Che Lovelace at Half Gallery and Kickin' It Old-School at Mars Bar

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Che Lovelace

Last night before the madness that was PAPER's Beautiful People Party I stopped by Half Gallery to say hello to my Trini friend Che Lovelace. Che is an artist, surfer and an all-around awesome guy from Trinadad and Tobago, and I was thrilled to see his very first solo show in New York. His paintings looked great and it's always a treat to have him here. The night before Studio Museum in Harlem's Thelma Golden sat down with Che at 192 Books in Chelsea and talked about his new monograph which unfortunately I missed. Che also runs a free community movie house called StudioFilmClub in Port of Spain with his friend artist Peter Doig. If you ever go to Trinidad -- and you should because it's so beautiful and fun there -- you have to put this on your "things to do" list.

Since I'm talking about my friends' art shows I should also mention the fabulous photo installation at Mars Bar by my friend Rosalie Knox. At the opening on Sunday night, we raised hell with the hardcore regulars of this gnarly legendary watering hole, pre-Sex and the City-style. Hello, New York is officially back! I mean, when was the last time you hung out at Mars Bar? 2002? Actually I was just there on New Year's till 5 a.m. doing Jagger bombs! It's kind of really great to have an art show at the diviest bar in Manhattan -- makes you feel like you're going back to your roots.

Half Gallery, 208 Forsyth St., www.halfgallery.com
Mars Bar, 25 1st Ave., Through May 2.