On Thursday at the Church of St Joseph, 150 of Hugo’s best friends joined together to mourn and celebrate the life of this unique man who touched so much their lives. The Church was beautiful, Father John spoke beautifully and the music and the choir was spectacular. These are the words I wrote for my dear friend:

Last August we took our boat to Indonesia on a family trip. For years, Hugo had wanted us to come, and now that we were there, he was going to make sure that everything was perfect… Hugo style.

He had organized the best guide, the best diving master and the best itinerary. From the moment we landed, he was there waiting for us, with dancers, gamelong and a shower of frangipani… and kept the magic going the entire time. On our beds, we each found boxes of sarongs carefully chosen.  In East Bali, he took the entire Palace of Tirtangannga on a full moon and turned it into an enchanted evening of dances , music, flowers and delicious food… Hugo style!!

He sailed with us to the islands of Samawa, Komodo and Sambawa. He swam and snorkeled, took walks through the villages at sunset and jumped in the waterfalls… he played with little Tassilo, danced with Antonia and Talita and made friends with the 4th generation of my family… Indeed, he had been friends with my mother, myself, my children and now my grandchildren… Hugo style !!

On the last day before we left, we visited him in his house in Batujimbar… the peaceful home, the garden, the little temple…we had lunch on the patio… he was very happy and told me he was having the best summer of his life.
We had been together in Rio in March and there also he had told me he was happy, happy to have rediscovered his native country and be near his family, his 2 brothers Carlos and Tassos, his sisters Diana, Lea, Vera, and all his adored nephews and nieces. He was planning to get an apartment in Rio and divide his time between the 2 places he loved most – Bali and Brazil.

But Hugo was at home everywhere…Pari, New York, London, St Moritz, India, Portugal and Japan. He loved to travel and wherever he went he had friends – famous friends, rich friends, artist friends, talented friends, young friends, children of friends, parents of friends. No one I know had more friends than Hugo… he was a professional friend, he mastered generosity, intimacy, friendship. He was a matchmaker and even though he was not a businessman, he introduced so many to great opportunities and made things happen for them. He had time for the ones he loved and always created a landscape of beauty and harmony…he had a magic wand….Hugo style.

It is hard to believe that we will not see him again, hard to believe he is not walking through that door to go with us to lunch at Bar Pitti, hard to believe we cannot call him on the phone for help as we all did for years!! There is little we can do to heal the pain of his loss, but what we must do is be strong, beautiful, successful and happy… that is how he loved us and how he would want us to be. By living fully every day, by appreciating beauty and by being generous and thankful for all we have…we will honor his life, his memory and his spirit… Hugo style.

What unites us all today is our love for Hugo, our sadness and our desire to keep him always alive in our hearts.

He was very special and we miss him terribly.

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Cindi Leive and Iman

Glamour’s Women of the Year Awards Ceremony is always an unforgettable evening!! Ravishing Cindi Leive, editor in chief of Glamour Magazine, together with a jury, assembles the most remarkable, strongest, most inspirational awardees. This year, extraordinary poet Maya Angelou, First Lady of California Maria Shriver, tennis star Serena Williams, singer Rihanna, designer Stella McCartney, journalists Emma Lee and Laura Ling, philanthropist and adoption advocate Jane Aronson, Google star Marissa Mayer, comedian Amy Poehler, nuclear negotiator Susan Rice and One million signature campaign Iranian representatives were the recipients… They were all magnificent and it made you feel so proud to be a woman! (more…)

The first time I visited Moscow was in 1968 with my father. It was during the Brezhnev years and life there was so different than in the rest of Europe. Our bags were full of chocolates, lipsticks and pantyhose, which made all the people we met so very happy. Twenty years later, I went with my children and even though it was the beginning of Glasnost, it was still another world. Today Moscow is one of the most exciting capitals in the world. Like New York, it has so much energy and joie de vivre and I love it!!

I am staying at the Ritz Carlton, the old Intourist building with a beautiful view on the Kremlin.  A whole group of us are here for the opening of a DVF retrospective at the Manezh Exhibition Hall.

When I land on Tuesday night, one shipment of artwork is still held in customs and we are reminded of the 2 forces of Russia. One side is aggressive, fast and “all is possible”, and one is bureaucratic and everything is “nyet.” Panic is not an option and at the end all arrives and goes well!!  Bill Katz, the ultimate art insider makes it happen with the invaluable help of Luisella, Robert, Marissa, Colleen, Franca, Fariba and Lourdes. I will never thank them enough. It is a non stop excitement for the next 4 days organized by Aizel, my smart and wonderful partner in Moscow.

Visit at the Garage, the new Centre For Contemporary Culture, founded last year by Dasha Zhukova. Situated in one of Russia’s architectural masterpiece, designed by Konstantin Melnikov, I catch the last day of the Biennale curated by Jean Hubert Martin…FANTASTIC!!! (more…)

Sunday noon… I land in Madrid… the sun is shining and the sky is blue. The new airport of Barajas is spectacular and I feel very happy. I am staying at the Palace Hotel, where I am the guest of Telva, the leading fashion magazine in Spain. Every year Telva gives a huge party and two awards, one to a national designer,  and one to an International one. Angel Schlesser and I are the lucky recipients this year.

I decide to go out and enjoy the day. On my way to the Prado, one of my favorite museums in the world, my memory takes me back to when I was 17 and living in Madrid. It was a different Spain then, Franco was in power and the country was very held back compared to the rest of Europe. I had enrolled myself in a Spanish course at the Facultad de Filosofia y Lettras but the country was in turmoil and the University was often closed because of strikes.  At the Prado, I see my favorite, Goya’s El Coloso as well as an exhibition on a lesser known Spanish master, Juan Bautista Maino. I salute Velasquez on the way out and decide to go to the contemporary art Museum of Reina Sofia. Unfortunately it is closed and I choose to walk through the botanical garden before hitting the Thyssen Foundation. On the way there, I walk by singers and mimes…one of them, Neptune, all painted in blue catches my attention. I go back to give him some money… he is totally immobile but he thanks me with his eyes. I feel good…only two blocks to the Thyssen. But by the time I get there my wallet has mysteriously disappeared!! You always hear of pickpockets, but you think it will never happen to you…well, guess what? My cash and my credit cards are gone, but fortunately I am OK!

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Ellen Barkin and Daniel Craig

Do you like serious theatre? Would you like to see 2 major actors, super stars doing an outstanding performance? Then go to the Schoenfield Theatre on Broadway to watch Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman in Steady Rain!! The play about two policemen in Chicago is riveting and poignant!! A fantastic achievement!!