted her to order a cup of chamomile tea with her Cobb salad. When I inquire about what you do when you take an equine-type tumble (hospital, anyone?), the 43-year-old sets me straight: “I drove my kids home. I have two kids, what am I going to do? And one of them had a play date!” So the tone is set—there is Kelly Bensimon: the former Bravo reality star; and then there’s, well, Kelly Bensimon: mom, philanthropist, business-woman and model. They are, obviously, the same person, but the woman in front of me in a knit cap and jeans sans production team is making it glaringly obvious where her priorities lie—and that is with her family.

This page: Tuxedo blazer with tails by Prabal Gurung, black corset by Dolce & Gabbana and studded platform sandals by Brian Atwood all at Saks Fifth Avenue. Blush rosette briefs by American Apparel. Marquis shaped diamond ring and diamond bracelet by Graff

Unlike many reality stars and the army of hopefuls that travel in their wake, she didn’t arrive on the TV screen starry-eyed with staunch ambitions of fame. “I wasn’t going into it like it’s my lifelong goal. My legacy isn’t the Housewives,” explains Bensimon, who along with castmates Jill Zarin, Alex McCord and Cindy Barshop, was axed from the show prior to casting for season five. “My legacy is the future of my kids.” Bensimon’s two daughters, Thaddeus “Teddy” Ann, 11, and Sea Louise, 13, are the product of her 10-year marriage with famed fashion photographer Gilles Bensimon (the children and Kelly use his name, although she retained, Killoren, her maiden name as well). Though the pair divorced in 2007, their close friendship was a by-product of the decision. “He lives down the street from me,” adds Kelly, who currently resides in Soho. “Look, do I want to be married to Gilles? No. Do I adore the ground he walks on? Yes.” Bensimon married in 1997, ten years after moving to New York City from Rockford, Illinois to pursue modeling and attend Columbia University (she initially went to Trinity College in Connecticut, but the commute into the city for modeling gigs became too difficult). Bensimon graduated from Columbia in 1998 with a degree in literature and writing. “My parents worked really hard to afford me the luxury of education, which afforded me the luxury of doing what I love,” she added, in regards to balancing a modeling career and pursuing a degree. Her lengthy résumé may have started with modeling, but it’s grown over the years to include author, designer, and yes, reality star. While this might be enough to satiate the majority’s appetite for success, Bensimon hasn’t checked off everything on her self-titled “K-K-B bucket list.” On the top of this queue isn’t a series of work-oriented ambitions, but rather, personal ones. “I definitely do want to have a baby boy,” Bensimon candidly admits about the potential of expanding her family. “I definitely want to get married again. I have always wanted to be married. I’ve always wanted to be a wife.” Career-wise, she’s less pointed about her next step, postreality television. She toys with the idea of the fashion magazine world (she admits to missing Elle Accessories, where she served as an editor for two issues of the twice-ayear publication), and when I remind her of an article chronicling a series of acting classes she once took, she doesn’t rule out the option of entering the world of scripted entertainment. “I always tell my kids to take leaps of faith all the time. If you don’t take a leap of faith,

This page: Black fur jacket by Chloé at Saks Fifth Avenue and one piece corseted swimsuit by Bottega Veneta. Platform fur heels by Christian Louboutin at Saks Fifth Avenue

“Can you imagine being in a room with women you don’t know who are screaming and yelling at you for no reason? It took me one scene to recognize that anger comes from fear.” —Kelly Bensimon

Previous page: Black wool and chiffon jumpsuit by Yves Saint Laurent and beige suede fringed heel stilettos by Brian Atwood at Saks Fifth Avenue. Gold cuffs by Max Mara. Diamond studded earrings by Graff This page: Black sequined dress by Azzadine Alaïa and fur collar by Max Mara. Shoes by Bottega Veneta. Watch and ring by Delaneau. Diamond earrings by Graff

if you don’t make mistakes, you’re not going to learn,” she sagely proclaims. And a leap of faith may be exactly what landed Bensimon on The Real Housewives of New York City in the first place. “I learned a lot from the process,” she says, straightening her posture and taking a deep breath. “Can you imagine being in a room with women you don’t know who are screaming and yelling at you for no reason? It took me one scene to recognize that anger comes from fear.” Addicts of The Real Housewives series, and even those who have caught only an episode here or there, can understand what Bensimon is referencing. The show is an intoxicating and sometimes caustic blend of natural and somewhat-staged scenarios and arguments. Including one of the more infamous altercations between Bensimon and her former castmate Bethenny Frankel, who was on the show with Bensimon for seasons two and three. The spat, which aired on season three in an episode entitled “Sun, Sand and Psychosis,” was filmed during a trip to St. John taken by both Frankel and Bensimon, and hosted by their co-star Ramona Singer. “That was one of the highest rated episodes ever,” Bensimon says with a grin, as if acknowledging that the past is in the past. And she’s correct when it comes to the numbers: the feud in which Bensimon got into a verbal argument at a meal Frankel had prepared, Singer, Alex McCord and Sonja Morgan received 2.3 million viewers. “I’m the one who named it ‘Scary Island,’” Bensimon laughs, referring to the nickname given to the trip, St. John and the episode. “Everyone was asking me about it, but I’m the one who came up with the name in the first place!” As for Frankel, she left after that season, but not before speaking to the press about Bensimon’s mental stability at the time of the trip (Frankel now has her own reality show, Bethenny Ever After, on the network). But with all the negative vociferation between the women, bonding was also a natural side-effect. Bensimon remains close with another former Housewife, Jill Zarin, who she credits with helping her secure her latest and fourth book deal, entitled I Can Make You Hot—a recipe book that includes tips on healthy living that’s slated for a 2012 release. “Our friendship is real,” Zarin, the straighttalking Jewish mother of one, says. The 48-year-old laments that she no longer gets to spend as much time with Bensimon now that they are not filming This page: Grey wool skirt, platform rainboots and red fur hat by Louis Vuitton. Lace t-shirt by Max Mara, cerulean blue bra top by SportMax, marquis shaped diamond ring by Graff Opposite page: Black patent leather backless top by SportMax, black satin pants by Paola Quadretti, gold, diamond and semiprecious stone necklaces by Janis Provisor available at Kirna Zabete. Diamond bangle bracelet and diamond earrings by Graff 56 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

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. . .with Gilles Bensimon

Melissa George, Russell Simmons and Kelly Bensimon . . . with Marc Jacobs

. . . with Brooke Shields

. . . with Nigel Barker

. . . with Iman

. . . with Aerin Lauder 58 || AVENUE AVENUE 58

. . . with Carlos Souza

. . . with Richard Meier

. . . with Linda Vojtova and Lorenzo Martone . . . with Jonathan Adler and Simon Doonan

. . . with Theodora Richards

. . . with Amy Fine Collins

©PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

. . . with Zac Posen

together but says they talk all the time on the phone. “She’s the most loyal, good friend you could ever count on. She’s such a hard worker.” That combination is probably why Zarin was eager to put the fashion-forward model, who also has a jewelry line, in contact with her friend Bobby Campbell, the CEO of BBC International. Because of that introduction this past summer, in October, Bensimon announced the creation of the “Kelly by Kelly Killoren Bensimon” shoe line which benefits the Breast Cancer Foundation. The introduction was done prior to Bensimon’s departure from the Housewives, but considering her reputation as a fashionforward red carpet fixture, it seems like a proper collaboration. But despite the reputation on the New York social scene that Bensimon has cultivated over the years, and the one she will presumably continue to garner as she makes the transition back from reality star to society staple, she still views it with a touch of Midwestern innocence. She recounts the glamorous party rounds with her ex-husband, and her first major events in the city. “I still don’t think about it like that,” Bensimon says, when I ask her about being a part of New York society. “I was just standing there . . . I was just a figure.” But Bensimon was “just standing” with boldface names like Richard Meier, Amy Fine Collins and Marc Jacobs . . . And since she was once a front row staple during Fashion Week, one wonders if that rarefied style circle will welcome Bensimon back into their fold. You don’t exactly see any of the Housewives in the front row at Oscar de la Renta. Is reality TV the social kiss of death? Many high profile society women have turned down reality TV offers, and you wouldn’t catch Tory Burch or Aerin Lauder opening their apartment doors (and private lives) to reality TV crews. Society watchers blame Tinsley Mortimer’s sudden (though shortlived) disappearance from the party circuit on her failed CW reality show High Society (which was basically Jersey Shore antics set amongst Manhattan’s PYTs). Can Bensimon make the transition from US Weekly tabloid fodder back to the belle of fashion glossies like Vogue and Bazaar? Time will tell. But for now, Bensimon’s life is her reality—unfilmed and in her hands, not a producer’s. Everyone will be waiting to see exactly what she does next. Stay tuned. F DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 59

THE MOST TALKED ABOUT

2011

60 | AVENUE MAGAZINE 路 DECEMBER 2011

A look back at the most Googled, Tweeted and discussed people of the year illustration by MATT COLLINS

Clockwise from far left: Michael Kors, Lance LePere, Anthony Weiner, David Lauren and Lauren Bush, Anderson Cooper, Jay-Z, Beyonc茅, Skyler Berman, Rodger Berman, Rachel Zoe and Regis Philbin DECEMBER 2011 路 AVENUE MAGAZINE | 61

business THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . BUSINESS BUZZ

ank of America took a PR hit when it announced a $5 monthly fee for customers who made purchases with their debit cards—urging BoA to rethink, and ultimately renege. Target’s website crashed and store shelves were picked clean within minutes of the debut of the Missoni for Target collection. Occupy Wall Street brings thousands of demonstrators against financial greed and corruption to Zuccotti Park (and since has spread to over 100 cities in the United States). But Anchor of CNBC’s Closing Bell and Anchor/Managing Editor of Wall Street Journal Report with Maria Bartiromo, Maria Bartiromo reports on the top two stories of 2011 that have had the biggest impact on business, global economies and markets.

BARTIROMO MEANS BUSINESS: A native New Yorker, Maria Bartiromo is credited for becoming the first reporter to broadcast daily from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Today, Bartiromo’s nationally syndicated Wall Street Journal Report with Maria Bartiromo was recently rated the most watched financial news program in America 62 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

MARIA BARTIROMO: The debt crisis came to a head in Europe in 2011, re-igniting anxiety that had long been looming: the viability of the euro currency. This idea of one currency, and one central bank shared by 17 nations (many of whom have different approaches and mentalities around debt, savings, tax, work ethic, etc.), was criticized from the get go in 1999 when the euro was first put in place. More than a decade later, today some players are betting the upset will force some countries out of the euro and to re-adopt their own currencies. Whether the drachma returns or not, this event has impacted global markets including the United States— because Europe is a large trading partner and U.S. banks have exposure indirectly and directly. The financial strain there will mean cutbacks in services and new austerity for Greece and also impacted confidence in countries such as Italy, Portugal and Spain. It has been the biggest test yet for the euro since its adoption. Germany, being largest and a relatively healthier player, emerged as a lead architect of the bailout for the struggling countries, (which in itself has caused debate because

THOMAS WHITESIDE

AVENUE: What are the big stories of the year in the business and financial world?

Angela Dorothea Merkel [Chancellor of Germany] and co. are also directing the cuts and/or austerity measures). There is a fear that some countries could lose their identity as well. AVENUE: What about within the United States? MB: Unemployment in the U.S. is persisting and even though corporations today are sitting on record amounts of cash—$2.5 trillion—we are not feeling that money being used for sustained job creation because of several unknowns. The political infighting in Washington has muddied the water by leading to companies to not doing anything. The debt ceiling debate in July caused companies to freeze hiring plans and spending. Individuals also cut back, though September and October were better, and stocks actually did well in October. Companies are waiting for tax reform and are hoping it includes repatriation of profits. New expenses related to the new healthcare legislation and the anticipation of this cost a year later. Other fees related to regulatory environment and new DoddFrank legislation. AVENUE: Then what would you say the mood of the business and finance community is? MB: Cautious and unwilling to spend cash on balance sheets until they have more clarity. AVENUE: What do you expect Wall Street bonuses to be like? MB: Similar to last year. AVENUE: How will Occupy Wall Street protests affect business? MB: It seems unclear. AVENUE: Who are the people to watch in business in 2012? MB: Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, and GOP candidates. AVENUE: How will the elections and the stock exchange affect the business world? MB: They will both be a catalyst for an economic rebound.

