H'wood Party Girl

Shawn Ehlers/WireImage.com

RSVPs:  Kevin Connolly, Adrian Grenier, Paris Hilton...
When:  Aug. 15
Where:  Uncle Buck's Gallery

"I do art, that's what I do," Brandon Davis tells me at his pal and fellow artist Louis Carreon's showcase. Nearby, Paris Hilton reveals she has painted portraits of her dog Tinkerbell and new Chihuahua Jimmi Hendrix. "I'm just really starting to do my own art," the multitasking heiress says. "I'm painting a lot, using Swarovski crystals, animals and people." 

Has art become the new Hollywood obsession?

Chris Weeks/WireImage.com

Drugs and Darkness Bring Light
It sure seems that way. Tonight, Kevin Connolly is hosting a Showcase for L.A. Artist Louis Carreon's Latest Collection: For the Love of Honey. For the past nine years, Carreon was hooked on Tinseltown nightlife. It caught up with him last year when he was sentenced to a 21-month drug-related prison stint. But he was able to use his hardships to further his artistic vision. "My inspiration is pretty much love and lust: the city, addiction, drugs and broken hearts," Louis tells me. His new collection features paintings filled with bold messages splattered across contrasting canvases of neon pinks, yellows, grays and blacks. Some recurring themes include "Los Angeles Crimes" newspaper lettering and playful bears holding signs that read "dope," "love" and "lust." 

Chris Weeks/WireImage.com

"The bear is symbolic of the kids in Hollywood, my friends," the artist explains. "They just represent something that's cute and beautiful. And then you read deeper into it, and the bears are from the city. They've experienced things. They're experienced bears."

Chris Weeks/WireImage.com

Celebrity Strut
The experienced bears include current and former partyers like Paris and Brandon, of course, as well as Brooke Burns and Lia Sophia-clad Taryn Manning, who worked the catwalk in Carreon's enticing 2003 fashion show amid models carrying forties and smoking cigs (the artist also has a clothing label called Klozhorse). His designs reappear this October during L.A. Fashion Week. So, which celebrity friends will walk? 

Not Kevin Connolly. "Can you see me walking down a runway? No way!" Entourage's E tells me. "I don't walk like that. I'm not a model." It's probably for the best. He's adorable but not exactly on the tall side.

Lens Be Friends
After Paris and I talk art—whodathunkit?—and she tells me she's looking at gated communities in her house hunting (smart move), I shift over to her new friend Adrian Grenier. The two have been inseparable in recent weeks, but Adrian won't give me any deets. Instead, he asks me to be in his documentary.

I turn around and see a small camera crew already filming. "What's your documentary about?" I ask. "You," he replies. As much as I wish there was a Hollywood Party Girl flick, I know he's referring to reporters, so I inquire if he's going to portray my kind in a negative light. "I'm just gathering information, and we'll decide when we edit," he explains. Yikes! I better be on my best behavior.

Chris Weeks/WireImage.com

Snapshots and Spills
Too bad the paparazzi are on their worst behavior. After checking out the art and being introduced to another showgoer, Ricki Lake, Paris, Adrian and Adrian's stylist and assistant Robin Garvick exit the inconspicuous gallery. The paparazzi go nuts as usual, stampeding over one another to get the perfect shot. One young photog named Austin (he's only 14!) gets pushed to the ground in the process. Guess that's one of the hardships of the Biz. Maybe Paris will paint a portrait of him to make things all better.