Julian Schnabel, Ascendant

Last night was sweet revenge for Julian Schnabel. The portly painter, who fell way out of art-world favor in the nineties but is now roaringly back in, presided — tanned, in purple pajamas — over a packed opening of his “Navigation� series of drawings just hours after he was nominated for a Directors Guild of America award for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. We’d tell you if the art at Sperone Westwater Gallery — abstract oil paintings over vintage maps — was any good, but the few hundred people wearing black, plus Al Pacino, blocked anything but glimpses. “You can’t see the works,� moaned dealer Angela Westwater, still happy at the crush of crowds. Jeff Koons confabbed in the corner with Interview publisher and art-flipper Peter Brant, until Jeffrey Deitch cut in. We heard rumors of Ben Gazzara and met Lisa Dennison, late of Guggenheim and now of Sotheby’s, on her way in.

Off-center, a smiling Schnabel introduced Ross Bleckner to friends and signed catalogues like a rock star granting groupies autographs. “Thank you, thank you very much,� he repeated often, accepting congratulations on both the artworks and the DGA nod. “What was your name again?� he asked someone, who turned out to be powerhouse New York art collector Ranbir Singh. Apparently Singh won’t be starring in Schneighbors anytime soon. —Alexandra Peers