Looking Up . . .

he mood varies between the sectors in the business and financial community, but I sense it’s cautiously optimistic in general, at least in the U.S. business will continue doing what it does best. The greatest threat comes from Washington, the lack of leadership and clarity, not the protesters on Wall Street. —Karl G. Wellner, President & CEO, Papamarkou Wellner Asset Management, Inc.

His Legacy Lives On

n the morning of November 4, 1985, I was asked to a breakfast at The Carlyle Hotel to meet with Steve Jobs. The late Jay Chiat, founder of Chiat/Day (Apple’s and Intel’s ad agency) was introducing me to Steve, who had just been fired from Apple and had just lost 20% of his net worth in the market in 8 days. Steve opened the conversation up by bitterly saying that he kept one share of Apple so he would get their annual report. In addition, having lost a fortune in the market in just one week, he said he thought it best that he stick to making widgets and hire a professional to manage his money. Steve was passionate about Apple, but was never finished with it. He professed at breakfast that “for a new technology to be successful, it had to be 1,000 times more applicable and convenient than existing technology.” But, the value of the calculator replacing the slide rule was a 1,000 betterment. He talked about the hair dryer and the chainsaw as other 1000’s. And JOBS WELL DONE: Apple on that morning, 26 years pays homage to Steve Jobs with his ago, Steve professed that he silhouette as the bite in the apple thought “Apple someday would produce a small black box device, smaller than a pack of cigarettes that would contain your Dictaphone, your telex capabilities, your Victrola, your 8 track, your land line, your calculator, your TV, your movie theater, Western Union, your train ticket, an operator on the phone and your family’s encyclopedia . . .” Guess the iPhone does more than what Steve projected—and it is smaller than a pack of cigarettes. Steve always had many projects in the fire at any one moment. We will miss him, but in knowing the man, I am pretty sure he left a legacy of projects that Apple will implement over the next 10 years. —Peter E. (Tony) Guernsey, Jr., Chief Client Advocate, Wilmington Trust, N.A.

DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 63

philanthropy THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . GIVING BACK

Billionaire Americans: New York City Chapter

DO GIVERS: Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg at the opening ceremony for section one of the High Line

City Gifts

t was announced that the Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation is giving a $20 million gift to support completion of the High Line—DVF’s treasured pet project. The money will pay for the design of the last section and help build up the park’s endowment. This gift comes after two previous donations from Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg to the High Line, totaling $15 million. According to city officials, it is the single largest donation ever made to a New York City park. Thanks Barry and Diane! Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase gave the largest donation in the history of the foundation to the New York City Police Foundation to the tune of $4.6 million. The gift was to strengthen security and provide 1,000 new patrol car laptops, as well as security monitoring software in the NYPD’s main data center. Despite recent controversy, this donation came almost two months before the Occupy Wall Street protests. New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly then sent a note to CEO and Chairman Jamie Dimon, expressing his “profound gratitude” for the company’s donation. —Jasmine Lombardi

64 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

©PATRICK MCMULLAN==PHOTO- NEIL RASMUS/PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

avid Koch: New York City's wealthiest resident received the Humanitarian of the Year award from the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) for his commitment to prostate cancer research. Koch himself is a cancer survivor—his (and the David H. Koch Charitable Foundation’s) long-standing support of organizations working to find a cure for the disease has raised more than $750 million since 2000. This year’s gala raised more than $1.1 million for the Prostate Cancer Foundation. Michael Bloomberg: This summer, it was announced that the administration of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg plans to spend nearly $130 million on far-reaching measures to improve the educational and economic life and circumstances of New York’s young black and Latino men. Considering the hard fiscal times, the city is relying on an unusual source to pay for the endeavor: the very generous Mr. Bloomberg himself. City officials say Bloomberg will use his personal fortune to cover about a quarter of the cost. A $30 million contribution would be matched by that of a fellow billionaire, George Soros, with the remainder being paid for by the city. John Paulson: With a take home of $4.9 billion in 2010, a record for the hedge fund industry, Paulson is donating $15 million (of his net worth of $15.5 billion) to a new maternity hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador, where his father was born. —Jasmine Lombardi

politics/news THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . POLITICS

espite more recent headlines surrounding the trials of Amanda Knox and Conrad Murray, for New Yorkers, there’s one story that keeps us talking. Adam Lisberg, editor of City & State, comments and provides the details to why there really is no bigger story in New York politics.

ANDREW SCHWARTZ

ure, 2011 was an important year in politics. Gov. Andrew Cuomo showed that somebody can run this dysfunctional state of New York after all. Mayor Michael Bloomberg showed why even his closest advisors didn’t want him to run for a third term. And Rachel Sterne, the city’s chief digital officer, showed that government can be cool. But for sheer civic outrage and titillation, for Shakespearean sweep, for dramatic hubris and for earthshattering fallout, nothing beats the saga of Anthony Weiner. He started 2011 a high-profile liberal voice in Congress, a Democratic storm trooper against the Republican hordes in the House, and every C-SPAN rant of his that went viral made him an even stronger candidate for mayor. He owned a swath of Brooklyn and Queens and was making a play for Manhattan’s hearts and minds; he had a short fuse, a bright future and a beautiful new wife who served as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s closest aide. Then . . . well, you know. Of all the flaws that could bring down a potential mayor, who imagined he liked to send dirty messages to strange women on Twitter? How could a guy so smart do something so dumb? Pictures in the Congressional gym? Bloomberg’s spooky operatives had probed his background plenty in 2009 when they were afraid he could knock off their guy, and they never found an inkling of this. Weiner wasn’t the only congressman who fell prey to sexual stupidity last year (Google Chris Lee or David Wu, if you dare), but when they self-immolate outside New York City, who cares? Weiner, however, was already an inescapable New York presence and his flameout burned an arc across an otherwise boring political summer. Yet while the tabloids tracked his every move and New York clucked at how he could humiliate his pregnant wife, the gray politicos who make things happen in this city set about feasting on his carcass. When he resigned, Democrats assumed they could plop a loyal hack into the seat, which is how David Weprin ended up on the ballot—an assemblyman from a Queens political family incapable of firing up a crowd. But where the Democrats saw inevitability, Republicans saw promise. Bob Turner, an affable Republican who lost to Weiner a year earlier but still had money to pump into his own campaign, found himself on the ballot against Weprin. With nothing to lose, he hooked up with loudmouth former Mayor Ed Koch, who was happy to find a spotlight by saying that a vote for Turner was a vote for Israel. Never mind that Weprin is an Orthodox Jew.

LAST CALL: Anthony Weiner at his first press conference, where he admitted to sending racy pictures Turner made an inconsequential election into a referendum on President Obama, the state of Israel, the economy and gay marriage and humiliated the Democrats in what was supposed to be a stronghold. Which is why no other political story of the year quite compares. A few wayward pictures turned a potential New York City mayor into a punch line and turned national Democrats fearful of a Republican avalanche in 2012. Not that the story is over. Weiner has lately been seen wandering the streets of Flatiron and Gramercy, meeting with machers and strolling with wife Huma Abedin, laying the seeds for a Spitzer-esque revival. This is New York. Nobody stays humiliated for long. DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 65

media stories THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . MEDIA MOVERS AND SHAKERS

n the world of media, 2011 was a year of reinventions, redesigns, and returns. Ever-changing mastheads; magazines going from print to online, online to print; and Rupert Murdoch sends out apologies regarding News of the World’s phone hacking scandal via full page advertisements saying “we are sorry.” Here, Martin Marks looks back at the year’s biggest media movers and shakers.

Reposts

Reprint

ill Abramson was named Executive Editor of The New York Times, the first woman to helm the Gray Lady in its 160 year history, while over at Hearst, Vogue’s Alexandra Kotur followed former Men’s Vogue Editor-in-Chief Jay Fielden over to Town & Country. Kotur is Creative Director of the magazine, giving one of the oldest glossies in the country a modernizing twist. In the world of broadcast journalism, Katie Couric announced she would be leaving CBS for ABC. Though known for her nightly news coverage, she’s set to host her own daytime talk show sometime next year. Watch out Anderson Cooper!

ith over a decade of digital ink under its belt, Style.com, Fairchild Fashion Group’s home to all things fashion, bucked the paper-to-binary trend with its Style.com/Print, a—gasp!—print magazine that, much to the delight of the encyclopedic Louboutin-wearing set, captures the heart and soul of the website with a hefty price tag of $14.99.

Rezoning

ina Brown, having already helmed the merger of the Daily Beast website with the print magazine Newsweek, now has her sights on another medium—online television. With the advent of Daily Beast TV, Brown’s site seems to have the makings of a wildly successful venture.

Recovery

aving weathered the launch—and re-launch, and re-re-launch—of Radar Magazine and its various iterations, Maer Roshan is certainly no stranger to the ups and downs of the media-world, or its accompanying substances. Still, some were shocked when he introduced TheFix.com, a website billed as being “strictly independent” and dedicated to addiction and recovery.

Return

Retouch

or many years, Patrick McMullan has been known for—if not called by—the name of his website, PatrickMcMullan.com. Now, the nightlife and society photographer, whose lens has graced the party circuit since Andy Warhol still dined at Max’s Kansas City, has decided to further embrace the digital revolution by taking his party portal to an online magazine format with the digital PMc Magazine. As they say, if Patrick didn’t take your picture at a party, it’s like you weren’t even there.

hatever happened to Jane Pratt, and, more importantly, her unique take on young women’s lifestyle? Over the summer, that question was answered when Pratt, the former editor of Jane and Sassy, launched xoJane.com, a new site targeted at that reader who wants to “indulge in what makes them feel good.”

Revenue

n late March, The New York Times erected a pay wall around its digital content. The much talked about move meant that readers wanting to access more than 20 online articles a month had to lay down some cash.

66 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

Four questions for John Koblin, WWD’s Media Reporter MARTIN MARKS: What’s been the biggest media story of 2011? JOHN KOBLIN: Well, there are several, right? You have to start with the phone-hacking scandal. It’s a story that Murdoch’s greatest adversaries—The Guardian and The New York Times—brought to light. The story moved slowly but forcefully this year, and I’m sure this would be a candidate for biggest media story of 2012, as well. MM: What’s been happening on the print-to-digital front? JK: Magazines finally got subscription deals on tablets and have begun making baby steps into that market. Every time we see a subscription number, or an encouraging digital circulation figure, it basically allows people to breathe a little easier in magazine land.

JONATHAN ALCORN/BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES

MM: Any other trends you’ve noticed? JK: Big names moved all over the place. Frank Rich went from the Times to New York Magazine, how Tina Brown lured so many big names to Newsweek. The Huffington Post brought over a bunch of traditional print types. Last year, you started to see a thaw in the media job market, and this past year, there was a lot of movement.

MASKED MURDOCH: A demonstrator wearing a Rupert Murdoch mask protests outside of Fox Studios during News Corp.’s shareholders meeting in Los Angeles. News Corp. investors challenged Murdoch and his sons at the media company’s annual meeting, demanding governance changes and an end to voting practices that cement family control.

“Arianna Huffington is worth keeping a close eye on.”

MM: Any key players to be watching? JK: Arianna Huffington is worth keeping a close eye on. AOL is betting big on HuffPo to deliver a lot of traffic, and HuffPo has been spending money freely. How will this wind up working out? The pressure is on.

DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 67

entertainment THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT!

Kanye West Flits from Runaway to Runway

HAUTE HIP HOP: Kanye West

apper Kanye West has never been one to doubt the limits of his own creativity. Last October, with limited directorial experience, he created a 35-minute short film, Runaway, to showcase songs from his own massive hit album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. And almost exactly a year later, he debuted his first fashion line—at Paris Fashion Week, no less. Insiders whispered that it was produced at the very last minute by Central Saint Martins grad students, and it received less-than-stellar reviews. The Telegraph observed that the derivative designs and ill fits were “the equivalent of Karl Lagerfeld launching a hip-hop career: i.e. absurd,” while Anna Wintour’s comment to The Times—“Ask someone else”—neatly summed up the possibility of the line making it into American Vogue. He might still have a chance at the Japanese edition, though: Anna Dello Russo was photographed wearing a look right off the runway just a few days later. It wasn’t the last time Kanye would make sartorial headlines in 2011: later that month, he missed the irony in wearing a $355 Givenchy shirt to visit the Occupy Wall Street protests.

