Party Politics - Brief Article

Interview, Jan-April, 2001 by Michael Musto

A NEW EXHIBITION REVEALS THE CHANGING PALETTE OF PARTIES

Parties reflect the state of the economy, society's changing class divisions, and the zeitgeist of the pop cultural collective--but mainly, they represent a good old rip-roaring time. All these elements are visible in Party Pictures: From Studio 54 to Cannes 2000, a group exhibition on view at NYC's Lawrence Rubin Greenberg Van Doren Fine Art through the sixth of this month, and featuring the work of such eminent photographers--and sometime partyers--as Larry Fink (whose image from last winter's Edwardian ball at the Frick Collection is pictured here), Garry Winogrand, Andy Warhol, and many others.

Through the last century parties have morphed dramatically, as the blossoming cult of celebrity broke down barriers by giving the born-rich a run for their invites. With the advent of movies came film festivals, ultimately including Cannes--the splashy mixture of serious cineastes, bosomy starlets, and fawning media cavorting on the Riviera since 1947. But Truman Capote's Black and White Ball at the Plaza in 1966 was a Fellini movie unto itself. It brought the party idea forward by recognizing that creative artists are the most coveted guests of all, and a Pulitzer in your hand can be at least as important as any silver spoon in your mouth. As stardom became more attainable than ever, these bellwether events developed into even more luminary-laden conflagrations. At the '70s disco Studio 54, everyone was a star who glittered amidst the democracy of the dance floor--once they got in, that is. Today, movie stars and their handlers have practically attained the stature of gods, and they all flock to the annual Oscar parties, where they come face-to-face with professional worshippers at the shrine of fame. In the glow of that kind of fabulousness, it's no wonder Ellen DeGeneres and Anne Heche fell in love.