As guests arrived at the East Hampton home of art dealer Gordon VeneKlasen and polo player and equestrian entrepreneur Adrian Pia, they were handed cocktails and encouraged to partake in the one thing Hamptons regulars do better than those almost anywhere else: linger outdoors. Before sitting down for a sumptuous lobster feast, small groups drifted across the property’s sweeping lawn, beneath towering trees, and toward the water, catching up in the soft light before sunset.
The hosts had gathered friends from across the art world to help welcome Sarah and Austin Harrelson, as they celebrated breaking ground on a new Hamptons home. With bounteous cuisine and poolside conversation to match, the guest list balanced artists, collectors, patrons, and entrepreneurs, all arriving in their summer best (that is, billowy linens and laid-back finesse).
The Locale: A long wooden table sat beneath a canopy of mature trees, dressed tactfully in pale linens, striped napkins, amber-colored glassware, and arrangements of sunflowers tucked into bud vases. Chrome mushroom lamps punctuated the expanse, while string lights overhead waited until dusk to illuminate, and join the décor. The lesson? Let the landscape provide the drama, and keep everything else as simple as can be.
The Scene: Guests spent nearly as much time wandering the lush grounds as they did eating. Conversations unfolded while looking out across the water from the fire pit, from beneath willow branches, or beside clusters of Adirondack chairs facing the bay. Rather than rushing everyone to dinner, the evening embraced that distinctly countryside luxury: having nowhere else to be.
Food & Drink: Summer classics arrived family-style and without unnecessary embellishment. Platters of bright-red lobster were joined by bowls of fingerling potatoes and sweet corn on the cob, celebrating the season’s regional bounty. Dessert followed the same philosophy, with raspberry and strawberry tarts making their way around the table long after the sun had disappeared.
The Crowd: Art and culture heavyweights across patronage, museum development, and fine craft joined the evening, including patrons Paul and Trudy Cejas, Virginia Lieberman, Tiffany Markofsky Speyer and Andrew Speyer, Giorgio Spanu and Nancy Olnick, Shelley and Phil Fox Aarons, Allison Berg, and Sandy Brant; artist Barbara Kruger; advisor Carol Saper; Toteme founders Karl Lindemann and Elin Kling; and entrepreneurs Steve Ells and Tariq Dixon.
Cause for FOMO: As daylight gave way to evening, lanterns flickered to life and string lights transformed the terrace into a suave outdoor dining room. Plates were passed from guest to guest, conversations stretched across the length of the table, and no one seemed eager to call it a night (in such good company and ambiance, why bother?). The best Hamptons dinners, it turns out, aren’t only built around elaborate entertainment—they simply create enough room for memory-making against a landscape with gravitas.
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