It’s the End of R.E.M. As We Know Them

fter 31 years and 15 albums together, R.E.M. announced in September that they are officially breaking up. In a statement on the band’s website, bassist Mike Mills explained there was no animosity in the breakup: “There's no disharmony here, no falling-outs, no lawyers squaring off. We've made this decision together, amicably and with each other's best interests at heart." R.E.M. released a final album, a three-decade retrospective of their work, on November 15. R.IP. R.E.M. 68 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

Reality TV Makes Messes in Texas

eality show producers discovered this year that a place exists where the hair, the bank accounts and the accents are even bigger than in New Jersey: Dallas! Style Network brought us Big Rich Texas, about Dallas country club culture; Bravo offered Most Eligible Dallas, about the city’s young socials; Logo premiered a second edition of its A-List series focusing on the Big D’s gay scene and the ninth season of Top Chef is a big Texas toast. In the next few months, scripted TV will be joining in the Texan fun, too. Sex and the City creator Darren Star has conjured up the Dallas-set GCB (formerly titled Good Christian Bitches) as a midseason replacement on ABC; and next summer, TNT will premiere a new continuation of the original Dallas, the show that started it all.

Anderson Goes the Oprah Route

fter eight years as anchor of Anderson Cooper 360º, newsman/ Vanderbilt heir/“silver fox” Anderson Cooper debuted his own nationally syndicated talk show, Anderson, in September. His guests have included Amy Winehouse’s parents, who gave their first interview following Winehouse’s death in July. Since then, Anderson’s most viral moment may well have been when Cooper tried spinach, coffee and Brussels sprouts for the first time—he wasn’t too fond of them. Will audiences be hungry for more?

NEIL RASMUS/BFANYC.COM

hile Bravo made some serious cuts to the cast of its hit show The Real Housewives of New York City, reality TV in general got bigger in Texas. There’s a new reigning screen queen and one of our favorite rappers dared to show his debut collection during Paris Fashion Week. Alexandria Symonds reports.

MAJOR MOVIE: Focus Features’ espionage thriller, The Debt

ANTM’S NEW BMOC: Above; André Leon Talley and Tyra Banks. Left; Kelly Cutrone

America’s Next Top Model Gets Kell-ish

fter four seasons as a judge on America’s Next Top Model, the current (17th!) cycle will be larger-than-life Vogue contributing editor André Leon Talley’s last. He’ll be replaced by People’s Revolution PR maven Kelly Cutrone, who’s no stranger to reality TV: she was a mentor to Lauren Conrad and Whitney Port on The Hills and The City, before starring on her own show Kell on Earth on Bravo. We can’t wait to see Cutrone bring her trademark no-nonsense attitude to ANTM. Models beware!

Jessica Chastain Rules the Screen

ctress Jessica Chastain seemingly emerged out of thin air this year as the female lead in Terrence Malick’s much-anticipated family ethereal drama The Tree of Life. Since then, she’s been unstoppable, with seven more major films this year alone: The Debt, Take Shelter, Coriolanus, The Help, Wilde Salome, Texas Killing Fields and this month’s The Wettest County in the World. With three more on the docket, the beautiful 30-year-old redhead shows no signs of slowing down. Could critics’ darling Chastain be the heir to—dare we say it—Meryl Streep’s thespian throne?

A STAR IS BORN: Omnipresent in 2011, Jessica Chastain is now set to play Princess Diana in the upcoming film Caught in Flight about the Princess of Wales' alleged two-year secret romance with a Pakistani heart surgeon

Galliano and von Trier Open Mouths, Insert Feet

ne of the year’s more disturbing trends was an uptick in cases of very public anti-Semitism. It started in February with designer John Galliano, who was dismissed from his position at the helm of Christian Dior after allegedly making anti-Semitic remarks to a couple in a Parisian café. Later, video surfaced of Galliano making similar statements, including “I love Hitler… People like you would be dead,” in the same bar last December. Dior still hasn’t found a replacement for Galliano. Meanwhile, Danish director Lars von Trier shocked audiences in May at the Cannes Film Festival by jokingly claiming to understand and sympathize with Hitler at a press conference for his new film, the end of the world downer, Melancholia. Like Galliano, von Trier was swiftly punished: the day after his remarks, the festival’s board of directors banned him for life, declaring him “persona non grata.” DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 69

art world THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . ART WORLD STORIES

BY ALEXANDRIA SYMONDS

Pranksy Banksy Shut Down by the Academy

ast year’s loopy, brilliant documentary directed by anonymous street artist Banksy, Exit Through the Gift Shop, got people talking again in January, when it was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards. Since Banksy has never publicly revealed his identity—even in the film, he appears in silhouette—his representatives asked the Academy whether, if he won the award, he could appear onstage to receive it without having to show his face. Though fans had a blast speculating what Banksy might do, the Academy turned down his request; according to executive director Bruce Davis: “The fun but disquieting scenario is that if the film wins and five guys in monkey masks come to the stage all saying, ‘I’m Banksy,’ who the hell do we give it to?” It ended up not mattering—Banksy lost the award to Charles H. Ferguson and Audrey Marrs for Inside Job—which was a shame, as a little Banksy mischief could really have spiced up that otherwise lackluster Oscars ceremony.

Ai Weiwei Incarcerated, Released, Fined by His Country

hinese artist Ai Weiwei, perhaps best known for collaborating with architects Herzog & de Meuron to design the Beijing “bird’s nest” stadium for the 2008 Olympics, has been a vocal critic of his native country’s human rights record for years. Last year, he was placed under house arrest by the Chinese government, and in January, government forces demolished his studio. He was arrested in April, supposedly for economic crimes, and supporters worldwide began sit-ins and petitions to demonstrate their support. He was released in June, after nearly three months detention, and ordered to pay over $2 million in back taxes by the Beijing Local Taxation Bureau. Weiwei continues to deny any wrongdoing and insists that his detention was a punishment for his criticism of the government. Meanwhile, donations to pay off the taxes have poured in from around the globe.

The House of McQueen Lives On With ArtWorld Bona Fides

year after his tragic suicide, the designer Alexander McQueen's legacy was strong in 2011: the Metropolitan Museum's retrospective, Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty, broke records as the Costume Institute's most-visited show ever and the eighth most popular exhibition in the Met's 141-year history. McQueen designs also figured heavily into the retrospective of his friend Daphne Guinness' wardrobe held at FIT this fall. And, of course, who could forget the showstopping McQueen bridal gown Catherine Middleton, the future Duchess of Cambridge, wore to marry Prince William?

LONG LIVE MCQUEEN:

The record-breaking Metropolitan Museum retrospective on Alexander McQueen

70 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

Garage Magazine Launches With a Bang

ussian editor Dasha Zhukova (girlfriend of billionaire Roman Abramovich) went all out for the cover of the launch issue of her brand-new Garage Magazine. It pictured the naked middle half of model Shauna Taylor, with her most intimate area covered by a butterfly sticker. Peeling off the sticker revealed a butterfly tattoo on Taylor herself, designed by Damien Hirst. Getting the tattoo was worth it, Taylor told the New York Post: “Not one single person can ever say they gave birth through a Damien Hirst piece of art. I can—if I ever give birth.”

Risqué Rihanna Makes LaChapelle Litigious

n February, photographer David LaChapelle sued Rihanna over some of the imagery in her “S&M” video, which he claimed ripped off eight of his infamously bawdy photos (one of the moments in question included Rihanna in latex fetish gear). By October, Rihanna and LaChapelle settled the suit for an undisclosed sum. Another high-profile intellectual property case: Shepard Fairey settled with the Associated Press in March, after the organization sued Fairey’s Obey Clothing for using an unlicensed photo of Barack Obama in the creation of Fairey’s iconic “Hope” campaign-poster image, which then graced Obey merchandise.

UNFORGETTABLE FREUD:

A photograph of a self portrait of the artist Lucian Freud on display during the opening exhibition of Lucian Freud at the Museum of Modern Art

Rest in Peace, Lucian Freud

n July 21, at age 88, painter Lucian Freud died in his home following a short illness. Freud, the grandson of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, will be remembered for his figurative portraits, which eliminated many of the conventions of traditional portraiture in favor of expressive, anti-romantic depictions of Freud’s models—often friends or the artist himself.

SCOTT WINTROW/GETTY IMAGES

Wolfgang Beltracchi, $22 Million Fraud, Sentenced to Six Years

court in Cologne, Germany sentenced art forger Wolfgang Beltracchi to six years in jail after he and three accomplices confessed to painting 14 works that he passed off as masterpieces by Max Ernst and other artists, making at least $22 million in the process. Among those duped by Beltracchi and his gang was actor Steve Martin, who reportedly paid 700,000 euros for a painting purportedly made by Heinrich Campendonk.

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education THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . KEEPING UP WITH THE GYMS’

Upper East Side Expansions

alumni of the moment: Lady Gaga for the taping of her primetime special A Very Gaga Thanksgiving. During her interview with Katie Couric, Gaga gushed about her life pre-fame (as a “high school outcast”) as well as her career. The school shut down for the taping but 10 lucky seniors were picked out of a lottery and got to watch Gaga perform. St. Francis de Sales Academy on East 97th Street closed in 2007 but in September the building reopened its doors for new art and science classrooms and a gymnasium for the Marymount School. Marymount began using the vacant building for gym classes last year but recently renovated with state-of-the-art laboratories for its science, technology, engineering and math programs.

arnegie Hill residents are frustrated with The Spence School’s most recent real estate deal: the planned addition of a three-story, glass-andsteel structure (that is said to resemble an Apple store) that would join its 22 East 91st Street building to the Wanamaker Munn House. The Hewitt School has a contract to purchase a building that is contiguous to its current middle school on East 76th Street. Hewitt houses its lower school on 76th Street between Madison and Fifth avenues, and its middle and upper schools in back-to-back buildings on 75th and 76th streets, between Park and Madison avenues. The school is currently in the process of developing a long-range strategic plan to determine program and curriculum, which in turn will inform a comprehensive master planning process for the entire school. Hewitt has hired Robert A.M. Stern Architects to develop its overall campus master plan, and hope to have a completed strategic plan and master campus plan before fall 2012. Convent of the Sacred Heart has plans for a regulation-size gym which will be the largest athletic and wellness complex of any independent school in Manhattan. The center will house a wellness floor and include a six-lane swimming pool and dance studio. Meanwhile, the school was recently PAPA-PAPARAZZI: From left; native New Yorkers—and Convent of the Sacred greeted by one of its more famous Heart alumni—Natali Germanotta and Stefani Germanotta (aka Lady Gaga)

espite fierce opposition from community groups, schools, individuals, businesses and not-for-profit institutions, the city is apparently determined to site the Upper East Side (the Yorkville neighborhood in particular) for the giant waste transfer station on the East River at 91st Street. The planned station is to be at least 10 stories tall and approximately 72,000 square feet, with permitted capacity to accept 5,280 tons of wet garbage per day. That will call for up to 528 garbage collection trucks to traverse the streets and avenues 24 hours per day, 6 days per week. Why the city supports this project in one of the city’s most densely populated neighborhood and next to the largest recreational campus on the East Side of Manhattan—Asphalt Green—continues to anger many of the people who live, work, play, do business and go to school there, as well as others in the city who think seriously about land use and the siting of public facilities. 72 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

DAVID X. PRUTTING/BFANYC.COM

In Other Neighborhood News . . .

milestone THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . MILESTONES

MARRIAGES

n June, candy queen Dylan Lauren wed hedge funder Paul Arrouet in Bedford, New York (wearing a Ralph Lauren dress, naturally). Months later, David Lauren and Lauren Bush got hitched in a lavish ceremony at Ralph Lauren’s Colorado ranch—replete with cowboy boots and hats. Yee haw! Fashionista Lauren Goodman exchanged vows with Nathan Tyler in a lessthan-lavish ceremony at the City Clerk’s Office in April, coincidentally on the same day as the royal wedding in London. The hip hotelier Sean MacPherson wed guestofaguest.com founder Rachelle Hruska this summer, and the couple is expecting their first child in December. Fashion consultant and stylist Kate Schelter married Chris Schumacher this summer. In April, Alexandra von Furstenberg (née Miller) got engaged to Dax Miller after a two-year courtship. Following the legalization of gay marriage in New York, Michael Kors tied the knot with longtime partner Lance LePere in the Hamptons and Arnold Scaasi married his beau of 50 years, Parker Ladd. Dennis Basso wed his boyfriend of 20 years, Michael Cominotto, at the Pierre Hotel—the first same-sex marriage in the hotel’s 81 years of existence.

