Despina Stokou's Seven Rules for Crashing a Gallery Dinner

Artist Despina Stokou, who lived in Berlin for years and now resides in Los Angeles, has published a set of seven golden rules for gaining entry to an exclusive gallery dinner without an invitation. The advice begins with a simple directive: be young, attractive and well dressed, then walk straight in. A second tactic involves attaching oneself to a man in a white suit who resembles a mafioso, on the assumption that he will never be stopped. For international dinners with strict guest-list checks, Stokou recommends dropping a name connected to the Berlin Kunst-Werke, an institution well known enough to impress but whose names nobody knows how to pronounce. Another approach targets the number three in the hierarchy of hosts, a person who is uninformed yet eager to exercise power. Befriending the B-team — kitchen staff, doormen and organizers — is also advised. Finally, she suggests researching the secret location, arriving slightly late and claiming your helicopter was unable to land. Stokou notes that crashing dinners is harder in Los Angeles, where Hollywood stars such as Ben Stiller are on the guest list, whereas Berlin offers only Lars Eidinger, but at least him.