Barneys beckons; Mapplethorpe remembered

Led by Wednesday's opening of the city's first Barneys, San Francisco is about to get a host of new and expanded retailers, including diamond king De Beers; Prada, and Helmut Lang. The Minneapolis airport toilet stall where Sen. Larry "Wide Stance" Craig was busted for soliciting sex has become a tourist attraction. Edward Mapplethorpe tells New York magazine he was drawn to the creative universe of his famous photographer brother Robert (left), "a world of subversive sex and hard drugs, obsession and ambition, darkness and beauty." Sounds like fun! Even though Edward says he isn't gay! Plus, it takes three hours to style Michael Jackson's "freaky coif,'' says the ever-reliable Page Six.

[Photo: Robert Mapplethorpe in a self-portrait, 1980]

Leading B.A.R.: Karr's sex-change of heart

What I'm reading today in our little weekly:

• TRANSSEXUAL KARR. Creepy-crazy one-time JonBenet Ramsey murder suspect John Mark Karr tells B.A.R. that he had sought a sex-change operation to evade the cops.
• FUR-SURE. The annual Lazy Bear Weekend grabbed $180,000 for charity.
• AIDS IN DA HOUSE. Developers are interesting in building housing for folks with AIDS on two city-owned parking lots in the Castro: one behind the Walgreen's at Castro and 18th, the second behind the Castro Theatre.
• CRIME & PUNISHMENT. Scads of burglaries, including an 18th Street house robbery while the victim was still home.
• OUT THERE. Esteban Sabar Gallery in Oakland is mounting (harr!) bare-naked art in "Full Frontal: a male view of the male figure" from Sept. 7-30.
• KARRNAL KNOWLEDGE. Although No. 1 sucked (harr again!), A Rim with a View Number 2 is a hit; "relish each wisp of corn-silk hair that rings the rosy rectums of the movie's blondes." Gorgeous!

[Drawing: Curious Glance, by Fernando Reyes; charcoal, white chalk on tan BFK Rives paper, 30"x22"; 2007. From "Full Frontal" exhibit]

Make mine a double!

The Liz Taylor of Mexico, Maria Felix, unveiled her art collection at a Christie's auction house bash last week where Village Voice gossi-puss couldn't help noticing the shirtless bartenders (and waiters!) in shiny Aladdin hats.

Why I heart Italy

An image from artist-actor Alessandro Calza's photo essay, Sardenia (2006), which you can watch on his site. Awesome! His BAUER MCDC Supreme (2007) is way-hot, too. And, yup: that's Alessandro!

Separated at birth: Waters vs. Munch

Classic parody queen John Waters and over-parodied classic The Scream, by Edvard Munch. Waters met fans Thursday night in downtown San Francisco at the Rena Bransten Gallery for the opening of an exhibit of his photographs, showing through Aug. 18. Mr. Pencil Mustache often summers in Provincetown along with Andrew Sullivan and other "artsy" confirmed-bachelor types. Wink. Want more on P-town? Provincetown Flicks, in the sidebar, right.

[That's my friend David's idea!]

Hockney, and swimming against the tide

Peter Getting Out of Nick’s Pool, 1966, by David Hockney. Acrylic on canvas, 152 x 152 cms; collection of the Walker Art Gallery. The painting shows an apartment building pool on Larrabee Street in Hollywood. Hockney -- who turns 70 today -- lived there from the summer of 1966 until early 1967. His lover, Peter Schlesinger, a 19-year old painter, is the naked guy climbing out of the water. Hockney's fascination with pools recalls the dark 1968 movie, The Swimmer, starring Burt Lancaster as an executive swimming home via neighbors' pools in a Connecticut suburb.

Accessory alert! An iPhone campout guide

• A. You must have one, even at $600 or more.
• B. It goes on sale one week from today.
• C. It will sell out within hours.
• D. Here's your guide to public bathrooms, cafes and hotels near the Stockton Street Apple Store for those of you starting to bed down on the sidewalk. You crazy gay men!

Farrell's aging; Hirst is selling; Pierce is out

Bad-boy Irish actor Colin Farrell turns 31 today; more Farrell in Castro Confidential's archives here. Plus, more celebrity birthdays here! A diamond-encrusted platinum skull by animal-pickler-turned-artist Damien Hirst goes on sale for $99 million. Frasier star David Hyde Pierce -- so gay-seeming I figured he absolutely positively certainly was straight -- is, in fact, gay. Yoiks! Gotta tweak my gaydar. And Janice "Jurassic supermodel" Dickinson -- connoisseur of humpy male flesh -- wasn't very nice to a pack of paparazzi. Madness!

'Men in Gear' fits like a glove

The hijinks start at 8 tonight when the LONE STAR hosts Men in Gear. Yup: leather/latex pants, vests, shirts, uniforms, jackets, boots, gloves, harnesses, collars, cuffs, armbands, jocks, jeans, cigars. Nope: cologne, deodorant, sweaters, khakis, suits, slacks, dress shirts, polo shirts, tennis shoes, loafers. When: 8 p.m.-midnight. Where: 135 Harrison St., between 9th and 11th. POWERHOUSE. Guys wearing boots and blue jeans get cheap drinks on Macho Night. When: 10 p.m. Where: 1347 Folsom St., between 9th and 10th.

