The late poet and Pulitzer finalist, who wrote a fistful of words, said they flew away when he opened his hand.
The Betsy is a boutique hotel run by the son and family of Plutzik. On the day Miami Art Week kicks off, the lobby and restaurant are already bustling with energy. Who are these people, where did they come from, and how did they make so much money?
The library was built to honor the poet's legacy and was meant for quiet contemplation and peaceful work. This is the calmest place in Miami-Dade County where I will venture into the madness of Miami Art Week and Art Basel Miami Beach for the first time. The DJ set in Ikea is a good place to start.
The Tree of Life Bar is located at the Faena Hotel.
The vibes at the Faena Hotel are a dream come true, from the chic lobby to the display of the 24k gold bones of a wooly mammoth encased in glass. I would have jumped out and taken off my sunglasses if I had been in a jeep here. The Faena House was once called a "clubhouse for the super rich" by New York Magazine. There are three separate events at the Faena tonight, all teaming with people. Or maybe it is performance art, where the line for the maze is? The Tree of Life bar is where I meet a variety of characters, including a Swiss journalist trying to break into the American market and several very cool Art Basel reps. It is 10:30 p.m. at SLS South Beach.
I wanted to check out the Miami Art Week event at the SLS Hotel because Mo Ma Ps1 is famous for its New York City parties. There are so many hotels on Collins Avenue that people get burned at the beach instead of being burned at the slots. I ordered a drink but it was free, but the water was only 14 bucks. Am I right, folks? Biden's America… am I right? The centerpiece of the party is a performance by artist Marie Karlberg in which she illustrated umbrellas in real time on three canvases by the pool, as a crowd dutifully formed around the art. She jumped into the water and swam to the DJ booth.
The hotel is in Miami Beach.
Will.I.Am and Dean Kamen want to raise a lot of money for robotic education in schools at their annualgala honoring the ex-CEO of Xerox, Ursula Burns. Will tells me that they are honored to be able to honor her at the event, which raises funds for FIRST Global. The whole premise is to honor engineers and technicians.
Will has been to Art Basel once before, but he won't be able to see many of the exhibitions. I leave tomorrow to go back.
He says that he is always making music. He tells me that it is a combination of curiosity, hunger and competitiveness. That sucks, how do I respond?
The SoHo Beach House is open.
Soho Beach House is steps from the beach and is home to a DJ who spins early00s hip hop. The crowd does exactly that when he busts out his contemplative hymn "Back That Thang Up."
6:30 p.m., San Marino Island
There are pictures of the Beatles and Rolling Stones in Miami in the 60s in my hall. It is the same energy as I travel to the Venetian Islands, halfway between Miami proper and Miami Beach. The 12-minute drive is double that because of traffic, but it is worth it as I find that Patron has rented a mansion and a yacht for a party celebrating their new release, El Alto. There are more employees here than there are guests, and they all wear sailor hats. Some guests arrive on their own yacht, but they can't dock here. After watching the second season of The White Lotus, and sitting next to Dale from The Bachelor, I decided to attend the tasting of tequila on our yacht. We have our own with the water, which is even better than the mansion and the yacht.
The Kimpton Surfcomber is open 10:15 a.m.
I called it an early night yesterday because I wanted to make it to the outdoor class today. It is a marketer's wet dream with brands that come together like Therabody and Celsius, the latter of which I let be jabbed into my skin. I am due for a cleanse before the retox because I had a hard night on the yacht yesterday, and every fitness instructor says they are George Carlin. Dale, the guy from The Bachelorette who proposed too fast is my old friend.
A woman with a microphone asks me if I have ever bought anything from Farfetch. I don't know what they sell, but they're a "global destination for modern luxury." The food is very good, including passed-around lobster rolls. Saturday is Saturday.
ZZ's Member's Club is open at 4 p.m.
Mario Carbone came here as a cook from New York 15 years ago. His Major Food Group has become the center of Art Basel Miami Beach and life in Miami in general as the purveyors of Carbone, and ZZ's Member's Club. He didn't know what Art Basel was, but went out and had a good time. It is one of the busiest weeks of the year for the company with everything going on in Miami and New York during the holiday season.
Carbone, the man, is hosting a pop-up/hang celebrating his clothing brand, Our Lady of Rocco, which feels like a natural progression as he designs uniforms for Major's eateries. He says it is the equivalent of painting in his free time.
The man loves being busy, and that's why he does a trunk show.
There is a house called nylon house.
I didn't know what nylon house was until I got there.
DJ James Hype played his music through the speakers at the SLS South Beach on Saturday night and I am pretty sure anyone on the International Space Station heard it. The magazine had a party that was heavily promoted.