MATCH MADE IN MONTAUK: Right; Rachelle Hruska and Sean MacPherson at their Montauk wedding

LYONS: © PATRICK MCMULLAN==PHOTO- NICHOLAS RICHER/PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM; HRUSKA: TODD FRANCE

SEPARATIONS/ DIVORCES n n n

BIRTHS n

Skinny stylist and reality TV starlet Rachel Zoe and Rodger Berman welcome their first child, Skyler, in March.

The Trump family sees two new additions: Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner’s daughter, Arabella, born in July; and Donald Trump Jr. and his wife Vanessa welcomed a baby boy, Tristan, in October.

W’s Stefano Tonchi and gallerist David Maupin became the proud parents of twin girls in July.

In August, funny lady Tina Fey and composer husband Jeffrey Richmond welcomed their second child, Penelope Athena.

Beyoncé and Jay-Z are crazy in love and expecting their first child in February 2012.

Barry and Karen Cord Mercedes and Sid Bass Jenna Lyons and Vincent Mazeau (separated)

HEARTBREAKERS: Jenna Lyons and Courtney Crangi’s relationship turned from friendly to romantic, at the expense of Lyons’ marriage to artist Vincent Mazeau

FAREWELLS

BIG ENDINGS

n n n n n n n n

Steve Jobs Loulou de la Falaise Joe Frazier Evelyn Lauder Liz Mezzacappa Perry Moore Julio Mario Santo Domingo Elizabeth Taylor Roger Webster

n n n

Katie Couric leaves CBS Evening News Amidst scandal, Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World shuts down Regis Philbin leaves Regis and Kelly The last episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show

DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 73

what we love THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . TRENDS

BY CRICKET BURNS

OBSESSED WITH

STATEMENT CHOKERS 4

BRAZILIAN BLOWOUTS

BOLD EYEGLASS FRAMES 12

PLAIN TART YOGURT 10

3 5

WELL-WRITTEN SITCOMS 2

N.Y. CONSERVATORY GARDEN 5

ORGANIC RESTAURANTS

CLASS ACT ACTORS 1 7

FUNKY WALLPAPERS 9

ELEGANT LACE GOWNS 3 10

JUICE CLEANSES 6

MINIMALIST FASHION 8

SLOUCHY MENSWEAR PANTS

YSL’S LE SMOKING 15 8 12

OLD-FASHIONED EAR CRADLES 7

THE OVERSIZED BIRKIN BAG 16

CHIC SHORT RED NAILS 14

13 14

SUBTLE NUDE LIPS 13

OVER IT

DAINTY MESSAGE CHARMS 31

OMBRE HAIR 28

19 21 20 23

CAT EYE GLASSES 17

OVER-THE-TOP ICE CREAM 29

60s INSPIRED TV SHOWS 21

ROWDY BEER GARDENS 32

THE CUPCAKE CRAZE 25

LOW BROW REALITY STARS 30

EVERYTHING WHITE 27

CRAFTY CROCHET CLOTHING 23

FRUIT PRINT SUITS 24 27

PATTERN ON PATTERN

HIGH WAISTED JEANS 19

JAZZY JUMPSUITS 29

TEENY TINY CELL PHONES 18

BIRKIN “PRINTED” TOTES 20

STICK ON/CRACKLE NAILS 22

NUDITY IN SHEER FASHION 26

DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 75

on the avenue THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . PARTIES

Best Speech

n the city that never sleeps, there are some major moments—and spectacular styles. Debbie Bancroft recaps some of the highlights of the social year.

Steve Schwarzman’s at the Alfred E. Smith Dinner. One killer quote: “Brian Moynihan is here tonight. He’s the CEO of Bank of America. As many of you know, Brian’s brother Patrick runs a Catholic boarding school in Haiti. Their parents must be so proud to see two of their boys running an under funded, non-profit organization.”

Head-Turning Fashionista Move over Daphne, Julie Macklowe wears edgy, elegant, short and long, often at the same time—and survives wardrobe malfunctions with a laugh. That’s style.

Best Empty Seat Surprise Cinema Society’s screening and party for Pedro Almodóvar’s The Skin I Live In at The Double Seven, where Pedro and Antonio Banderas saved a seat for . . . Madonna.

©PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

Most Intimidating Party But Essential To Do At Least Once

GRAND ENTRANCES: Hamish Bowles and Daphne Guinness arrive at this year’s Met Costume Institute’s Gala

The Met Ball. No one shorter than 5’10”, weighing more than 115 pounds, or in a movie older than this year. And no exhibit more exhilaratingly creative or loving, than the Savage Beauty show, honoring Alexander McQueen.

The Motherlode Robin Hood Foundation Gala. $47 million. Gisele and Gaga. Need we say more?

Most Ubiquitous, Most Photographed I will let you decide, but it’s toss up. Hint: they are all brunettes.

Honoree You Most Want As Your BFF Bette Midler at The Women’s Committee of The Central Park Conservancy, for her New York Restoration Project. She laughed, cried and utterly inspired us.

76 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

Most Reliable Party The Museum of the City of New York. Okay, we may grumble, but can you think of another event where you see so darned many pals, actually having fun?

sought-after THE MOST TALKED ABOUT 2011

. . . SOCIALITE OF THE YEAR

©PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM

ho’s that girl? Michelle Harper has become 2011’s most-sought after style siren. Sorry, Daphne Guinness, but there is a new dressed up to the nines muse on the make. As a brand consultant, Harper is a board member of FIT’s Couture Council, Tata Harper Beauty and BOFFO/Building Fashion as well as starting CB LLC., a multi-million dollar beauty company. And she still has time to be the most put together party guest all over town. With her milky white skin and doll-like features, Harper, who grew up around the globe from Colombia to Switzerland to Spain and France, has become an inspiration to countless young designers and a party photographer’s strobe-lit dream. Harper has an affinity for fashion masters of the past and cites legends like Charles James, Erte, Capucci, Alexander McQueen, Jacques Fath, Carven, Gilbert Adrian, Pierre Balmain, Madame Gres and “the incredible Cristóbal Balenciaga” as some of her favorites. Harper adds that “marvelous sunglasses and incredible hats” are mandatory style statements. “They are protection, mystery, facial architecture and they can make a whole look—expressing so much about the person behind them,” she explains. “They are places where one can really take risks and achieve maximum expression.” And with Harper’s outrageously fashion-forward and eyecatching looks, this it girl is getting more and more maximum exposure. —Peter Davis

DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 77

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The living room 78 | AVENUE MAGAZINE 路 DECEMBER 2011

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Suite Life at The Lanesborough The Lanesborough Hotel unveils its most prized suite yet

ith panoramic views of Hyde Park, an enviable location adjacent to the grounds of Buckingham Palace, world-renowned service, a Michelin-starred restaurant and lush room décor—there is already much to love about The Lanesborough Hotel. But this past May, the Hotel unveiled its most luxurious suite yet, named after none other than the opulent hotel it calls home. Designed by the world-renowned Alberto Pinto, The Lanesborough Suite embodies everything there is to love about this iconic hotel. Pinto, who has quickly become one of the most celebrated interior designers, combined 19th century elegance with contemporary sophistication and comfort. “Alberto Pinto has the talent and vision to complement the unique residential style that makes The Lanesborough a favorite destination in London,” says the hotel’s Managing Director Geoffrey Gelardi. Designed to accommodate heads of state, industry leaders and indulgent visitors, the suite is nothing short of spectacular. Boasting over 4,000 square feet, it features four bedrooms, two living rooms, five and a half bathrooms, a dining room and a kitchen. The suite also boasts floor to ceiling windows, giving visitors a chance to take in the sweeping views of Wellington Arch and Green Park. Guests of the suite of course also benefit from The Lanesborough’s reputable service, which includes a 24-hour butler and a complimentary chauffeur driven Rolls Royce Phantom. The on-site restaurant Apsley’s—the only Heinz Beck restaurant outside Italy—has also gained popularity for quickly achieving a Michelin star. With its two private dining rooms and two wine tasting rooms, Apsley’s exemplifies elegant dining. While some indulge in an afternoon tea with England’s first tea sommelier, others may prefer to flock to the Library Bar, where visitors will find an extensive collection of vintage cognacs. Other notable amenities include a laptop in each bedroom, as well as a fitness and spa studio; where guests can take a break from shopping and sightseeing with exclusive La Prairie treatments. Occupying a landmark building, The Lanesborough is located in the chic Knightsbridge neighborhood, only minutes away from the famed shopping destinations of Sloane Street and Harrods. With a price tag of £14,000 per night, The Lanesborough Suite holds the record for the most expensive suite in London. Gelardi adds “Since opening The Lanesborough 20 years ago, we have been committed to surpassing our guests’ expectations and The Lanesborough Suite is poised to continue this tradition.” ✦

THE LANESBOROUGH Telephone number: +44 (0)20 7259 5599 ■ Website: www.lanesborough.com ■ Email: info@lanesborough.com

Above: Master bedroom

Above: The second bedroom

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luxury

Beads and Baubles Debi Wisch and Janis Provisor bring us serious jewels that don’t take themselves too seriously

Three Questions for Debi Wisch How do you recommend styling these eye-catching pieces? The jewels look best when not much thought is given to whether or not they match a given outfit. Our clients tend to be more artistic and individualistic—they aren’t women who pre-plan outfits, but instead have their own unique look. Our jewels enhance and embolden their look. We create fabulously designed, slightly eccentric and beautifully crafted pieces that are very New York. They add a pop of color, scale and design to any outfit—sort of like adding an incredible painting to a room. Do you have a favorite stone or a favorite piece? That’s like asking me if I have a favorite child! I may have a favorite child or necklace for a given hour or day, but I always love them equally. My favorite jewels this minute are the large baubles for holiday that we call “Size Matters.” Large pavé beads covered with faceted spinels, amethyst, diamonds, tourmalines and rubellite are mixed with delicate gold beads and bars. They are very glam and very cool at the same time. Where can AVENUE readers find Janis Provisor pieces? We sell at Kirna Zabete, Julianne in Port Washington and Gail Rothwell in East Hampton. We also do collaborations with art galleries and specialty boutiques. Readers can go to our website, www.janisprovisorjewelry.com, to receive updates.

80 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

he term “wearable art” usually conjures up thoughts of Lady Gaga in one of her over-thetop outfits—that is, unless one has laid eyes on the intricate yet striking pieces made by Janis Provisor. The acclaimed painter—whose work is displayed in the Brooklyn Museum, San Francisco MoMa and the National Gallery in Washington D.C.—first began designing jewelry as a hobby, until her friends began asking for their own pieces, some going so far as to buying the necklaces right off her neck. One of her earliest clients, Debi Wisch met Janis more than 10 years ago in Hong Kong, where both were living at the time and became close friends. They teamed up and together are the brains behind the Provisor's eponymous line of jewelry, taking this city by storm. While Provisor travels to Bali, Hong Kong and India to source stones for her jewelry, Wisch runs the business side back in New York City. “We never wanted to have a normal, run-of-the-mill business. We wanted make jewels that we would want to own and our little passion project snowballed,” says Wisch. The jewelry practically sells itself since it is hard not to get noticed when wearing an original Janis Provisor piece. As the line’s popularity grew steadily through word of mouth and women admiring the jewelry worn by others, Provisor and Wisch began displaying pieces in trunk shows throughout the country. Eventually, the duo started selling at select stores and continued to have trunk shows throughout the United States. Provisor is not only extremely picky about the stones and pearls she uses, but who and how they are made—and it shows. Pearls and beads are hand-drilled for optimal precision, stones are hand-carved and polished and the sculptural pieces could stand alone as works of art. As aptly described by Wisch, Provisor's’ jewelry is “classic with a kick,” meant to be fun, whimsical and inviting; in other words, its hard to keep hands off the colorful bauble necklaces. Because the driving force behind their business is Provisor's’ passion for unique baubles, “Each piece is extremely thought out and labored,” adds Wisch. It is no wonder that each necklace, earring and ring stands out as a signature Janis Provisor piece. Her artistic side comes out in the jewels’ poetic aspects—a pearled tassle here, an eccentric pearl there—all with names like “Wow-ka pow pearls,” “Dazzling Eccentrics” and “Not Your Grandma’s Pearls.” These days, New Yorkers aren’t just wearing her jewelry, they’ve started collecting the one-of-a-kind pieces as her cult following continues to expand. ✦

Left: Long choker with sapphire, rubellite, tourmaline, lemon quartz and 22 karat gold; Pavé tourmaline 22 karat gold earrings

D I S T I N C T I V E P R O P E R T I E S

S E R E N A B OA R D M A N

640 PARK AVENUE: Extraordinary 18 into 14 room simplex situated on a high floor. Features five spacious Bedrooms with ensuite Baths. Flooded with sunlight from four exposures. $29,000,000. WEB: A0017666.

