Hosted by Michael R. Bloomberg, Bettina Korek, and Hans Ulrich Obrist, and co-hosted by Peggy Gou, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Venus Williams, the legendary Serpentine Summer Party took place on Tuesday 25 June 2024, from 7PM to 10PM in Kensington Gardens: at the 2024 Serpentine Pavilion designed by Minsuk Cho of Mass Studies, and on the grounds of the Serpentine South Gallery.
This year’s Serpentine Summer Party was an artist-led experience that guides guests through Kensington Gardens and the highlights of Serpentine’s dynamic summer programme, bringing the most visionary global patrons of today together with leading voices from the arts, business, technologies, cultural industries, fashion and public sectors from the UK and around the world.
GUESTS IN ATTENDANCE
Leadership: Bettina Korek, CEO, Hans UIrich Obrist, Artistic Director, Serpentine,Justine Simons, Deputy Mayor for Culture and The Creative Industries, Lady Elena Foster and Lord Norman Foster, Michael R Bloomberg, Patricia E. Harris, CEO, Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Jane D. Hartley and more.
Artists and Architects: Yinka Shonibare CBE, Marina Abramovic, Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, Steve McQueen, Holly Herndon and Mat Dryhurst, Alvaro Barrington, Mary McCartney, Eun-Me Ahn, Yinka Ilori, Alex Israel, Rose Wylie, Julian Knxx, Marc Quinn, Es Devlin, Minsuk Cho, Frida Escobedo, Lina Ghotmeh, Sumayya Vally, Ron Arad and more international artists and architects.
VIPs: Venus Williams, Peggy Gou, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Skepta, Jung Jae Lee, Benedict Cumberbatch, Isla Fisher, Minnie Driver, Laurence Fishburne, Spike Lee, Zadie Smith, Joy Crookes, Ed McVey, Bianca Jagger, Celeste, Caroline Polachek, Daphne Guinness, Arlo Parks, Charlotte Tilbury, Mette, Jessie Ware, Soo Joo Park, Eric Nam, Munroe Bergdorf, Annie Tagoe, Edward Enninful and more.
Notable guests: Aditya & Megha Mittal, Aleksandra Artamonovskaja, Camilla Al-Fayed, Dorsia, Fabien Vallérian, Farmacy, Lisa Love, Lugano, Maja Hoffmann, Mar Gin, Marc Lotenberg, Minho Lee, Natasha Wellesley, Nicholas Berggruen, Nicoletta Fiorucci, Rachel Verghis, Ruinart, Sir Guy Weston, Stuart Winston, Sue & Beau Hostetler Wrigley, Suzanne Deal-Booth, Sybil Robson Orr, Tezos Ecosystem, Yassmin Ghandehari, and more.
Fashion designers and squads: Harris Reed attended with guests Jourdan Dunn, Josephine De La Baume, Lola Bute, Maya Jama, Rejina Pyo attended with Eva Langret, David Koma attended with Shygirl and Ed McVey, Charlie Casely-Hayford attended with Ghetts, Chopeva Lowena attended with Rhea Dillion, Dimitra Petsa attended with Tsunaina, Molly Goddard attended with Edie Campbell, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy attended with Cora Corre, Marco Capaldo attended with George Rouy, Nensi Dojaka attended with Alexa Chung, Erdem with Bel Powley, Aaron Esh attended with Kiki Willems, Hannah Weiland-Guinness attended with Pixie Geldof, Ozwald Boateng, Surpiya Lele attended with Kesewa Aboah, and Emilia Wickstead attended with Thomasin McKenzie, Chet Lo and Anna Jewsbury also attended.
Central to the event was the architectural Pavilion designed by Minsuk Cho of Mass Studies. Titled Archipelagic Void, the commission consists of five “islands” designed around an open space, which intertwine with the park’s natural ecology and its temporal conditions. Guests enjoyed an evening of Champagne, cocktails, food, music and special activations in and around the Pavilion, as well as Yinka Shonibare CBE’s exhibition Suspended States in nearby Serpentine South.
