Stylish partygoers revel in Miami

Earlier in the week TI touched down for a hot (it was 85 degrees) 24 hrs spin through Fashion 07: Miami Beach Art Photo Expo. Here's the blow by blow of the opening night.

8.07: Pull up to the Surfcomber riding shotgun in the convertible with a gaggle of babbling Euros. Sometimes the dialogue is in Italian, othertimes French and punishingly enough, there is 1 brief episode of Pourteguese. Or is that Spanish. Patrick Demarcheler's agent (I believe his name is Sergio) is nice enough. He's always laughing.That makes me laugh too.Especially when he greets me with a gangsta pound. Aight homie!A three prong spotlight is spinning three lines of light into the Miami night sky. Glamourous!

8.15: The Surfcomber lobby is the base of the tower of Babel I see. More Italian . More French. Is that Dutch I hear? Miami Beach is a EU colony tonight. It's the weak dollar innit. The door dominatrixes are French. They look me up and down like they're about to swat me with the clipboard. I don't have my wrist band on. No-one is allowed to see the preview without the VIP wristband. Someone fetches me a blue wristband. But does it go with my dinner jacket? Naw it doesn't. I tuck it into my inside pocket. The doortrix's eyes dip to scan the label. Balenciaga. She smiles. As best she can. The event's organizer, Francois, is very French. We are introduced. "The Images? What Images?"he queries. "No, no " I explain. "The IMA-GIST!" "The Imagery?" he retorts. I give up. Francois is very chilly. Such icy eyes but what beautifully sculpted hair. Must have taken him hours!

Image for Parfum Serge Lutens

TI's Art Basel Miami dance card is filling up fast. Dec 3rd is marked off for the dinner to celebrate the opening of the Miami Beach Art Photo Expo "In Fashion 07" . Staged in a 30,000 sq foot space the expo runs from Dec 2-9th and is curated by the legendary Marion de Beaupre' . It features the work of photographers Miles Aldridge, Matthew Brookes, Elaine Constantine,Christiane Draffehn, Juan Gatti, Rene Habermacher and Jannis Tsipoulanis, Seb Janiak,Jean Pierre Khazem, David Lachapelle, Serge Lutens, Ali Mahdavi, Jean Baptiste Mondino, Thierry Mugler, Michael James O'Brien, Stephane Sednaoui, David Seidner, Wing Shya, Kanjo Take, Max Vadukul, Willy Vanderperre and Ellen von Unwerth. What we're most excited about is a chance to encounter the work of Lutens. The full on fantasia that his late 60's and 70's work involves looks especially right for now and is ready for the inevitable revival. Plus Thierry Mugler's work with the his fearless vamps posed against monumental architecture is ready to be jacked by some smart young photographer. Jumping on THAT bandwagon, pronto!

In Fashion 07: Signage