26 EAST 73RD STREET: Luxurious 21’ wide limestone townhouse offered in triple mint condition. Ideally located, this house includes five stories and a fabulous roof deck. $23,000,000. WEB: A0017663.

16 WEST 12TH STREET: Impeccably renovated 25’ townhouse featuring an impressive Double Parlor Living Room with soaring high ceilings and a beautiful Garden. 8,100± sq ft. $21,000,000. WEB: A0017766.

740 PARK AVE: Immense 15-room duplex with soaring high ceilings, a vast marble Gallery, four spacious Bedrooms and sunny southern exposures. Newly & Impeccably Renovated. $23,000,000. WEB: A0016023.

781 FIFTH AVE: Superlative Sherry Netherland residence. A rare opportunity to recreate 5,000± sq ft of space with stunning views of Central Park and the city skyline from a high floor. $22,500,000. WEB: A0017622.

998 FIFTH AVENUE: Magnificent 14 room apart-

EAST RIVER ELEGANCE: Stunning and sunflooded residence located in a distinguished prewar coop boasting spectacular East River views. Offered in truly triple mint condition. $9,495,000. WEB: A0017513.

812 PARK AVE: Newly and superbly renovated 10 into 9 room duplex. Features soaring high ceilings, a beautiful sweeping staircase and a sunny Living Room overlooking 75th Street. $11,500,000. WEB: A0017380.

812 PARK AVE: Beautifully and elegantly proportioned 10 room duplex in an esteemed co-op designed by JER Carpenter. Four large bedrooms with ensuite baths. $10,900,000. WEB: A0017721.

ment in esteemed prewar coop. Offered in triple mint condition. Features soaring 12’ high ceilings and sun flooded interiors. $34,000,000. WEB: A0017525

EAST SIDE MANHATTAN BROKERAGE I sothebyshomes.com/nyc 38 EAST 61ST STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10065 T 212.606.7660 F 212.606.7661

SERENA BOARDMAN

T 212.606.7611

serena.boardman@sothebyshomes.com

Operated by Sotheby’s International Realty, Inc. Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark.

luxury

Mining in Manhattan Chris Del Gatto dishes on what’s ahead for CIRCA

EO and co-founder of CIRCA, Chris Del Gatto has made a name for himself as a pioneer in the luxury market. Revolutionizing the buying end of the jewelry business, CIRCA specializes in purchasing diamonds, watches and fine jewelry. As the company is rapidly expanding into markets throughout the world, more and more New Yorkers are welcoming the notion of sustainable luxury. This month, AVENUE caught up with the native New Yorker to find out more about what makes his business boom. Right: Yellow gold bird brooches set with diamonds, rubies and sapphires, circa 1950s. Bottom: The Shark Master 1000 by Sector

How did you get started in jewelry? What is your background? I didn’t come from a jewelry family, which is unusual in the tight-knit and dynastic world of jewelry. I’ve always appreciated beautiful things though, and by age 17, I became a licensed gemologist. I apprenticed as a diamond cutter in Manhattan’s Diamond District by 18 and became a partner in a diamond-cutting facility by the time I was 20, so I have a penchant for diamonds in particular. I sold my stake in the business when I was 23 to transition into estate jewelry where I saw more opportunity. I, along with Jeffrey Singer, a third generation scion of the estate and antique jewelry industry, founded CIRCA in 2001. Where do you source most of your pieces from? We source from the largest mine in the world—the general public. We’re the leading global buyer of fine jewelry, diamonds and watches from the public, and have offices throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. People can come into any CIRCA office for a private evaluation of their items, or they can mail in their pieces to us. Depending on the value, we may even send an armored car to pick them up. What was your favorite period or era in terms of jewelry design, fashion or style? Without a doubt the Art Deco period. That’s probably apparent if you read the CIRCA blog (http://blog.circajewels.com/). The style—in both fashion and jewelry—was ahead of its time. It all still works and is relevant and chic today, which is really amazing! There’s been a huge Deco influence in fashion this fall and in the spring and summer 2012 shows. For me, Art Deco jewelry has always been the epitome of classic elegance. Do you have a favorite piece that you’ve encountered in your career? Probably a magnificent Golconda cushion cut 20-carat diamond in a 82 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

beautiful Art Deco mounting. In what direction is the company headed? Is there any exciting news on the horizon? There’s so much! We’re expanding rapidly into other major markets around the world, including the official opening of our offices in Barcelona, Los Angeles and Geneva in Q1 2012. We’ve also launched a CIRCA Brands division. Our first brand is Sector “No Limits” watches, a fantastic brand that makes incredibly chic and sporty watches. By the time this interview runs, we’ll have made a major announcement on that front. Who are some of your famous clients? Do you have any interesting anecdotes about them? One of the foundations of our business is discretion, so I can’t comment on that. But trust me, we’ve seen and heard it all! What are you most proud of in your career? I’m proud of how CIRCA has revolutionized the jewelry business. We set out to create the first-ever luxury brand on the buying side of the jewelry business—a concept that was unheard of at the time. As you can imagine, we had our share of skeptics in the industry. Now those people are our customers. Also, being recognized as a leader in luxury; I am regularly approached to run both fashion and jewelry brands. That is a great feeling. F

www.tastingsnyc.com â&#x20AC;˘ 212.744.4422

we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just prepare for your event, we look forward to it.

photography by: Rogerio Voltan model by Mint Management

ask hall f. willkie

The real estate expert shares his wisdom on . . . the current market

great part of this holiday season is that many of us may take a moment to reflect on the things for which we are grateful—most importantly, those that are very personal to each of our lives. On a professional note, I think how fortunate we are as real estate professionals to live and work in this great city. The economic turn of the last few years has had a major effect on real estate markets. However, compared to most other places we have done relatively well. Values have softened and volume has decreased, but because of supply, demand, the stabilizing effect of equity in cooperative ownership and the nature of New York City as a capital of the world, our market—though not unscathed—has remained relatively resilient. Residential real estate is primarily shelter: our homes. Our good fortune is that because of where we live, our homes continue to be a comparatively stable financial asset as well. So we, as professionals and you, as owners, now have an opportunity to remember that with respect to real estate, we have a lot to be grateful for. F

Hall F. Willkie, President, Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales; hwillkie@bhsusa.com

84 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

Congratulates

J OH N BU RG E R Recognized by THE WALL STREET JOURNAL in 2011 as the

• #1 Top Producing Broker at Brown Harris Stevens in 2010 • #1 Listing Broker at Brown Harris Stevens in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 • Sales volume of $280 million in 2010 • Currently marketing a portfolio of over $300 million in exclusive listings • Over 27 Years of experience in the Manhattan premium residential market • Achieved record-breaking sales prices for properties throughout Manhattan • Represented both buyers and sellers in all of the top buildings on Fifth Avenue, Park Avenue and Central Park West, as well as trophy townhouses throughout the city • Brokered over $2.5 billion in residential real estate transactions For a complete view of all of John Burger’s listings, please visit: www.brownharrisstevens.com/johnburger Link to The Wall Street Journal 2011 rankings: www.realtrends.com/products/top-1000-sales-professionals/individual-volume SVP & MANAGING DIRECTOR 212-906-9274 JBURGER@BHSUSA.COM

We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. We encourage and support an affirmative advertising and marketing program in which there are no barriers to obtaining housing because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.

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Paula Del Nunzio

Louise Devlin

Richard F. Ferrari

THE MODERN TOWNHOUSE

11 ROOM DUPLEX WITH PARK VIEWS

CANDELA DUPLEX

East 80s. Excl. Renovated 22’ carriage house transformed into modern residence of approximately 11,000SF. Waterfall, spa, gallery, elevator, lot-line windows, high ceilings.$35M. WEB# 1192333. Paula Del Nunzio 212-906-9207

70s/Fifth Avenue. Excl. 4BR, 5.5 bath. 2 staff rooms. This gracious home has dazzling Central Park views, master bedroom is huge w/2 dressing rooms, cozy library and FDR. F/S building. Pets ok. $27.775M. WEB# 1266551. Kathy Sloane 212-906-9258

Park Avenue. Excl. This grand scale 5MBR, plus paneled libr & chef’s eat-in kitchen is a rare elegant home. There are 4 wbfps, 100’ on Park Ave. Sunny views. $23M. WEB# 1539715. Mary L. Fitzgibbons 212-906-9259 John Burger 212-908-9274

TEN ROOM CONDO WITH BIG VIEWS

SPECTACULAR PENTHOUSE

SPECIAL FIND IN PRIME EAST 60S

UWS. Excl. Gorgeous 5-6 BR, 5 bath full flr w/ fab open S city views, 2 big balcs. Grand living space with open LR/DR, chef’s WEIK, large closets and staff room. $7.9M. WEB# 1532336. Lisa Lippman 212-588-5606 Scott Moore 212-588-5608

Chelsea. Excl. Penthouse duplex condo. 20-foot ceilings in living room plus 10-foot in 2-3BRs plus 3.5 baths. Top-of-the-line kitchen plus spa-like baths. Over 1,900SF of terraces plus 2,934SF interior. $7.5M. WEB# 1541344. Nancy Candib 212-906-9302

East 60s. Co-Excl. Unique 9 into 8 rooms duplex PH flooded with light. Wrap terrace, 2 wbfp, and open South skyline views. Restore or transform to fit your special needs. $4.995M. WEB# 1205594. Karesse Grenier 212-588-5679

TRANQUILITY OFF FIFTH

CLASSIC LUXURY: TRIBECA LOFT

TRIPLE MINT AT THE VENETO

East 80s. Excl. Meticulously renov 2BR, 2.5 bath + study duplex in elevator TH. Wbfp, 12’ceils, wood paneling, al fresco terrace + garden, chef’s kitchen. W/D, CAC. $3.85M. WEB# 1540847. Marjorie Hewett 212-906-9313 Gordon R. Stanton 212-906-9266

West Broadway. Excl. Flawless 2BR condo loft with windowed home office or third bedroom and 3 full baths. 36’ living room, wbfp, balcony, 10’ ceilings and state-of-theart kitchen. $2.499M. WEB# 1530479. Julia Hoagland 212-906-9262

Midtown East. Excl. High-floor home has been meticulously designed and upgraded. 2BR, 2.5 bath, chef’s kit. Wall-to-wall windows offering City & skyline views. $2.425M. WEB# 1535544. Gregory Roache 212-588-5662 Roger Gillen 212-317-3651

Ann Jeffery

Leslie W. Singer

Jennie Holman

William Grant

S. Jean Meisel

Kathy Sloane

Lisa Lippman

new york city

the hamptons

pa l m b e a c h

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Andrea H. Lambrinides

Cherie Butler

DUPLEX PENTHOUSE WITH PARK VIEWS

1125 FIFTH AVENUE

CORNER 2 BEDROOM IN HOUSE AT 15 CPW

UES. Excl. One of a kind PH in Robert Stern’s famed Chatham. Panoramic CP & city views, 4 terrs, LR, FDR w/ 22’ ceil, libr, EIK w/ brkfst rm, 2MBR, 3 bath. $15.775M. WEB# 1541926. Cathy Franklin 212-906-9236 Alexis Bodenheimer 212-906-9230

UES. Excl. A truly rare offering of a superb 11 room full floor prewar with views into trees of Central Park. 4+BR, livng room with fireplace, library, FDR, 3 staff rooms, 5 baths. Enormous potential. $11.9M. WEB# 1544038. Mary A. Hall, ELC Div. 212-396-5859

