Fight Night celebrates its 20th anniversary with plenty of boxing legends, donations, Marines, cigars, eye-candy, and the inspirational Joe E. Robert, Jr.

Mayor Adrian Fenty and Raul Fernandez. (Photo by Tony Powell)

By Michael Clements
Photos by Tony Powell
Video by Michael Clements

Forget for a moment the wafting clouds of cigar smoke, flowing Ravenswood Cabernet Sauvignon, juicy NY Strip steaks, curvaceous table hostesses and Redskins cheerleaders, live music by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, boxing legend after boxing legend and, well, the overall downright manliness of Fight Night. Forget it all and remember this: for 20 years Fight Night has been raising millions of dollars ($2.8 million last year and over $1.5 million this year) for Fight For Children and other organizations that provide education and healthcare services to low-income children in Washington, D.C.

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Hickok Cole is known for its architecture, but its annual Art Night is helping build the local arts community.

By Michael Clements

Art lover and artists mix in the offices of Hickok Cole. (Photo by Hoachlander Davis Photography)

Each year, awarding winning architectural firm Hickok Cole Architects opens its doors to allow local artists and art patrons to turn its office into one of the area’s best contemporary galleries (for one night at least). This year saw over 50 local artists showcasing their work. Judging by the amount of pink “sold” dots around, the quality of the art was high. “It’s probably one of their biggest fundraisers of the year for the Washington Project for the Arts,” (WPA) said enthusiastic Hickok Cole Architects senior marketing manager Jennifer Oh over the loud buzz of cocktail conversation. The night generated more than $60,000 in artwork sales, with post event sales expected to reach $90,000.

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A ‘Nautical Affair’ at the Corcoran had a crew of up and coming Washington socialites – so, did the event (and fashion) sink or swim?

By Michael Clements

Amir Afkhami, Hastie Kargar, Chris Boutlier. Photograph by Kyle Samperton

Stormy clouds didn’t deter the seafaring captains at this year’s 1869 Society Fall Fête, held at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Indeed, the sheer buzz leading up to the event was like a beacon of light leading the area’s fashionable up and coming movers and shakers safely to the shores of Ernest Flagg’s classic Beaux-Arts style building. The event is one of the highlights of, what we at Washington Life like to refer to as The Young & The Guest List (YGL) scene (the area’s under-40 social set). It lived up to the hype.

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GQ takes a shot at listing top influencers and launches its 50 Most Powerful People in Washington issue on Pennsylvania Ave (but not at that address).

By Michael M. Clements

GQ Editor in Chief Jim Nelson with ABC's George Stephanopoulos. (photo credit: Abby Brack/GQ)

1600 Pennsylvania Ave might be the most powerful address on this famous District avenue, but when GQ hosted it’s annual 50 most power people in Washington party, 701 Pennsylvania (home of the power dining establishment 701) it played a very close second to the halls of influence just a few blocks over.

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The President makes a historic keynote address and the crowd goes Gaga for the First Lady of pop at the Human Rights Campaign Gala

By Michael M. Clements

Lady Gaga before performing at the HRC gala. (Photo by Tony Powell)

There are certain moments in time that can come to define a movement and generation. In the years to follow, the LGBT community will look back at President Barack Obama’s speech at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) 13th Annual Gala – his first as a Nobel Laureate – as a watershed moment for equality. Mainstream America will too.

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The W Hotel Washington and John Legend put on a grand opening performance, Pollywood style

By Michael M. Clements

Operatic performers set a classical mood. Photo by Tony Powell

Purple lights flooded the historic Beaux Arts exterior of the officially opened W Hotel Washington on a perfect fall evening. There was a formidable red carpet with a large logo-emboldened step-and-repeat with a special “VIP-only” entrance – for those worthy of being photographed in front of said corporate logos; photographers who waited patiently outside the velvet rope for the star power to roll in; and black-clad PR mavens with clipboards and headsets greeting guests with “Are you on the list?” Indeed, it was an event game-planned straight out of film screening/celebrity restaurant openings of Los Angeles and New York. But, this isn’t Los Angeles or New York. It’s Washington. Not to say Washington can’t be chic. It can be. But we don’t have to be Los Angeles or New York, or Miami for that matter. In fact, we revel in not being any of these cities because of how hard they try sometimes. If the opening of the W Hotel Washington proves anything, it’s that Washington is continuing to develop its unique Pollywood style – and that, is a good thing.