Bettina Korek, CEO and Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director, Serpentine said: “We are deeply grateful to all our partners, patrons and artists who took part in this year’s Serpentine Summer Party. Our most important fundraising event of the year centred around Minsuk Cho’s 2024 Pavilion, whose design, in the spirit of connectedness, is a beautiful homage to Serpentine’s original function as a tea house. We were delighted to welcome guests to an iconic evening that balances the simple elegance of a British garden party with the unmatched energy of an artist salon bringing together cultural luminaries from throughout London and around the world.”
Peggy Gou said: “I was honoured to co-host this year’s Serpentine Summer Party. Art for me, whether it’s in the physical form or through music and sound, has the strength to start conversations and to create togetherness, collaboration and change. I admire Bettina Korek’s work as a strong, female leader and figurehead in the art space at Serpentine, spearheading this societal shift to the perception of art in the physical sense. I’m so pleased to see the work of Korean architect Minsuk Cho be brought centre stage in the heart of London this summer.”
Gugu Mbatha-Raw said: “It was an honour to co-host this year’s Serpentine Summer Party, and to be part of this vibrant gathering of cultural luminaries from across disciplines. I have always enjoyed visiting Serpentine; a unique institution, always pushing the boundaries of creativity, and championing artists and culture. As an actor and artist myself, I am proud to be supporting this important event, which raises funds for Serpentine to continue delivering world-class exhibitions and public art to audiences across the globe.”
Venus Williams said: “As an interior designer and avid art lover, I’ve always found Serpentine to be such a unique place to experience art – surrounded by the Kensington gardens in the heart of one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. I’m incredibly honoured to have co-hosted this year’s Serpentine Summer Party for an evening celebrating culture and artistry in all forms. Serpentine and I both share a profound passion for connecting art within our environments, while also aiming to make art easily accessible to all.”
Whilst enjoying a glass of R de Ruinart from the oldest champagne house and patron of contemporary art or Whispering Angel, Côtes de Provence rosé, guests were invited to experience a special dance performance by internationally renowned choreographer, Eun-Me Ahn, and DJ sets by DJ Soulscape, Gilles Peterson, and Más Tiempo.
Guests were further invited to celebrate Judy Chicago’s global participatory project by having their photos taken in front of ‘What If Women Ruled the World?’ Participatory Quilt featuring Nadya Tolokonnikova. Chicago’s work invites viewers to collaborate with the artist and respond to her thought-provoking questions pertaining to global gender equality. The interactive work produced in partnership with DMINTI, provides the unique opportunity for viewers to collaborate with the artist. The proof of participation token is registered on the Tezos blockchain. The work can be experienced at Serpentine North as part of the exhibition, Judy Chicago: Revelations (23 May - 1 September 2024).
The Summer Party included culinary delights by DORSIA - a members-only platform that provides access to some of the most difficult to secure reservations, tables, and invite-only cultural moments around the globe.
Further restaurant partners Spring and Farmacy served a range of multi-sensory edible installations prepared especially for the event. Chef Skye Gyngell of Spring served her exquisite desserts filled with fragrant flavours such as blossom, tea, and coconut, whilst Farmacy delighted the senses with a hyper-seasonal feast of vegetables they grow in their biodynamic garden.
Building from previous recent editions of The Summer Party, this year’s event was attendedby some of the UK’s most innovative, young designers, some of whom invited and dressed their muses and other cultural figures in a spirit of friendship and connection.
COLLABORATORS & SUPPORTERS
Serpentine thanks the following collaborators and supporters for their generous support: BMW, Casa Dragones Tequila, Dorsia, DMINTI, Farmacy, Johnnie Walker Blue Label, MarGin, Nina Ricci, Ruinart, Spring, The London Essence Co., Tezos Ecosystem, Valentino, Whispering Angel, Identity by Zak Group, and those who wish to remain anonymous.
Image credit: Darren Gerrish/Getty
