To celebrate the new pavilion designed by Audience Research’s Minsuk Cho, the Serpentine hosted its annual summer party on Tuesday, hosting guests including Benedict Cumberbatch, Minnie Driver, Bianca Jagger, Maya Jama, Alexa Chung, Eric Nam and “Squid Game” star Lee. Jung-jae.
The midsummer party was hosted by South Korean music artist Peggy Gou, British actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who wore a custom bright pink suit by Prada, and tennis legend Venus Williams, who wore an elegant white dress designed by 16Arlington’s Marco Capaldo.
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“As an interior designer and passionate art lover, I have always found the Serpentine, surrounded by Kensington Gardens, in the heart of one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world, a unique place to experience art. Williams, who had a busy fashion month attending fashion shows such as Schiaparelli, Dries Van Noten, JW Anderson, Gucci and Prada, said: “I am incredibly honored to host this year’s party for an evening that celebrates culture and arts of all kinds.”
It was a night of monotonous dresses. Chung wore a custom-made emerald green silk gown by LVMH Prize winner Nensi Dojaka. The style, which appeared on the catwalks in red in Dojaka’s 2023 fall collection, was inspired by the green dress worn by Keira Knightley in the 2007 movie “Atonement”.
Model Edie Campbell chose a transparent tea green tulle dress by Molly Goddard. Jourdan Dunn reflected Greek goddess reality in Nina Ricci’s body-hugging black and white dress designed by Harris Reed. British actress Minnie Driver wore an embroidered Huishan Zhang red number.
Other best-dressed guests included Jagger, who paired his sequined white jacket with comfortable crystal-studded shoes; Emma Weymouth in her red Vivienne Westwood fishtail dress; Marina Abramović made her presence known in a voluminous black dress by Roksanda Ilinčić, and Indian socialite Natasha Poonawalla, who arrived at the party with Edward Enninful in a maximalist red dress with a JW Anderson frog clutch and patches with floral motifs.
It was an evening where fashion designers came with their muses. Chung and Dojaka, Cora Corre and Charles Jeffrey, Kiki Willems and Aaron Esh, Tsunaina and Di Petsa’s Dimitra Petsa, “The King of Staten Island” star Bel Powley and Erdem Moralıoğlu, Emilia Wickstead and New Zealand actress Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, Reed with Dunn and Jama, David Koma with Shygirl, and Ed McVey, who plays Prince William in “The Crown.”
“I’m having a great time,” Petsa said. “I loved being able to party but also be part of a cultural moment. [Yinka Shonibare] The exhibition next to the pavilion is really interesting. “I like his approach to nationalism and protectionism.”
The designer said he plans to spend his summer vacation on nudist beaches in Mykonos, but before that he is working on his spring 2025 menswear collection, which will be unveiled during London Fashion Week in September.
Reed plans to travel to Greece with friends, including designer pal Lo and stylist Harry Lambert, who is visiting London for three weeks in the summer before a trip to the island with his family, and will host several barbecues in the garden of his new home. apartment.
The London-based American designer said he was extremely pleased with his appointments at the party. “Jama looks hot. I love it when he takes it places for me. He looks like Austin Powers at his best. For me, this is modern sexuality. Dunn looks like she’s having her princess moment,” Reed added.
She also said that the new Nina Ricci collection is almost ready, but her eponymous semi-couture brand still has “a long way to go.”
“I still manage to balance my creative director job with my namesake record label and give equal love to both. I’ve been with Nina for a year and a half. It takes a lot of effort to structure teams and make sure people understand the words you use. For me the word inclusion or the word beauty means something completely different to a French woman who has lived there for 45 years. “We’re learning to find the beautiful balance, and I think we’re finally doing that,” Reed added, confirming that a new product with his creative touch will also be unveiled alongside the brand’s Spring 2025 show in Paris.
Rocco Iannone, creative director of Ferrari’s fashion department, was also at the party. “It’s so interesting to be here, to see this beautiful mix of art, architecture and fashion talking together. This is a very inspiring moment for me,” said Iannone.
In the midst of a research trip where he meets Ferrari car owners in London, the Italian designer understands their love, passion and expectations for the brand.
“They are already engaged and waiting for something that might surprise them. So I’m fine-tuning the idea of what the right Ferrari wardrobe is. I have been working hard on these concepts to create something that is deeply meaningful for our brand,” said Iannone.
The centerpiece of the star-studded party was, of course, Cho’s five-island pavilion on the grounds of the Serpentine South Gallery.
While awaiting Skepta’s arrival, Serpentine’s artistic director, Hans Ulrich Obrist, told WWD that he has known Cho for more than 30 years. “I met him at the very beginning of his journey and he built magnificent buildings. [South] “Korea has everything from Buddhist temples to cinemas to extraordinary congregational spaces where people can access public spaces,” he added.
“For his first project in London, he came up with the idea of creating a traditional Korean courtyard built around an empty centre. It includes a playground, music hall, gathering area, library where people can bring their unread books, and a tea house. It’s a very interactive pavilion and works during the day, but it also works great for a party tonight. We are especially happy for the performance of the great Korean choreographer Eun-Me Ahn and she is the new Pina Bausch,” said Obrist.
Celebrating the pavilion is an important part of the art institute’s summer program; also includes Yinka Shonibare’s solo exhibition at Serpentine South and Judy Chicago’s retrospective exhibition at Serpentine North.
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