(Playmate Of The Year Raquel Pomplun, Neville Wakefield, Richard Phillips, Landis Smithers, Alison Waite)
“I’ve never seen you out of leather,” said a collector to Richard Phillips. The artist was in a white shirt and black jacket with a pocket square.
“This is actually quite casual for me, lately,” said Phillips squinting because the terrace at the Standard Hotel was filled with warm sunlight. As an example, he said he had just returned from an engagement on the West Coast where he wore a three-piece suit.
The collector had not yet been to Marfa to see Phillips’ “Playboy Marfa” installation, which we were at the Standard to celebrate. The first part of the installation — a sculpture of a racecar on a cement plinth with a glowing neon Playboy symbol — was erected last week.
(Phoebe Stephens, Derek Blasberg, Annette Stephens)
The collector said he owned three of Phillips’ works from the “Most Wanted” series. “You know the large portrait of Dakota Fanning?”
(Ashley Smith, Jenné Lombardo, Stella Maxwell)
Fashion designer Johan Lindeberg walked in at a high speed with a tall woman with long flowing hair and a sharp suit. “Johan,” someone yelled. Artist Josephine Meckseper was there and looked lovely. We wondered how she felt about Phillips’ Playboy commission.
(Ryan McGinness and Trish Goodwin)
Playmate of the Year Raquel Pomplun was further away on the terrace in a black rayon-satin leotard with a white pompom tail, white cuffs, black rabbit ears, and a prize ribbon affixed to her hip. She was in a “Bunny stance” with her hand on her hip.
“This is the first time the Playmates are wearing Bunny outfits,” said Phillips imparting other sartorial news.
“There are Bunnies here?” said his friend who smiled like a child and looked around.
(Johan Lindeberg, Kenza Fourati)
It was after 8 o’clock when curator Neville Wakefield showed up wearing jeans and a jean shirt. He smiled as the breeze lightly moved his longish hair. Two people approached him instantly.
(Stefano Tonchi, Judith Puckett-Rinella)
Dinner opened with a short video by Adrian Gaut of the Playboy Marfa sculpture shot from different angles, mostly at sunset, and edited so the clouds seemed to move more-quickly-than-natural across the sky. The only sound was that of blowing wind.
(Raquel Pomplun, Richard Phillips, Scott Flanders, Alison Waite)
Hotelier Ben Pundole said to us, as he placed greens on our plate during dinner in the High Line Room, that when he was the manager of Amy Sacco’s restaurant and club Lot 61, he had called Damien Hirst to let him know the spot paintings, which were on loan from the artist, were getting champagne and ketchup on them and people were leaning against them. “He said he had to think about it,” said Pundole. “He called us back a while later and said we could leave them.”
(Tenzin Wild, Magnus Berger, Patrick Ervell)
Pomplun, who had changed into a black dress, told us about her visit to the Chinati Foundation last week when she was in Marfa to see the installation and pose with it for the magazine. She talked about Donald Judd’s mathematical precision and said something about how the outdoor works have to be adjusted each year.
“Not every Bunny can be a Playmate,” said Playboy Enterprises creative director Landis Smithers when asked about Phillips’ earlier comment about the Playmates wearing the Bunny Suits. “But every Playmate can be a Bunny.”