[Artwork: Glove Man by Ted Fusby; watercolor and colored pencil on paper, 14" wide x 18" high; private collection]

Men behaving badly: Wednesday edition

Well, yes: Men behaving badly does have a certain bear-shits-in-woods/Pope's Catholic quality. But it sure provides a good excuse to post photos of cuties like Jake Gyllenhaal (left). Jake, ignoring our fondest wishes that he return to the Brokeback pup tent, insists on dating Reese Witherspoon in a shameless bid to get a step closer to Reese's soon-to-be-ex-hubbie Ryan Phillipe. Raising his cad quotient, Lindsay Lohan's (ex?) "man-meat" Calum Best toasts her return to rehab. Fashionisto Isaac Mizrahi tells New York why he focused on the high and low (Target) in his clothing lines: "When you get old, you figure out you'd better do your own thing or you're going to be miserable. That's just a matter of being honest." Plus, Isaac previews new fashions in a video. Our head spins from all the superlatives: It's fabu! Gorgeous! Devine! Crazy! Huge! Special! Beautiful! Such fun!

Best may be a bust; a 'queer' guy's b-day

Calum Best (left), Lindsay Lohan's "bad-boy-toy,'' is proving he's a dog. (And is he a dead ringer for Jude Law or what?) Interior designer Thom Filicia, one of the "fab five" on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, turns 38 today. Noted: He owns his own New York design firm. Plus, more birthdays here. And Michael Jackson tries blocking an auction of his sex toys.

Who's the hunk with Lagerfeld?

A photo Diane Arbus would appreciate: Karl Lagerfeld (second from left) at last Monday's Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. But no identification on the man candy next to Lagerfeld. [Photo: NYT]

At MOMA: Picasso and American Art

Through Monday, May 28
Picasso and American Art
Left: Femme Assise (Seated Woman), 1927
From the website: Pablo Picasso has had an enormous impact on generations of artists, from his contemporaries to today's artistic senior statesmen. Among those who responded to his work are some of the best-known American artists of the modern era, including Stuart Davis, Willem de Kooning, Arshile Gorky, John Graham, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Jackson Pollock, David Smith, and Max Weber — artists who directly and openly interpreted Picasso's style, appropriated his palette, or used his work as a point of departure. Picasso and American Art assembles nearly 150 pieces by these and other Americans alongside the works that inspired them, offering unprecedented insights into the way Picasso's legacy aesthetically informed a country he never visited and giving viewers a rare context for considering modern masterpieces.

How Italians order dessert

They plead, "I want a dolce.'' No wonder the Italian fashion house is called Dolce & Gabbana. Its founders, former romantic partners Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, like to play together, as this oddly compelling photo essay shows.

Puma races to stay ahead

The German sportswear label worn by lots of gay men may be reaching the limits of growth. Puma today posted a modest 3.8% rise in first-quarter profit and lowered its financial expectations for the rest of the year because of lower sales. Pushing the boundaries of demand, Puma now offers custom designs like the Podio (above). I'd kill to wear Pumas because I love that wrestling-shoe look: thin, sure-footed. But finding shoes for my size-11 feet is always a challenge. (Did I mention I have big feet?)

They shoot lobsters, don't they?

The Male Gaze, a just-opened group show at the powerHouse Arena in New York spotlights a new generation of gay male artists, the New York Times says in a story today that shows once more that the Style section is gayer than pink ink. Guy Trebay also points to a raft of new magazines like Australia's They Shoot Homos Don't They? (See issue no. 3 here.)

Above: That mesmerizing piece is Lobsters, by James Bidgood. Watercolors (Jay Garvin) early 1960s. Modern digital c-print; 20x16 sheet; 15x15 image; 3 of 25 signed, dated and numbered on verso. [Source: The Male Gaze]

Dinner at Firefly, with a comic introduction

For a second Saturday in a row, we had an excellent dinner at Firefly. Sparky ate white bean soup with hamand mustard greens ($7.50). I had Mayfair salad with gem lettuce, gold beets, blue cheese, croutons and famous garlic anchovy dressing ($8.50). And we both chose the same entree: grilled New York steak with brandy mustard sauce, roasted banana fingerling potatoes and delta asparagus ($25.00).

Our friendly and very handsome bartender, Kraig, showed us his latest comic, Robot Friend, which I'm looking forward to reading. You can see more of Kraig's work at his The Cinema Assassins site.

What: Firefly. Directions: 4288 24th St. 821-7652. Open at 5:30 p.m. seven days.

Tommy troubles

Black consumers are a big market for Tommy Hilfiger, which explains why the designer went on Oprah this week to refute an ugly urban legend that recently resurfaced. An e-mail 10 years ago claimed Hilfiger was booted off Oprah after admitting he designed only for "upper-class white people." Turns out Hilfiger never said that, and hadn't been on Oprah until this week.

How San Francisco defines camp

The city's Design Within Reach is collaborating with Airstream on a trailer for the mobile young modernist. Huh? "Rock climbers, surfers, dot-com guys," Christopher Deam, the San Francisco architect in charge of the project, tells the New York Times. The trailer has kitchen cabinets lined with green plastic laminate, a Nelson Ball Clock and a dinette (doubles as a bed) with cushions upholstered in striped fabric by fashion designer Paul Smith. At 16 feet long, it also has a separate bedroom, a flat-screen TV, an antenna and phone jacks. Price: $49,066. When: early June. Where: Design Within Reach and Airstream.

Scion can't camouflage gay appeal

Check out that livery. Picture us, tooling around the Castro on a rare hot Saturday in camy-print cargo shorts. I loved its brother, the xB, when it first showed up in San Francisco. But Sparky wouldn't bite when we car shopped a few years back. Now, Scion is really pushing guerrilla marketing in its new appeal to edgy young dudes.