At the end of April, Jules and I teamed up with Allison Storr & Co. and embarked on our long journey to a tiny art town in far west Texas to install the décor for the birthday party weekend extravaganza of one of one of our favorite clients. Each spring, he throws himself an outrageous birthday bash with one goal: to outdo last year’s! By all accounts, the Marfa birthday was one for the record books.
Guests had received an invitation in the form of a bound book inviting them on a ”Journey Down the Rabbit Hole,” and providing little more information than where to meet and what to pack. On the last Friday in April, 150 guests flew blindly on a chartered flight from San Francisco featuring a dj and bar, with no knowledge of their destination. Upon landing in TX, they boarded a fleet of party buses and made the three-hour trek to Marfa and a weekend of fantasy as outlined in the custom passport they each received.
Friday’s welcome party at Galleri Urbane allowed guests to acclimate to the town’s wonderfully earthy, minimalist vibe and slow pace while feasting on delicious cuisine from the famed Food Shark.
Saturday began with a brunch at Ballroom Marfa that was a feast for the eyes a la Jennifer Rubell. From there, guests spent the afternoon at Padre’s creating imaginative headpieces to wear to that evening’s Mad Hatter festivities.
A tour of Judd’s famous Chinati Foundation, and a stark dinner in a hangar-like hall was the perfect juxtaposition to the riot of color we had in store at the after party.
Referencing the fanciful and bizarre imagery of Alice in Wonderland, our design at Liz Lambert’s El Cosmico played on light, scale and context to create a truly trippy sensory experience.
In the vast black desert landscape of Marfa, vibrant blue, green, and white up-lighting on the property’s trees created an ethereal scene amid the existing yurts, teepee and vintage airstream trailers.
A flock of hot pink flamingos welcomed guests to the main house, which we “carpeted” with grass and lit only with primary-colored church candles and psychedelic window projections by VJ Culture. Whimsical touches like croquet, a candy wall, and a swarm of jewel-toned butterflies in the bathroom, along with the genius stylings of our celebrity dj Scumfrog, transformed the space into a separate reality.
As guests wandered the property, they came upon a Mad Hatter tea party in a yurt that we transformed with black and white checkerboard floor tiles and fabric walls. Clocks, mirrors and a miniature table and chairs set a truly unexpected scene for guests to sip tea and toddies.
Further out in the field, our 30’ teepee seemed to float above the desert, entirely wrapped in moving projection by the brilliant VJ Culture. Inside, the 70-s inspired hookah lounge we created with pillows, ottomons, Moroccan tray tables and brightly colored hookahs quickly became guests' favorite late-night spot.
Throughout the weekend, Jules and I heard one word repeated more often than any other, and we have to agree. “Epic” is the only way to describe it!
xo C.
photography Clay Austin Photography
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