Hong Kong was the art centre of attention this weekend, attracting not only billionaires and big collector hot shots, but also Hollywood A-listers who graced the city with the appearance of Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell and Robin Thicke. Owing to the launch of two parallel events last weekend such as amfAR Gala Auction and Liberatum Artistry, the celebrities attending or co-chairing the occasion were also invited to pass through Art Basel to scope some art. What is more, Hong Kong became “party central” on Friday and Saturday evening, showing these VIPs and international collectors what this city’s nightlife has to offer and to, hopefully, blur the amount of money they’ve spent over the past three days. As a result, we had the chance to rub shoulders with the rich and famous, and we can tell you exactly with whom.

Gwyneth Paltrow made a sneaky appearance at Art Basel before hosting the amfAR Gala auction dinner, a fundraiser for AIDS research, on Saturday 14th. The auction helped raise a total of US$2million.

Among the amfAR guests, Paris Hilton, who made quite an entry at Hong Kong airport with her infamous snake printed outfit, also happened to stroll through the art fair, along with Victoria Beckham, who was one of the co-chairs at the Gala. The fashion icon and celebrity collector was spotted at the fair, probably searching for romantic-themed masterpieces or rummaging through the aisles in search for more Tracey Emin neon works (see Recent Acquisitions Made by Celebrity Art Collectors).

Finally, the award-winning actress, Susan Sarandon, honoured us with her presence, initially attending the Liberatum Artistry Gala evening dinner on Sunday 15th, which was held in her honour.  She personally received an award for her outstanding contribution to cinema at The Upper House. Despite attending the fair, she confessed she was not on the hunt for any new acquisitions. She will be handing down her collection of photographs and paintings to her family.

 Claire Bouchara