Though it may seem that Armory Week and Frieze Week get all the action, the reality is that there is never a dull moment in the New York art world. From the East Side to the West Side (and, in the summer, out on Long Island’s East End), there’s always something happening at the city’s museums, galleries, and various event spaces. This week was no exception.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art‘s Young Members Party 
The crowd at the Met on July 7 may not have been famous—although Instagram sensations Jiajia Fei, director of digital for the Jewish Museum, and Kimberly Drew, the Met’s associate online community producer, were on hand—but they were young, beautiful, and fashionably dressed for the museum’s annual gathering of members between the ages of 21 and 35.

Guests enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres in the lobby, where the information desk and ticket counters were transformed into makeshift bars in honor of the occasion. There, if they avoided the lure of “Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology,” this summer’s Costume Institute exhibition, and the roof, where Cornelia Parker‘s stunning, Hitchcock-inspired garden commission Transitional Object (PsychoBarn) loomed large as the sun set on the miraculously rain free evening, they were treated to a fabulous performance by the band Phony Ppl.

Guests at the Met: Young Members Party 2016. Courtesy of Sam Deitch/BFA.

Guests viewing the “Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology” exhibition at the Met: Young Members Party 2016. Courtesy of Sam Deitch/BFA.

Phony Ppl performance at the Met: Young Members Party 2016. Courtesy of Sam Deitch/BFA.

Brittany Haller and Christina Anderson-McDonald at the Met: Young Members Party 2016. Courtesy of Sam Deitch/BFA.

Opening Reception for “Water | Bodies,” at Southampton Arts Center, presented by New York Academy of Art
The ocean is never far from view on Long Island’s East End, making the Southampton Arts Center’s water-themed summer group show—featuring the likes of Ross Bleckner and David Salle, as well as emerging artists—especially appropriate to the venue.

For the official opening festivities on July 2, guests included actress-turned-curator Brooke Shields, writer Bob Colacello, and artist Alyssa Monks. The show was also celebrated the night before, with a dinner at the Sag Harbor home of Steven Gambrel and James Anderson, attended by designer Donna Karan, actress-turned-fashion mogul Mary-Kate Olsen and her husband Olivier Sarkozy, and FLAG Art Foundation director Stephanie Roach, among others.

Also on hand were the exhibition’s curators, artist Eric Fischl and Academy president David Kratz. The works, which depict natural and man-made bodies of water, “tap into our longing for immersion and merging that reveal our desire to be cleansed,” said Fischl in a statement.

Eric Fischl at the opening reception for “Water|Bodies” at Southampton Arts Center. Courtesy of photographer Jared Siskin, © Patrick McMullan.

Alyssa Monks at the opening reception for “Water|Bodies” at Southampton Arts Center. Courtesy of photographer Jared Siskin, © Patrick McMullan.

Eric Fischl, Brooke Shields, David Kratz, Simone Levinson, and Bob Colacello at the opening reception for “Water|Bodies” at Southampton Arts Center. Courtesy of photographer Jared Siskin, © Patrick McMullan.

Art Southampton VIP Preview at Nova’s Ark Project
The action continued in the Hamptons on July 7, which saw the VIP opening of not one but two art fairs, with many art lovers stopping at both Art Southhampton and Market Art + Design at the Bridgehampton Museum.

Shields was once again in attendance, having been tapped as a “special guest curator” by New York Academy of Art for their nature-themed booth. Adding to the celebrity flavor was Shark Tank‘s Kevin O’Leary, who was on hand to sell his photography, which helps to raise money for Perry J. Cohen Foundation, honoring the son of fair founder Nick Korniloff and his wife Pamela Cohen, who was lost at sea last summer.

Brooke Shields, Nick Korniloff, and Kevin O’Leary at the opening of Art Southampton. Courtesy of Annie Watt and Steve Eichner.

Kevin Berlin at the opening of Art Southampton. Courtesy of Annie Watt and Steve Eichner.

Jason Lyon and Bridgette Morphew at the opening of Art Southampton. Courtesy of Annie Watt and Steve Eichner.

BHQFU Listening Club: A Night of Sound, Art, Music, and Performance at the Penthouse at the Standard, East Village
The Penthouse at the Standard, with its roof deck’s stunning views of Lower Manhattan, set the stage for a truly bizarre performance number from artist Jaimie Warren. In a statement, the artist described the piece as “a weird time-warp mash-up” performed by “a person with mediocre talent who is really giving it their all, backed up by some amazing friends who are willing to go bonkers with me.”

The offbeat night of performance, hosted by the Bruce High Quality Foundation University, saw DJ George Costanza spinning an eclectic mix of tunes. Other highlights included thought-provoking experimental poetry from Yanyi Luo and Benjamin Santiago‘s Evangelical-inspired interactive performance.

Jaimie Warren performs at the BHQFU Listening Club: A Night of Sound, Art, Music, and Performance at the Penthouse at the Standard, East Village. Courtesy of Mari Kon.

Guests at the BHQFU Listening Club: A Night of Sound, Art, Music, and Performance at the Penthouse at the Standard, East Village. Courtesy of Mari Kon.

Guests at the BHQFU Listening Club: A Night of Sound, Art, Music, and Performance at the Penthouse at the Standard, East Village. Courtesy of Mari Kon.

The view at the BHQFU Listening Club: A Night of Sound, Art, Music, and Performance at the Penthouse at the Standard, East Village. Courtesy of Mari Kon.

The Love Notes Project at Fig 19
In response to the tragic mass shooting at Pulse, a gay Latin nightclub in Orlando, artist Zoe Buckman and cultural programmer Jae Joseph teamed up on a fundraising event to support the families of those killed or injured in the attack.

Members of the art and fashion communities in attendance included designer Charles Youssef, models Rebecca Brosnan and Desmond Sam, and Harper’s Bazaar senior digital editor Chrissy Rutherford. The event also benefited the Love is Louder foundation, founded by actress Brittany Snow, the Jed Foundation, and MTV, to help teenagers deal with “bullying, negative self-image, discrimination, loneliness and depression.”

Chrissy Rutherford, Zoe Buckman, and Jae Joseph at the Love Notes Project cocktail fundraising event. Courtesy of photographer Elliott Brown and the Love Notes Project.

Desmond Sam and Rebecca Brosnan at the Love Notes Project cocktail fundraising event. Courtesy of photographer Elliott Brown and the Love Notes Project.

Charles Youssef at the Love Notes Project cocktail fundraising event. Courtesy of photographer Elliott Brown and the Love Notes Project.