CPW. Excl. Corner 2BR, 2.5 bath in the House at 15 CPW. This 1,987SF condo offers S/E/W exposure and windowed eat-in kitchen. White glove building with gym, pool and private dining. $8.395M. WEB# 1538882. Kyle W. Blackmon 212-588-5648

Kyle W. Blackmon

Jenny Park Adam

Denise Guido

WEST 89TH STEET

THE CARLYLE HOTEL

EXQUISITE PREWAR HOME

WEA. Excl. Create your own 5,000SF quadruplex in this 5-story, 21’ wide townhouse on West 89th St. Now 9 apartments, top 4 floors will be delivered vacant. $4.995M. WEB# 1540423. Wolf Jakubowski 212-588-5630

East 76th Street. Excl. Extraordinary high floor apt in the legendary Carlyle Hotel with exceptional double height LR and iconic Park and City views. 2MBR, 2 bath, FDR, full kitchen. $3.5M. WEB# 1165664. Caroline E. Y. Guthrie, ELC. Div 212-396-5858

60s/Lexington Avenue. Excl. New to market, 4BR, 3.5 bath home with gracious living room, formal dining room, library. Ideal for grand entertaining, original details, moldings, 4 wbfp, chef’s kitchen, W/D. $3.37M. WEB# 1213470. Nada Rizk 212-317-7705

Norah Burden

Thomas Hemann

Elaine Clayman

BEAUTIFUL BRIDGE TOWER CONDO

PREWAR GRANDEUR

TERRACED TOWNHOUSE PENTHOUSE

East 60th Street. Excl. Price reduced, below market. Stunning views from high floor 2BR, 2.5 marble baths, 1,500SF apt with North, West and East exposures, floor-to-ceiling windows. WD. $1.875M. WEB# 1209891. Marilyn Corradini, ELC Div. 212.396.5843

80s/Park Avenue. Excl. Fabulous 5 rm corner home w/S & W expos, wbfp, hrdwd flrs. In need of renov. All in pet friendly, white glove FS Park Ave Co-op bldg. $1.75M. WEB# 1540693. Silvana Mander 212-317-7706 Randi Green 212-317-7799

UWS. Excl. Triplex in elevator mansion on prime 74th Street and CPW. Double-height living room with wood burning fp, 2 BR, 2 bath plus dramatic mezzanine office, private roof deck and balcony. $1.549M. WEB# 1543414. Edward Joseph 212-588-5646

new york city

the hamptons

Juliana Frei

Cathy Franklin

pa l m b e a c h

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real estate

Luxury Living Paula Del Nunzio introduces two buildings as captivating examples of what a townhouse can be 58 BETHUNE STREET Designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects, 58 Bethune Street is an exceptional townhouse at Superior Ink offering historically inspired architecture and a modern lifestyle. The 24-foot wide house combines the elegance, intimacy and warmth of a West Village home with the unparalleled services and amenities of the adjacent Superior Ink Condominiums. The renovated townhouse contains six bedrooms, four full baths and a powder room as well as 4,500 square feet of grand living space and over 1,500 square feet of private outdoor space, all just steps from Hudson River Park. It also includes a private elevator, private backyard garden and rooftop terrace, wood-burning fireplaces and ceiling heights of approximately 10 feet in most living spaces. High-end appliances, amenities and other luxuries throughout include a private outdoor garden and roof terrace, perfect for sunset gatherings with ample room to relax or entertain.

162 EAST 71ST STREET Originally built as one of seven houses on the block, the present neo-Federal facade of 162 East 71st Street was erected in 1912 by Crow, Lewis and Wickenhoefer. The meticulously renovated townhouse includes six levels plus a finished basement. A wrought-iron gate surrounding the forecourt at street level leads to a double-height entry hall. Past the chef’s kitchen is a large library or media room with a fireplace, with double-doors leading to the rear garden. Sun floods into the dining room at the front of the parlor floor, positioned beside the grand curved stair leading up to the second entertaining floor. The living room measures approximately 14 feet by 20 feet and includes a fireplace. The third level is a gracious, open floor of entertaining space with two fireplaces and access to a 30-foot deep rear terrace with views of the lush neighboring gardens. The entire fourth floor is comprised of a master bedroom suite with a palatial master bath. There are two bedrooms and two baths en suite on the fifth floor and the sixth floor has another light-filled room with a full bath and lovely terrace. Other features of this meticulously renovated townhouse include wood-burning fireplaces, in-wall and ceiling speakers throughout and a custom oak-paneled elevator accessing five of the six floors.

Paula Del Nunzio

Brown Harris Stevens

88 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

445 Park Avenue www.bhsusa.com

New York, NY 10022

212.906.9207

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real estate

Above: Robbie Antonio

Real Estate Branding Savant Robbie Antonio converges architecture with design, fashion and art

obbie Antonio, managing director of Century Properties, is one of Asia’s youngest real estate tycoons. A 34-year-old international real estate developer, Antonio is a business visionary, a design and architecture aficionado, and a fashion icon who is transforming Asia into the next investment hub for luxury real estate. He is bringing global fashion houses, prominent architects and the most iconic real estate brands to his developments for exclusive luxury projects that are changing Manila’s skyline. Century Properties, whose founder, Ambassador Jose Antonio, ranked 24th on Forbes’ list of the Philippines’ Richest, has 25 years of experience in the business. Most recently, Robbie—whose 90 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

awards include Institutional Investors News’ 20 Rising Stars in Real Estate and Town and Country’s 50 under 50 in the Philippines— announced Century Properties’ most significant (in dollar-value) Philippine-based single tower in its history—Trump Tower Manila™. Antonio is also responsible for the most fashion-branded real estate developments in the world. His company’s recent feats include The Milano Residences in alliance with Versace Home for an exclusively interior-designed luxury condominium project, which is also the Italian label’s first venture in Southeast Asia, and a collaboration with Missoni Home for the brand’s first-ever residential development in the world. Mr. Antonio speaks to AVENUE about the concept behind his luxury branded real estate developments and plans to elevate the Philippines into a premier and globally renowned destination.

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What is the concept behind your luxury branded real estate developments? Luxury branded real estate entices foreign investors and end users to newly industrialized countries. By bringing global luxury brands, Century Properties aims to propel the local landscape and make Manila a city of international renown. We have several more that we will be announcing. Describe the difference between Trump Tower Manila™ and your company’s other developments? Developing Trump Tower Manila™ reinforces our sincere desire to change the landscape of luxury Philippine real estate. The country, with a population of more than 95 million, has not seen a real estate brand as formidable as the Trump brand. How did your idea for fashion-branded real estate projects come about? The success of our company in luxury development hinges partially on our commitment to elevate the market’s taste in properties through innovative real estate projects. Bringing the first residences interior-designed by Versace Home to Southeast Asia and the first Missoni Home interior-designed residences in the world to Manila is a strong statement to produce world-class projects. How has the response been for luxurious, fashionable residential projects so far? We hear that your Milano project is the fastest-selling Versace project in the world. The project has been a resounding success; we have around 80 percent of the building sold in less than a year after the formal launch. The response is gratifying as it has perceptibly changed the reception of the market to high-end brands. This is evident in the intensified demand from consumers and investors for bolder, more dramatic developments that reflect their personality in a stylized residence. How important or relevant do you think designer living is today?

How you live signifies your taste, status, and predispositions. There is a big difference between designer living and luxury l iving. The former is about the brand you patronize, and not necessarily about your discernment as an individual. I believe in the latter—true luxury is about tasteful sensibilities and uncompromising quality. What are your main sources of inspiration? I am inspired by architecture, art, design and the ability to alter the way people live. Further, I am motivated by potential, and by extension, results. In addition to major fashion houses and real estate brands, you are known to work with high-profile architects and incorporate art. What’s on the horizon? We hear you are working with another major Pritzker Prize architect and his firm. I am passionate about architecture and have had the privilege of working with renowned architects including Pei Partnership with I.M. Pei for a project in Manhattan. Daniel Libeskind is designing a monumental mixed-use project for the company and another one of the world's most important architectural firms is designing a very special project for me that will incorporate modern, post-war masters and contemporary art. As an opportunistic and agile firm, Century Properties will take advantage of brand associations as long as they are in the best interests of the group and hold an immense value to achieving the aspirational lifestyle of our clientele. We expect this trend in development to continue in the next few years. What elements do you think every good property or space should possess? Unbeatable location, impeccable design, world-class amenities and a unique industry-changing angle. What’s next for Century Properties? We will continue to announce additional game-changing developments for branded real estate developments. ✦

Above: A rendering of the Trump Tower Manila’s Grand Lobby DECEMBER 2011 · AVENUE MAGAZINE | 91

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PREWAR CONDO TRIPLEX ON FIFTH

PRIME WEST VILLAGE TOWNHOUSE

HEAVENLY PENTHOUSE TERRACE

63rd/Fifth Ave. XXX mint maisonette w/grand PW proportions & Central Park views. 5 BRs include 2 MBRs, FDR, Lib, office, gym/rec rm, staff rm, strge vault. Prvt 5th Ave entrance, FSB. Co-excl. $19.5M WEB# 2100893

West 15th Street. Mint 10,000 SF+/-, 20’ ceilings, 8-person elevator, 6-7 bedrooms, 10 baths, 2,000 SF+/landscaped garden and rooftop, outdoor jacuzzi. $18.7M WEB# 2107522

Fifth Ave. Museum Mile. Terrace love’s dream. Sweeping views from wrap penthouse terrace. Sun-filled duplex apartment. 4 BR/4 bath, luxury F/S building on 5th Ave. $6.75M WEB# 2163164

Leighton Candler 212.937.6677

Julie Pham 917.517.8123

Barbara Brewster 212.605.9229

EVERLASTING ELEGANCE

SUNNY BERESFORD THREE BEDROOM

SPRAWLING HALF TOWNHOUSE

E 50s/Beekman. Gracious, architecturally reno 4-story single family 18.5’ wide TH w/south garden, grand entry, double LR/new chef’s Kit w/breakfast rm, 4 BRs, 4.5 baths & office/staff rm. $3.995M WEB# 1997822

Central Park West. Apotheosis Emery Roth classic 7. Stately 27’, 28’ LR, vast FDR, oversized chef’s EIK, high ceils. White glove landmark. Best of type ever built. Very low maint. $3.995M WEB# 2202183

East 35th Street. Garden duplex over 3,400 SF plus wrap-around patio, fully reno duplex, 4 working fireplaces, investors and pied-a-terres welcome. No board approval. $3.295M WEB# 2120379

Joan C. Billick 212.848.0474

Daniel Douglas 212.875.2835

L. Weinkam 212.500.7023, D. Lin 212.500.7054

MIDTOWN EAST ELEGANCE

RARE OPPORTUNITY

MAGNIFICENT PIED-A-TERRE

East 57th Sreet. Mint 5.5 room PW gem. Currently 2 BR, 2.5 bath, den (3rd BR) & planting terrace. Designer Kit & baths, W/D, HW floors & more. Pets & pied-a-terre OK. F/S co-op. $1.85M WEB# 2251410

E 71st St. Park/Lexington. Bring your designer to gracious 5 rooms with N/S/W exposures, 2 BRs & formal dining room (or 3rd BR), WEIK, 2.5 baths, F/S building. Co-excl. $1.585M WEB# 2155217

East 57th Street. 1st & Sutton. Grand-scale living room. 2 BR, 1.5 baths, huge marble entry gallery, elegant library w/fireplace. All windows south-facing, leafy tree views. W/D. $1.35M WEB# 2255075

J. Gasdaska 212.821.9138, J. Conlon 212.508.7162

Lili Gross 212.678.7215

Joy Handler 212.360.2285

Search by WEB# on Equal Housing Opportunity. The Corcoran Group is a licensed real estate broker. Owned and operated by NRT LLC. *The complete offering terms are in an offering plan available from the Sponsor.

