Tony Podesta the superlobbyist who loves modern "art"
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Married, With Art
"You've got to be pretty secure to have an eight-foot-tall naked man in your living room in Washington, D.C.," Heather says of her husband's choice. What Heather suggests as a badge of her mate's confidence is a highly intentional statement. After all, Tony's job is to make an impression. Besides, when the piece isn't generating blushes, it's generating conversation.
"At political events, there's an inevitable awkwardness," former Clinton administration official Sally Katzen said at a Women's Campaign Fund dinner at the Podestas' home this summer. "The art is an ice-breaker. It puts people at ease."
Not always. Folks attending a house tour in the Lake Barcroft neighborhood in Falls Church earlier this year got an eyeful when they walked into a bedroom at the Podesta residence hung with multiple color pictures by Katy Grannan, a photographer known for documentary-style pictures of naked teenagers in their parents' suburban homes.
"They were horrified," Heather recalls, a grin spreading across her face.
If Tony and Heather enjoy in-your-face art, they also reward their artists. The Podestas are eager to assist those they've earmarked as promising, and donate time and resources to the cause.
During last year's Venice Biennale, they threw parties night after night, renting out their favorite restaurant and packing it with artists and a gallerist or two. Here in Washington, they've hosted art parties with Patricia Puccini, Cathy de Monchaux, Anna Gaskell, Frank Thiel, Annee Olofsson, Nikki Lee and others. Curators from the Hirshhorn Museum and Corcoran Gallery of Art, top Washington collectors and the city's best dealers regularly show up. Podesta parties are where connections are made.
"I see lobbying as getting information in the hands of people who are making decisions so they can make more informed decisions," Tony says. "We do that a lot with museums."
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During last year's Venice Biennale, they threw parties night after night, renting out their favorite restaurant and packing it with artists and a gallerist or two.
Do we know which restaurant? Anyone here speaks italian? I don't know anything about Venice. Judging by the photos this Venice Biennale looks like an expo of the shittiest ugliest modern art you can imagine.