For this week’s Friday Fête, Whitewall takes you through some of this week’s events, including celebrations with Gucci, Phillips, Equinox Hotel, Fendi, and more.
Over the weekend, on Saturday, we made it a priority to stop by the jewelry designer Anna Sheffield’s new store on Bleecker Street. Shining from within a 1920s building, designed in collaboration with architects Brittany Hart and Justin Capuco, the duo behind the design firm Husband Wife, the space was adorned with modern and contemporary furniture and design pieces, including custom-designed cases for the designer’s jewels (and exclusive pieces for the store like the new “Eleonore” collection). The shop also continued Sheffield’s dedication to art—opening with a showcase of ceramic works by New Mexico-based artist Logan Wannamaker and photographs by Jim Mangan.
On Sunday, we celebrated the closing of an exhibition by Phillips, hosted its Park Avenue location. From January 31–February 3, the brand hosted the showcase of a historical piece by Canadamark—the largest diamond ever found in North America. The 552-carat yellow diamond was unearthed in December 2018 at the Diavik Diamond Mine just below the Arctic Circle. Throughout the week, Canadamark executives Kyle Washington, Jim Pounds, and Rachel Aaron welcomed guests to see the gem for themselves.
On Tuesday at the Gucci Wooster Bookstore, Gucci and CHIME FOR CHANGE hosted a discussion and cocktail event to celebrate the new CHIME FOR CHANGE campaign, the first issue of the CHIME publication, and The Future is Fluid—a film by Jade Jackman and Irregular Labs. Moderated by Ariel Wengroff, Publisher of Broadly and Executive Producer at Viceland, the panel kicked off a talk including some special guests: Adam Eli, community organizer, writer, and Editor-in-Chief of the CHIME zine; Jade Jackman, UK-based director of the short film, The Future is Fluid; and MP5, the Italy-based visual artist who created the new CHIME FOR CHANGE campaign identity displayed on Gucci’s ArtWalls. Throughout the night, The Future is Fluid (an honest film that explores what gender really means around the world, and how inherent biases are driven by society) played in the screening room.
On Wednesday, the New York Botanical Garden hosted its annual Orchid Dinner at The Plaza, raising more than $500,000 to benefit the Garden’s orchid research collection. The night also celebrated the upcoming 17th annual orchid show, The Orchid Show: Singapore, which will take place at the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory from February 23–April 28. The dinner’s Gala Chairs—Vera Aryeh and Bob Gossett, Sharon and Bill Jacob, and Susan and George Matelich—welcomed guests to cocktails, a multi-course dinner inspired by Singapore cuisine, and live music by The Sultans.
Last night at the Zaha Hadid Penthouse along the High Line, Equinox celebrated the announcement of the brand’s first hotel, Equinox Hotel, opening in June in Hudson Yards. There to host the celebration was the brand’s Executive Chairman and Managing Partner, Harvey Spevak, Equinox Hotels CEO, Chris Norton, and Naomi Campbell. Special guests like models, photographers, and actresses joined in on welcoming the exciting news over cocktails and DJ sets by Fat Tony and Pedro. The night also toasted to the hotel’s inaugural video campaign featuring Campbell, HIGH PERFORMANCE, by Nick Knight’s SHOWstudio.
Also last night, Fendi gathered fashion and lifestyle insiders together at its Madison Avenue flagship to celebrate its Baguette bag. Hosted by Silvia Venturini Fendi and Serge Brunschwig, with actresses Amanda Seyfried and Emma Roberts, the night toasted to an ode to friendship, encouraging the share of the hashtag #BaguetteFriendsForever. Over cocktails and conversation, guests enjoyed music by DJ duo Groove Armada while exploring the Baguette Dream Room, featuring a multitude of baguettes, and the Wardrobe Room, with seven one-of-a-kind ready-to-wear pieces on sale for last night only.
