No Kanye West, But Virgil Abloh, Robert Downey Jr. and More Turn Out for Watermill Center
On Saturday night in Southampton, a funky crowd gathered at the Watermill Center—Robert Downey Jr., Isabelle Huppert, Virgil Abloh, and Laurie Anderson were with us, so was Maxwell Osborne, Sasha Pivovarova, Lisa and Richard Perry, and former New York mayor and Donald Trump apologist Rudy Giuliani, who declined interview requests. They had convened at the behest of Robert Wilson, the performance artist and mover and shaker who puts his significant Rolodex to use every summer, culling from the world’s of art and Hollywood, to raise money for this institution’s artist residency program. “We have friends of friends in common,” said Abloh, whose close collaborator Kanye West was supposed to perform here last year. “I’m excited to see this place come to life.” Ostensibly, the benefit serves as an amuse-bouche to the center’s artists, who are spread out over the eight-and-a-half acre grounds in colorful installations, but just as often the performances serve as backdrops for rubberneckers looking for cute Instagram selfies. Some people didn’t even know the 24th anniversary’s theme, honoring Huppert and Anderson in tribute to Lou Reed. “Is Lou Reed here?” said one clueless young dude at the table of the art adviser Anastasiya Siro. Reed died four years ago. “He’s here in spirit,” his companion offered. Reed’s voice echoed in the dark of night as Anderson performed their piece “The Wildebeests” outdoors, but for some that was just a dignified breather before the main event—Abloh’s DJ set.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Mariella Everett and Alina Baikova attend the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Socialite and philanthropist Jean Shafiroff attends the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Artist Indira Cesarine attends the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Brooks Nader and friends attend the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Public School NYC designer Maxwell Osborne attends the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Inside The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Isabell Huppert attends he 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and herself, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Musician and artist Laurie Anderson addresses the crowd at the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction, which was in tribute to her late partner Lou Reed.
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Robert Downey Jr. and wife Susan Downey The 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
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Honorees Isabell Huppert and Laurie Anderson gather together at the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction.
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Robert Downey Jr. takes the mic inside the 24th Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit & Auction honoring Laurie Anderson and Isabelle Huppert, in tribute to Lou Reed.