PENTHOUSE CONDO WITH TERRACES

115 ALLEN STREET PENTHOUSE

SOHO DUPLEX PENTHOUSE

East 72nd Street. Float into your 3,700 SF+/49th full-floor home with ballroom living area, spectacular 360 degree city and water views. Gym, pool, garage. $9.995M WEB# 1988022

Lower East Side. Iconic spectacular duplex penthouse with unobstructed 360 degree views. 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, 3 terraces and a roof deck with jacuzzi. $4.995M WEB# 2191704

Baxter Street. Boutique 3 BR/3.5 bath condo with 10-foot timber beamed ceilings, original cast iron columns, wood burning FP and 600+ SF terrace off the living room. $4.495M WEB# 2002280

Cindy Bernat 212.836.1051

Laurence Carty/Irene Lo 800.964.7893

BRISTOL PLAZA GEM

STUNNING HOME IN THE SKY

WEST VILLAGE LUXURY

E 65th St/Third Ave. Rarely avail tower home with spectacular panoramic city views. Grand, elegant corner LR, 2 BRs, 2.5 marble baths, custom WEIK, W/D & 10’ ceils. F/S wht glv lux condo. $3.1M WEB# 2165901

Central Park West. Mint 2,000 SF+/-, 3 BR/3.5 bath condo w/Park & City views to GW Bridge. 10’ceils, custom finish thru, flr-to-ceil windows & more. Top FSB w/pool, parking, gym & more. $2.995M WEB# 2242768

West Village. Elevate your lifestyle at One Morton Square. 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths on high floor. Sensational views. All amenities in full service luxury building. $2.495M WEB# 2238101

Joan C. Billick 212.848.0474

J. Gasdaska 212.821.9138, J. Conlon 212.508.7162

Jennifer Miller 212.444.7865

METICULOUS RENOVATION

SUNSET/CITY/RIVER VIEWS

CARNEGIE HILL ALCOVE

East 36th Street. Elegant one bedroom prewar home; former 2 bedroom layout. Pet-friendly co-op with part-time doorman. Storage unit included. $1.195M WEB# 2256144

Central Park West. Spacious & grand 3 BR/3.5 bath home with brand new custom chef’s kitchen. Light floods every room through 10’ floor-to-ceilings windows. $30,000/Mo. WEB# 2246223

East 89th Street. Renovated and spacious alcove studio in the Park Regis, a full service co-op on 89th Street, steps from Central Park. Gym, garage, low maintenance. $495K WEB# 2234771

W. Bolls 212.875.2910, C. Rhine 212.875.2803

S. Hustis 212.875.4043, M. Jovanovic 212.875.2813

Tracy Altman Warner 212.605.9249

real estate

Left to right: Spacious private balcony of a residence overlooking the private gardens, sunny south-facing living room and north-facing master suite sitting area of a floor-through residence designed by James Huniford

Modern Manhattan A mid-century icon, Manhattan House offers residents the best of Modernist architecture, combined with the luxury of contemporary living

e Corbusier, a pioneer of Modernist architecture, famously described houses as “machines for living.” Behind this pronouncement was the profound desire of Modernist architects to design spaces that would respond to the needs and aspirations of an increasingly complex world. Modernism’s pragmatic approach to residential design—with its focus on simplicity, the use of high quality materials, the clarity of form and balance—is as valued today as it was in the post-war years. A mid-century icon, Manhattan House has been impeccably re-engineered to combine its Modernist heritage with the quintessential elements of contemporary living. Designed in 1950 by Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate Architect Gordon Bunshaft of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Manhattan House received landmark status in 2007. Bunshaft, who designed such recognized buildings in Manhattan as Lever House and 9 West 57th Street, brought to Manhattan House a Modernist sensibility for light, order and simplicity that still resonates more than 60 years later. Elegant porte-cochère entrances on the tree-lined 66th Street, a grandly proportioned glass-enclosed lobby overlooking the building’s private gardens, and residences with multiple exposures and gracious private balconies speak to Bunshaft’s skill for timeless architecture. “The building has a unique intimacy, with five towers, each with its own set of elevators and no more than six to seven residences per floor,” says Brian Fallon, a partner with O’Connor Capital Partners, the owner and developer of Manhattan House. Located at 200 East 66th Street, Manhattan House features spacious, light-infused, one to five bedroom condominium residences, each offering the ultimate in privacy and available for immediate occupancy. Residences range in size from approximately 955 square feet to more than 3,500 square feet, with a select number of floor-through residences featuring double exposures—a 94 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

rare find in buildings of this caliber—and private outdoor space, as well as wood-burning fireplaces. Following the success of the Modern Collection at Manhattan House, the latest series of signature-designed homes from James “Ford” Huniford and Celerie Kemble was introduced at the building and follows the acclaimed success of the building’s inaugural designs by Huniford, Kemble and Rita Konig. Manhattan House captures the spirit of New York City’s Upper East Side with full time doormen, five-star concierge services, an on-site garage with valet parking service, as well as cold storage and private storage. The stunning 10,000-square-foot rooftop level features the Randall A. Ridless-designed Manhattan Club, which showcases an outdoor terrace and indoor library for residents’ enjoyment and relaxation. Residents can also partake in weekly signature Core Fusion classes as part of the residents-only exhale® mind body spa, which includes a yoga studio and treatment room. There is also an exhale® fitness center, and both are the brand’s first residential locations in Manhattan. For the youngest residents, there is a Roto Studio-designed children’s playroom. The exclusive private garden, designed by Sasaki Associates, is one of the largest in Manhattan and includes two significant sculptures, Trinity and Red Gateway, by internationally acclaimed Dutch-sculptor Hans Van de Bovenkamp. Located on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, one of New York City’s most consistently desirable neighborhoods, Manhattan House offers unparalleled access to the finest parks, museums, public transportation, dining, shopping, and private and public schools that the city has to offer. For more information, visit the on-site sales office, call 877.394.6492, email info@manhattanhouse.com or visit www.manhattanhouse.com. F

FEATURED PROPERTY

AMAZING HOUSE West Village Excl. This wide, historic house has been exquisitely renovated. Every 21st century amenity has been added. Brilliantly designed for entertaining. Must be seen. $10.5M. Web#934413 Barbara Godson, EVP/Charlie Homet 212.381.4238/6571

Scan this H-Tag with your smartphone to instantly view more detailed info, images and a floorplan of this property. Learn how at halstead.com/HTag

BERESFORD BEAUTY CPW/81st Excl. Sunny 7 w/Park, Museum & City views. Elegant entertaining space w/28’ gallery, LR w/wbfp, FDR, 2BR, libr. $7.25M. Web#2005407 Pat Harbison, EVP/Shelle Sklarsh, SVP 212.381.2205/2216

MASSIVE SOHO MEGALOFT Downtown Excl. Rare and spectacular 5,700SF loft w/soaring space. 12.5’ ceils. True live/ work. The real deal and a real value. $5.775M. Web#2221216 Chris Pomeroy, VP 212.381.2531

2BR DUPLEX – PRIVATE TERRACE 60s/E Excl. Fully renov. 2-story LR/DR w/21’ ceils, double-height wndws & wbfp. 2 lrg BRs & 2.5 baths. WICs, W/D & CAC. $3.95M. Web#2221520 Louise Phillips Forbes, EVP 212.381.3329

MAGNIFICENT VIEWS UWS Excl. Triple mint, renov 2BR/ 2.5BA condo. Soaring river & city views, foyer, LR, DR, gorg kitchen. 24hr DM, conc, HC, pool. $3.175M. Web#2226678 Monica Podell, EVP 212.381.3231

9 RM GARDEN TRIPLEX 70s/Columbus Excl. Best twnh blk. 5BR/4BA, solarium/dining, EIK, hi-end applcs, home office, custom lighting, oak flrs, 2 wbfps. $2.795M. Web#2231617 Eloise Johnson, EVP 212.381.3224

FABULOUS PARK VIEW 78/Col Excl. View of AMNH & park. Renov, unique condo 2BR/2BA. Prime loc, wndwd granite kit, W/D, marble bath. Sustom clst. $1.95M. Web#2217902 Krisztina Schlitzer, SVP 212.381.3277

COLUMBUS CIRCLE BEAUTY 50s/W Excl. Fab 1BR with home office & 1.5 baths. Soaring high above the skyline w/SE light & views. FS bldg, pool, gym. $1.295M. Web#2012803 Dorothy Somekh, EVP 212.381.2265

PENTHOUSE W/LRG TERRACE 40s/E Excl. Newly renov, triple-mint PH is a dream. 1BR w/WIC, lrg LR/DR w/high ceil & wbfp, W/D & CAC. 900SF prvt terr. $1.225M. Web#1949122 Louise Phillips Forbes, EVP 212.381.3329

ROMANTIC LOFT LIVING Chelsea Excl. Prime location, perfectly proportioned 2BR/1BA. New appls in kit, W/D, huge DA, room to roam. Rfdk, low maint. $1.175M. Web#2007756 Janet Weiner, EVP 212.381.6558

Halstead Property, LLC n Halstead Property Connecticut, LLC We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. We encourage and support an affirmative advertising and marketing program in which there are no barriers to obtaining housing because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.

Destination: The Hamptons

Halstead Property Continues Its Strategic Growth

We are proud to announce our newest office in East Hampton

Devlin McNiff Halstead Proper ty 3 North Main Street

East Hampton, NY 11937

631.324.6100

Devlin McNiff has been a trusted Hamptons Brokerage Firm for over 30 years and is a Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Affiliate

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We define our neighborhoods as much as they define us.

730 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10019 212.242.9900

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110 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10011 212.633.1000

26 Astor Place New York, NY 10003 212.584.6100

88 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10006 212.269.8888

45 Horatio Street New York, NY 10014 212.604.0300

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101 CPW - DUPLEX

5 BR, 6 BATH

WEB ID: 146609 $23.55 M

50 GRAMERCY PARK NORTH 3 BR, 4 BATH

180 EAST 79TH STREET

65 WEST 13TH STREET

2 BR, 2.5 BATH

121 WEST 19TH STREET

1 BR, 2 BATH

3 BR, 2.5 BATH

1 BR, 1 BATH

WEB ID: 452688

$4.85 M

WEB ID: 103323 $1.595 M

WEB ID: 940344 $10.8 M

WEB ID: 294265

$2.4 M

438 WEST 37TH STREET WEB ID: 636654

$2.1 M

TOWN Residential, LLC is a licensed real estate broker and proud member of REBNY. Town Residential LLC is a partnership with Thor Equities LLC. We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. We encourage and support an affirmative advertising and marketing program in which there are no barriers to obtaining housing because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.

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MOST TALKED ABOUT BROKERS

linda gary, linda a. gary real estate President/Broker What was your most notable sale or project this year? There have been several, but probably the one most notable recently is a lakefront property I listed at $15.9 million—I put it under contract within two weeks of listing the property. What was your proudest moment this year as a broker? There are only four direct lakefront houses at the west end of famous Worth Avenue. My office sold the latest one available for sale this year. I am proud to say that we now have the record for selling the only two Worth Avenue houses that have been available for sale in years. I also hold a few records in real estate that have still not been broken. What distinguishes you from others in your field? My office’s prime location—we are on the corner of Worth Avenue and South County Road—our exposure and advertising programs, our 34 years of negotiating experience, but most importantly, our integrity. What is the most exciting part of your job? The amount of lifelong friends that I have made over the years through my business. We have so many interesting people in Palm Beach and being a part of their life even after their purchase is a privilege. What do you foresee for the future of Palm Beach real estate? Knowing the history of Palm Beach I can say that Palm Beach real estate is like no other place I have seen. Our properties continue to appreciate, even in bad times. They may not appreciate as much as in great markets, but they are an investment that you get to use as it grows in value. Based on our history, I don't see that changing. We have had some record sales this year and most of them are waterfront properties. Have you noticed any trends in what is selling? Waterfront is and has always been in demand. As for architecture, I would say that the high quality Mediterranean style is still very much in demand. Beautiful French Classical styles as well as sleek Contemporary styles have also become very popular. In Palm Beach, if it is a quality property, it will sell!

