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Annual edgy Hamptons art benefit features fake pigs, performers writhing on concrete balls and an ode to Sprite
The Watermill Center’s annual summer benefit lived up to its reputation of showcasing edgy high-end art.
Guests like Solange Knowles, architect Peter Marino, fashion designer Maxwell Osborne, artist Liz Magic Laser, Van Cleef & Arpels’ Helen King, socialite Jean Shafiroff, fashion editor Stefano Tonchi and talent manager Kendall Werts took in performance art that included a man running on a treadmill in front of a block of ice during the two-hours of cocktails.
This year’s theme was “A Laboratory:100 Years of Experimentation,” in a nod to the sprawling Hamptons art center that’s housed at a onetime telecommunications laboratory.
Guests walked through 20 site-specific performances and installations throughout the 10-acre, wooded property.
One performer stood perched on a stand holding a fake pig, while another artist, Robson Catalunha, wore ears and a snout while vaping and drinking a martini.
Several artists created a corridor for guests to walk through as they sang different notes in a piece conceived by Dai Asano.
Two performance artists crawled over each other on sharp seashells, while others crawled over concrete balls.
Another person contorted themselves wrapped in cloth to make it look like they were in a bathtub, while another artist, TEZ, sat in a box holding a replica of his own head and drinking a Sprite.
The event honored famed choreographer Lucinda Childs, whose work was presented during the evening.
Guests were also treated to a performance by rapper and performance artist Mykki Blanco.