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Washington D.C. native, actor and activist Jeffrey Wright gathers the area’s African American power players to support Taia Peace Foundation and Maxwell

By Michael M. Clements

Maxwell

It wasn’t an ordinary Friday afternoon at downtown posh eatery Oya Restaurant (777 9th St NW) as Jeffrey Wright thought it was appropriate to show legendary performer Maxwell – in town playing at the Verizon center – D.C.’s VIP side. The room was filled some of the city’s top African American power players. Once again, behind the scenes hosts Tanya Lombard, Yelberton Watkins, Isaac Fordjour, and Chaka Burgess pulled together an impressive group. As always, there was a worthy cause involved – the Taia Peace Foundation (www.taiapeace.org.)

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Bailamos! The National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts (NHFA) hosted their annual gala celebrating Noche Musicál Tuesday night at the Corcoran Gallery of Art.

By Michael Clements
Photos by Tony Powell

Click here to view the full gallery of images from this event

Supreme Court Justice Sonio Sotomayor and Esai Morales, Photo by Tony Powell

The spicy Pollywood blend of Washington political power players included Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, and Reps. Xavier Becerra, Loretta Sanchez, and Charlie A. Gonzalez mingled with Hollywood’s top Latino entertainers like Jimmy Smits and Esai Morales. Morales, heartthrob of the classic 80’s film Labamba might have had his most important dance to date when he stepped out to do the Mambó with Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor (http://www.washingtonlife.com/video/) who, sources tell us, had been practicing her mambo for the past month in preparation for the night. It was Sotomayor’s first foray into the Washington social scene since being appointed the Court’s 111th justice, its first Hispanic justice, and its third female justice. “Justice Sotomayor reinforces the notion that you can be successful and still retain your cultural identity. We all know she is a great judge, but, I think she just proved she has some swift moves on the dance floor as well as in the courtroom,” remarked the effervescent Morales. Music for the evening was supplied by Afro-Cuan jazz drummer Bobby Sanabria as well as La India. Sanabria played a rousing rendition of the “Sotomayor Mambó.”

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Paris Hilton at dinner with boyfriend Doug Reinhardt (Photo by Daniel Schwartz)

The floral arrangements might have been smaller and the grandiose decor designed to be not so grandiose, but, still, as the saying goes, it’s what’s on the inside that makes the outside beautiful. With femme forces such as First Lady Michelle Obama (who made a surprise appearance), Patti LaBelle, K.D. Lang, Annie Leibovitz, Midori, Chita Rivera, and, yes, Paris Hilton, the Kennedy Center was a beautiful place to be Sunday night.

Michael Kaiser had a hard act to follow after last year’s salute to conductor John Williams, which brought out Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorcese, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. But, this year’s women, especially conductor JoAnn Falletta (who masterfully command of the National Symphony Orchestra) made 2008 a distant memory.
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The National Museum of African Art fetes its new director Johnnetta Cole

By Michael M. Clements

Timothy Bork, Vice Co-Chairs, African Art Advisory Board; The Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton, Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole, Director, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution; Dr. Wayne Clough, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution

“Africa is beautiful,” could be the calling card for this night that saw the board of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art (NMAfA) assemble at the home of gracious hosts Tim and Shigeko Bork to honor newly named director, Johnnetta Cole. Cole, whose speaking prowess and sheer dynamism was on full display during the intimate gathering of key friends and supporters of the NMAfA, is set to take over the museum with lofty goals.

