Scene Last Night: Fashion Prince Bibhu Mohapatra's Goat Hair, Baroness Bea
High above Manhattan, Bibhu Mohapatra celebrated his Fashion Week outing with cocktails last night on the 46th floor of the Trump SoHo.
Floor-to-ceiling windows offered stunning pictures of the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges and beyond.
The skyline provided backdrops for guests such as fellow designer Prabal Gurung and model Anjhula Singh Bais, a blogger for Vogue India.
It was a tranquil scene compared with Fashion Week’s Lincoln Center base, where temporary tents were sandwiched between the David H. Koch Theater and the Metropolitan Opera House.
Earlier, the designer’s 33 models sported crow’s feathers at their neck or long gowns in blue and plum. For the woman who needs to be noticed, there was a bolero in long goat hair.
“The collection is about the conflict of extreme opposites that we carry in our minds: good versus evil, darkness versus light,” Mohapatra said.
The Baroness
Meanwhile, the loafer-and-pumps crowd gathered at the Center for Fiction in midtown Manhattan to celebrate the patronage of an Italian baroness with an inspirational property near Florence.
Since 2000, Beatrice Monti della Corte, the widow of author Gregor von Rezzori, has welcomed writers and botanists to Santa Maddalena.
At the retreat, writers enjoy Italian cooking, scenic accommodations and the encouraging company of the baroness, now into her 80s and not inclined to waste time.
“Don’t be stupid: You’re a great writer and you’ll write a great book,” Andrew Sean Greer remembered her saying when he was dithering about a new novel.
The event, hosted by Edmund White, included readings by such other past fellows as Michael Cunningham, Zadie Smith, Mary Gaitskill, Colm Toibin and Gary Shteyngart, who said he only learned to really bathe when confronted by his immense tub.
Smith, who said she has permission to call the baroness “Bea,” thanked her for infusing her with a love of dogs.
The evening attracted potential donors, super-agent Lynne Nesbit and author Wallace Shawn, who refused to disclose what book he was reading. “That’s too personal. I don’t tell people what I read,” he said.
(Amanda Gordon is a writer and photographer for Muse, the art and leisure section of Bloomberg News. Any opinions expressed are her own.)
To contact the reporter on this story: Amanda Gordon at agordon01@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Manuela Hoelterhoff at mhoelterhoff@bloomberg.net.
Bibhu Mohapatra Party
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Fashion designer Bibhu Mohapatra with Johanna Stout, who manages the CFDA Fashion Incubator, in which Mohapatra is a participant.
Fashion designer Bibhu Mohapatra with Johanna Stout, who manages the CFDA Fashion Incubator, in which Mohapatra is a participant. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Bibhu Mohapatra Fall 2011
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
A view of Bibhu Mohapatra's Fall 2011 presentation at the Box during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. Lauren Santo Domingo was the stylist.
A view of Bibhu Mohapatra's Fall 2011 presentation at the Box during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. Lauren Santo Domingo was the stylist. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Bibhu Mohapatra Fall 2011
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Models at Bibhu Mohapatra's Fall 2011 presentation.
Models at Bibhu Mohapatra's Fall 2011 presentation. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Santa Maddalena
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Edmund White and Baroness Beatrice Monti della Corte Rezzori.
Edmund White and Baroness Beatrice Monti della Corte Rezzori. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Santa Maddalena
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Writer Zadie Smith.
Writer Zadie Smith. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Santa Maddalena
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Writer Gary Shteyngart.
Writer Gary Shteyngart. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Santa Maddalena
Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Actor and writer Wallace Shawn.
Actor and writer Wallace Shawn. Photographer: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg
Rate this Page
Bloomberg moderates all comments. Comments that are abusive or off-topic will not be posted to the site. Excessively long comments may be moderated as well. Bloomberg cannot facilitate requests to remove comments or explain individual moderation decisions.