by Sandhurst Miggins and Mike Bandy

 

This week, Sandhurst and Mike had the privilege to attend the finale viewing party for Bravo's Work of Art, The Next Great Artist. The event was held at the esteemed Brooklyn Museum and was attended by numerous Bravolebrities, including the countess LuAnn de Lesseps, from The Real Housewives of New York as well as Watch What's Happening host Andy Cohen. Here are their stories from the party!

 

Sandhurst:

12 of the 14 competing artists from the show were in attendance and let's just say there are many stereotypes of what a passionate artist should look and act like and they were all present in that room. Hell, one of the artists had all of them in him but I digress. It was hard to get a sense of who had actually won because all three seemed to be in great spirits. I attributed some of that to the alcohol but still, this is not my first go around at one of these finale shindigs. Someone usually spills the beans before show time. It was evident by the way they spoke about each other that these three were extremely appreciative of not only the opportunity they had just experienced but also the level of ability demonstrated by their competition.

 

Having the opportunity to interview creator and producer of the show, Sarah Jessica Parker, was definitely the highlight of my evening. And to all the women out there: she wore a green cocktail dress with a short, slightly flared skirt. The ensemble had a golden brown print throughout the outfit and her heels had to be at least 5 inches tall. Maybe I might leave fashion commenting to someone else. For the men, however, this woman is hot. Up close and personal, she is hot, nothing more to say... well, besides MILF. SJP was extremely proud of the show. The idea came to her because of her upbringing, which allowed her to appreciate art. "Back when I was growing up, we didn't have a tv so going to the museums were our form of entertainment." She was proud of the work that the artists had done throughout the competition, adding that the credibility of the show depended on the talent of the artists. Her favorite challenge was actually the first challenge where she felt like she got the chance to learn more about who these individuals really were.

 

 

Though the experience can be summed up, by an intoxicated Ryan as "worse than rehab", others, such as Abdi, told us it was the greatest artistic experience he had had so far. Obviously, the winner's opinion of the show is always different than that of someone who was eliminated in the middle. That's just a fact. Abdi's victory was greatly appreciated by all the finalists and a true sense of camaraderie could be felt from the three. Abdi's mother told me prior to the decision being aired, that though she was proud of how far he had gone in the competition, it was expected. "Abdi had always demonstrated a passion for art. He would fall asleep at late hours in the night in his studio. He had a deep commitment to his work at a really young age and I encouraged him to pursue it," she told me.

 

It was truly an excellent night and a great finale to the season. Mike and I had an amazing time celebrating the success of the show with these creative individuals and here's hoping Bravo that brings it back for a second season.

 

Mike:

Sandhurst and I hung out the whole night but I broke away a few times to speak with an artist when I saw that they were free...

First up was Peregrine, who dazzled in a sparkly pink sequined dress. Peregrine couldn't have been nicer as she spoke to me about how her experiences on the show were so great, and that there was a lot more drama that we didn't get to see. Sometimes, some of the artists just needed a break. In fact, Peregrine said, "In the studio, there was a little corner. If anyone got too far over the edge and was losing it, we'd send them to the corner!"

 

I also spoke to Judith, who was wearing a shirt depicting her backwards "Pride and Prejudice" design from her last challenge on the show. Judith remembered that I had interviewed her, and posed for a picture with me. When I asked her who she was rooting for, she said, "Based strictly on artistic ability...Miles."

Nicole, who looked an absolute dream in a beige cocktail dress, told me that she was rooting for Peregrine, because, "It's all about reppin' for the ladies!" We also bonded over the fact that we're both from Connecticut.

Meeting Abdi was very cool; he's so high energy in person! He brought his mom to the finale, and I had a chance to speak with her alone, and she told me how proud of Abdi she is. She was a really sweet woman. Not long after I spoke to her, I ran into Jaclyn, who looked simply amazing in a form-fitting, ruffled blue dress. Who was Jaclyn rooting for? "Definitely Peregrine!"

Jaime-Lynn was sugar-sweet in person and I really enjoyed talking with her; I told her that I absolutely adored her last piece, "Turn it Up", which was a steering wheel surrounded by figures of herself dancing. I thought it was a great piece and I really related to it, and she graciously thanked me and said, "I loved that piece too!!" I asked Jaime who she was rooting for in the finale, and she hesitated and said, "Oh, this is so hard! I gotta say I'm half Peregrine, half Abdi." Then the conversation took an unexpected turn when Jaime asked me, "Who are YOU rooting for?" She definitely surprised me, but I told her. We had a very pleasant conversation!

The party had a few notable celebrities in attendance; one of these was executive producer Sarah Jessica Parker, whom I had the opportunity to meet. Sandhurst asked her a few questions, specifically, "How do you feel about your baby? Are you proud of the way the show turned out?" SJP said that she was extremely impressed with the raw talent of the artists and that she was very happy with the way things turned out. Sandhurst asked her if she had a favorite artist, and she laughed, shook her head and said, "Nope! Absolutely not! They're all great!"

After meeting Sarah Jessica Parker, I turned to the right and there was Countess Luann de Lesseps, from Bravo's hit show, The Real Housewives of NYC. I spoke to her very briefly, told her that I was a very big fan, and she shook my hand and smiled. She was very polite, just as you'd expect. I asked her who she was rooting for in the finale, and she said matter-of-factly, "Nicole's love interest!"

While watching the finale, all of the artists and judges and producers of the show sat in the first two rows, and at the very end, when Abdi was announced as the winner, he got up to give a speech amid thunderous applause. Abdi thanked everyone involved with the show, and expressed how happy he was with winning.

Overall, the evening was a rousing success!

 

 

Follow Sandhurst at twitter.com/sandhursttacama

 

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