“We want the [Museum of African Art] to be the best of the Smithsonian’s nineteen museums. And I’m not even counting the zoo,” Cole coolly commented as she stood and personally thanked each board member as well as those in attendance who have been so instrumental in the growth of the museum.

Washington D.C. representative Ellen Holmes Norton along with Ambassador HE Roble Olhaye, from the Republic of Djibouti, lead the list of esteemed attendees.

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Politics might be our calling card, but Washingtonians have a strong art community, and it showed this year in Miami

By Michael M. Clements

Olafur Eliasson, ‘One-way colour tunnel,’ 2007

It’s apropos that Washington D.C.’s hot art scene is being showcased in balmy Miami around the spectacle of Art Basel. Here, in this internationally-renowned art fair, I’m off to uncover the multi-layers of local artists, collectors, curators, gallery owners, and creative types that are driving local visual arts communities from Georgetown to H Street NE.

Where better to begin then poolside at the Raleigh? Joining me for see-and-be-seen salads and afternoon mojitos is local art connector and collector advocate, Philippa Hughes. “Oh, there’s David Lynch,” Hughes says excitedly. He is in town promoting a short film he directed for Cartier (more on that later). Benicio Del Toro strolls by followed by Thelma Golden, chief curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem. Golden is sporting a stylish long sleeve black tee with a silver sequence Obama face woven in it. “What are you hoping to find here?” I ask her naively. “Something that speaks to me,” she answers before heading through flowing white curtains into the lobby.

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By Michael M. Clements

WL Insider Michael M Clements

I felt the summer of ’08 melt away along with the spirit of the ’60s as I stood in the crowd at the VIRGIN MOBILE FESTIVAL. Watching a surprisingly coherent Bob Dylan, I felt privileged to see the aging Tambourine man, but conflicted knowing his anti-establishment edge had been replaced by corporate branding and kids who scream “we want Kayne!” The times have a-changed. Still, the line-up of Jack Johnson, Moby, Foo Fighters, and Wilco proved there is still some summer love to go round.

There was love, and tears, during SIGNATURE THEATER’s East Coast premiere of ACE. The musical follows the transformation of a troubled young boy (Dalton Harrod) as he discovers the heroic history of the father he never knew. Harrod is commendable but Jill Paice, who played his mother, was outstanding. Artistic director Eric Schaeffer deserves major accolades for his ability to bring to life writer Richard Oberacker’s complex characters. Watch out for child actor Angelina Kelly, a beacon of light, who deserves a Helen Hayes Award nod for her turn as Emily.

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I have a problem. I’ve been addicted to theater ever since I played “Seal #3” in my kindergarten circus. I took a two year acting sabbatical in Los Angeles before I came to Washington Life. (Note to actors: never tell a potential employer you’re an actor; there’s no faster way to get rejected, including checking “yes” to “Have you ever been convicted of a felony?”) Ironically, my last role before coming to Washington was playing one of Alan Alda’s staffers on the The West Wing. I remember running into Ron Silver at the Kennedy Center Honors my first day on the job. “What are you doing here?” he asked me. “I kicked the acting habit,” I replied, “I’m in publishing again.”

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The Beatles went to India; I’m trying to do it in the District – and so can you. From art exhibits to film competitions, DJ classes to fashion shows, unleash your inner artist.

By Michael M. Clements

WL Insider Michael M. Clements

My first stop on the journey to artistic bliss takes me to Phillipa Hughes and Mike Weber’s SALON CONTRA. These invite-only are-you-in-the-know get-togethers attract a cross section of the city’s creative set. After glasses of wine and small talk, the “Contrarians” circle up and tell each other about their creative paths so participants know whom to synergize with later. It was there where I met interior designer Rouzita Vahhabaghai, who, along with sister, and business partner, Bita Vahhabaghai and Yiselle Santos, organize the equally collaborative and arty PECHA KUCHA NIGHT (PKN) series.