205 Worth Avenue Palm Beach, FL 33480 561.655.6881 Lgary88@aol.com www.lindaagary.com

LUCIEN CAPEHART

LINDA A. GARY REAL ESTATE

MOST TALKED ABOUT BROKERS

gary depersia, the corcoran group realty Senior Vice President, Associate Broker What was your most notable sale or project this year? Without a doubt, the sale of my exclusive 55-acre waterfront property: Tyndal Point. Inheriting this listing from another agency three years ago, it made several price drops to eventually settle at $44.99 million. Finding my own buyer for arguably one of the most unique properties ever on the market in the Hamptons made it even more special. Are you currently representing anything thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique or newsworthy? The Sandcastle, built and owned by Joe Farrell, has certainly been one of the most talked, written and filmed about listings I have ever had and remains an incredible property on the East End. But also impressive is the Edgefield Estate, finishing construction on almost 3 acres on Highland Terrace, also in Bridgehampton. Conceived and executed to perfection by owner and designer James Michael Howard, it is an incredible addition to my inventory of superlative new construction. What distinguishes you from others in your field? I work alongside an incredible array of other brokers in the Hamptons. If anything makes me stand out from this amazing group it would probably be the diversity and breadth of my advertising along with the professionalism and hard work of my assistants. From exhaustive listing audits, to the creation of brochures on each property, to relentless open houses keeping the listings in front of the brokerage communityâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;I am constantly looking for ways to promote the listings that I represent. What do you foresee for the future of Hamptons real estate? Based on the resurgence of the market since the dip of 2008/2009 I would venture to say that demand for properties in the Hamptons will remain strong. The rental market for 2012 seems to also be starting earlier this year as well. Just looking at my own business, which has generated almost $150 million worth of transactions this year, I'd say the prognosis for a healthy East End market is very good.

THE CORCORAN GROUP 51 Main Street East Hampton, NY 11937 516.380.0538 gdp@corcoran.com www.myhamptonshomes.com

real estate

Properties of the Month A selection of deluxe residences in New York Brown Harris Stevens

DUPLEX PENTHOUSE PANORAMIC VIEWS

DUPLEX MASTERPIECE AT 960 FIFTH AVENUE

Atop the famed Robert Stern-designed Chatham condo sits a truly unique penthouse. Central Park and city views, four terraces, living room with gas fireplace, formal dining room with a 22-foot ceiling, library/media room, eat-in kitchen with breakfast area and pantry, laundry room, two master bedrooms suites, three bathrooms. True perfection. $15.77 million. Please contact Cathy Franklin at 212.906.9236 or Alexis Bodenheimer at 212.906.9230.

A gracious gallery opens onto a 30’ by 19’ living room and a cozy library—both with park views. The dining room is perfectly situated with grand proportions. With 11 rooms, 4 bedrooms and 5.5 baths, this co-op features an enormous eat-in kitchen and a master suite of epic proportions with 2 oversized dressing rooms and park views through floor to ceiling windows. $27.77 million. Please contact Kathy Sloane at 212.906.9258.

Lesley Garfield PREMIER UPPER EAST SIDE BROWNSTONE Authentic five-story Neo-Grec brownstone built circa 1885 situated at 59 East 80th Street, a premiere street between Madison and Park Avenues. Abundant original details with exceptionally high ceilings throughout. A beautiful leaded glass copper-clad oriel bay window adorns the front facade. Tremendous light and exceptional views. Two terraces and fireplaces on every floor. Building delivered vacant. Street is not landmarked or in a historic district. Opportunity exists to convert into a magnificent single family residence. Please contact Lydia Rosengarten at 212.371.8200 ext. 25.

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©2011. Prudential Financial, Inc. and its related entities. An independently owned and operated broker member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., a Prudential Financial company. Prudential, the Prudential logo and the Rock symbol are service marks of Prudential Financial, Inc. All material presented herein is intended for information purposes only. While, this information is believed to be correct, it is represented subject to errors, omissions, and its related entities, registered in many jurisdictions worldwide. Used under license. Equal Housing Opportunity. changes or withdrawal without notice. All property information, including, but not limited to square footage, room count, number of bedrooms and the school district in property listings are deemed reliable, but should be verified by your own attorney, architect or zoning expert.

TERRACED BEAUTY ON PARK AVENUE

East 80s | $5,495,000 | Prime prewar 7 in full-service building. Terrace extends full width of living room with wood burning fireplace, master bedroom and library/2nd bedroom. Large and elegant formal dining room. 3rd bedroom created from 2 maid’s rooms. Extra room on 15th floor. Bright. Web# 1359244. Rebecca Steindecker 917.670.4193

MINT 6 ON THE PARK AND RIVER

East 86th Street/East End Avenue | $1,675,000 Serene park/river/city views from 2-bedroom, 2.5-bath with formal dining room, eat-in kitchen, and spacious office. Full-service building with gym, garage, storage. 2 apartments per floor. Low $2,314 maintenance. Web# 1334584. Steen Rasmussen, SVP 212.712.6090 | 347.266.2486

EXQUISITE COUNTRY ESTATE

Mill Neck | $3,300,000 | Majestic residence on over 7-acres of formal gardens. 6 bedrooms, 6 baths a renovated 3-bedroom cottage, 6 garages, greenhouse and pool/cabana. Web# 2382801. Ludmilla Stanco, Associate Broker 516.945.0260 Michael Stanco, Associate Broker 516.945.0261

SUPERB COMBO

East 72nd Street, Madison Avenue | $4,995,000 | Rarely available. Purchase a full floor atop a premier full-service co-op. Currently 13.5 rooms. Create a dream home utilizing the light and open views of this spectacular space. Web# 1403334. Rebecca Steindecker 917.670.4193

SUTTON PREWAR ELEGANCE

East 57th Street | $2,995,000 | 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, dining room, den, and home office. Wood burning fireplace, eat-in kitchen, top-of-the-line appliances, washer/dryer, built-ins. Absolutely mint. Web# 1403332. Susan Sperber 212.891.7068 Timothy P. Buckley 212.350.2236

BEST 2-BEDROOM CONDOMINIUM

East 60s | $1,400,000 | High floor luxury home. 2 full baths, large private balcony, fantastic views. Fabulous full-service building with gym and pool. Call to see today. Web# 1359627. Amy Gordon, VP 212.319.2339

CONDO PENTHOUSE WITH TERRACE

West 90th Street | $3,200,000 | Quality 2,100 sf 3-bedroom, 3-bath duplex plus 700 sf landscaped terrace. One-of-a-kind apartment in a prewar doorman condo. Wood burning fireplace and wood floors throughout. Must see. Web# 1410099. Irene Simon 347.992.8611

IDEAL PIED-À-TERRE/5TH AVENUE

5th Avenue, Mid 50s | $1,595,000 | For the discerning sophisticate: smashing 2-bedroom South over Rockefeller Garden. Candela prewar condo. Wood burning fireplace, beams. Low CCs. Web# 1387098. Lisa Brown 646.338.2026

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luxury REALM BOUTIQUE

MAX MARA Margaux, the icon bag of Max Mara, is styled into a new version for the Resort 2012 Collection. The Margaux with one handle is dedicated to a very sophisticated and feminine woman who needs an elegant but practical bag. It comes in natural calfskin and in crocodile or rhino print calfskin. Colors range from light grey to black, also including khaki and dark brown. www.maxmara.com

Chic, luxury boutique located in the heart of SoHo, Realm Boutique is filled with designer pieces from around the world—like this red Kelly dress by Jean-Claude Jitrois. www.realmboutique.com

The Perfect Present NELSON & NELSON

DELANEAU @ IGROUPNYC.COM DARRYL PATTERSON

Located in the Pierre Hotel, Nelson & Nelson Fine Antique Silver and Jewelry is a treasure trove for the discerning collector. This Tiffany & Co. colorless and yellow diamond, platinum and gold pansy brooch is from circa 1965. www.nelsonandnelsonantiques.com

A selection of some of our favorite gifts of the season to stuff your stockings with style

Just one look at these new wristwatches and one’s heart is conquered by their distinctively recognizable shape. Truly original, the Open Magic collection masterfully plays with shapes as embodied by the soft and classical round watchcase versus the straight lines of the asymmetrical bracelet. This mesmerizing design is simultaneously modern, outstandingly original yet timeless. www.delaneau.com

DEVI KROELL Made of stingray skin, these chic mini accordion clutches add sophistication to any ensemble. www.devikroell.com

102 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

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EXTRAORDINARY LAKEFRONT ESTATE $38,000,000 7 Bedrooms, 8 Baths, 5 Half Baths 17,113 Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075170

CLARKE AVENUE ESTATE $11,200,000 5 Bedrooms, 6 Baths, 3 Half Baths 9,316Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075514

CENTER OF TOWN $5,350,000 6 Bedrooms, 6 Baths, 2 Half Baths 6,960Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075175

ISLAND DRIVE GEORGIAN $11,900,000 6 Bedrooms, 6 Baths, 3 Half Baths 8,665Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075516

EXQUISITE CANTERBURY LANE $9,950,000 5 Bedrooms, 6 Baths, 3 Half Baths 8,432Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075437

PENDELTON LANE $4,200,000 6 Bedrooms, 5.5 Baths 7,007Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075427

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NORTH LAKE WAY $9,450,000 5 Bedrooms, 5.5 Baths 6,579Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075474

TRADEWIND REGENCY $3,795,000 4 Bedrooms, 4 Baths, 2 Half Baths 5,522Â&#x201C; sq. ft. WEB: 0075307

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AMAZING DIRECT LAKEFRONT PALM BEACH, FLORIDA

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Page C1

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An extremely desirable original Clarence Mack French regency is available for purchase. NO VEM

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at www.AVENUEMAG.com

H. HERZFELD

FINE MENS CLOTHES SINCE 1890

Among our many offerings are English polo and dress shirts & cashmere sweaters imported from Scotland along with Trafalgar braces. Our accessories include belts, cuff links, hats and gloves. Shirts are monogrammed and tapered and sleeve lengths can be adjusted. Plus our selection of fine quality Oxxford suits and Valstar outerwear win praise among discriminating gentlemen. Visit our store or stroll through the pages of our website.

H. HERZFELD 118 East 57th Street Bet. Park & Lexington 212-753-6756 www.hherzfeld.com "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you didâ&#x20AC;?...Mark Twain Shop at H. Herzfeld

the world according to . . .

JUDY PRICE AVENUE’s back-page column asks New York notables our version of the questionnaire made famous by Marcel Proust

AT WHAT ADDRESS WOULD YOU LIKE TO LIVE?

Between my Manhattan and Paris apartments. WHEN DID YOU FIRST FEEL LIKE A NEW YORKER? WHAT HAPPENED?

When, as a business reporter for Time Magazine, a CEO took me to lunch at 21. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WATERING HOLE FOR LUNCH? FOR DINNER?

Michael’s for lunch and Amaranth for dinner. WHAT NEWSPAPER DO YOU READ FIRST IN THE MORNING?

Women’s Wear Daily. WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE NEW YORKER, PAST OR PRESENT?

Walter Hoving, the iconic chairman of Tiffany & Co. WHO IS THE SMARTEST NEW YORKER YOU KNOW?

Sonny Mehta, the Editor in Chief of Knopf. WHO IS THE FUNNIEST?

The author Christopher Buckley. WHAT IS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE NEW YORK MOMENT?

Meeting my husband at La Fonda del Sol. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NEW YORK SOUND?

Horse hooves in the snow. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NEW YORK LOGO?

The New Yorker. WHAT’S YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING NEW YORK MOMENT?

Calling Jasper Johns, Frank Stella. WHAT IS YOUR WORST-DRESSED NEW YORK MOMENT?

Founder of AVENUE and the National Jewelry Institute, Judy Price

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WAY TO GET AROUND NEW YORK AND WHY?

Taxis, for their convenience.

udy Price innovated the concept of high quality magazines for selected households in Manhattan when she founded AVENUE in 1975. This month, she returns to the pages of the publication she spearheaded for more than 25 years to share her thoughts on the city she built this magazine around. After leaving AVENUE in 2001, Price founded the National Jewelry Institute in 2002 and has curated more than a dozen jewelry exhibitions all over the world and authored six books on jewelry and design. Her latest book, Lest We Forget: Masterpieces of Patriotic Jewelry and Military Decorations, came out just last month.

108 | AVENUE MAGAZINE · DECEMBER 2011

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE TRANSPORTATION MOMENT IN THE CITY?

When a noble taxi driver returned my wallet. WHAT IS THE HARDEST PART ABOUT LIVING IN NEW YORK?

February. WHO DO YOU MOST ADMIRE?

My husband. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?

French. ✦

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My ratty gym clothes on the street.

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DOWNTOWN 212.430.5900

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Equal Housing Opportunity.

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BUILDER | OWNER | MANAGER

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8/25/11 6:53 PM

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11/14/11 2:37 PM