The lovely “ita” sisters invited me to present during PKN Vol. 3 at the Czech Embassy. The series began in Japan (Pecha Kucha is Japanese slang for small talk) and involves getting six to ten creative types to discuss their craft as 20 images of their work flash by in 20-second increments on a large screen behind them. I happily indulged in speaking about my painting. So can you – find out more at www.pechakucha.org.

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From Sundance to New York Fashion Week, surviving the Y&GL, and talking Love Letters with Patti Smith.

By Michael M. Clements

Junko Koshino fashion lands at the Kennedy Center (photo by Tony Powell).

“You know you are at fashion week when the bathrooms have skinny mirrors.” This pearl of wisdom came straight from the stylish lips of WL Trend Reporter Yona Park as she and I took in the Sass & Bide Fall Collection during the Super Bowl of fashion: Mercedes-Benz’s Fall Fashion Week in New York, which, incidentally, happened to coincide this year with the real Super Bowl. It doesn’t get any more “metro” than catching a full day of runway shows at Bryant Park and then watching the Giants humble the Patriots from a dive bar in the Lower East Side.

Franco Nuschese was in New York trend spotting as well. The Café Milano and Manfacto men’s clothing line owner was seated behind fellow Italian Ermenegildo Zegna at Zegna’s Fall Collection preview. Men looking to modernize their tuxedo collection should get fitted for Zegna’s latest styles; but be pre-warned – people will notice.

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Missed events, French women who change their mind, and the art of making covers.

By Michael M. Clements

Executive Editor Michael M. Clements takes to the catwalk in Burberry at the MenzFit celebrity fashion show fundraiser.

I’m blocked. I want to write witty things about events I’ve attended, but I can’t. It all started when I read the WL social calendar and realized how many events I’d missed. How do socialites do this? It’s like a full-time job going to all these parties. Okay … block’s over. I’ve decided to talk about all the events I missed. I missed Fight Night. It’s okay, I didn’t have a seat anyway – which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s not exactly an ego boost to sit next to someone you know paid $10,000 for a chair. Plus, I still have the taste of whiskey and cigars in my mouth from last year. I also missed a reception to meet French President Sarkozy at the French residence – wanted to go, but lost the lottery for our one invite; the Washington Performing Arts Society’s fall celebration at the Kennedy Center – Monday nights are hard; the Meridian Ball – Gail Scott had me covered; the Lombardi Gala – had another event; and pretty much the entire C’est Chic! film festival, except for our sponsored opening night party at L2.

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From African hip-hop to the National Opera’s contemporary concoction, new rhythms of the season have us dancing to a different beat.

By Michael M. Clements

WL Insider Michael M. Clements.

It was two – supposedly similar – worlds colliding; but literally and figuratively, two worlds apart. On one side, P Diddy’s entourage, decked out head-to-toe in matching white outfits, accessorized in enough gold jewelry to make a Pharaoh blush, attitudes hidden behind smoky reflective lens. On the other side, Emmanuel Jal, Sudanese child soldier turned international hip-hop star, dressed in a causal tee-shirt, pumas and relaxed jeans; no sunglasses – it was nighttime after all. The soft-spoken Jal had just finished a sound check for his 18th Street Films/WL-sponsored Sept. 20th concert at Ibiza Night Club. As P Diddy, et al rolled up for the Sean John fall fashion show they ignored Jal with cell phones coolly pressed to their ears. They had no idea they had just passed the future of hip-hop. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not crowning Jal “king of hip-hop.” It’s more about the direction the message of the art form is taking. Much like Bob Marley, Jal’s songs are conscious social and political commentaries – minus the gangsta self-aggrandizing. It reminds me of a Chinese proverb: Take a glass jar and filled it half-way with marbles, shake it, and it makes a lot of noise. Take the same jar, fill it to the top with marbles, shake it, and it makes no sound. Get it grasshopper?

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