Saniyya Sydney, from the Oscar nominated film King Richard, stops by The Moon Deck display at the 2022 DPA Pre-Oscar Gift Suite.
LOS ANGELES, CA (LA ELEMENTS) 3/31/2022 – It has been two long years since we celebrated live events, so it’s no surprise that when the 2022 Academy Awards announced a fully live show, lots of related parties also returned during Awards Week. That week (March 23-27) saw Hollywood come alive again and brought back a favorite – the DPA Pre-Oscar Gift Suite.
Always a popular gifting lounge created by Nathalie Dubois, this year’s return took place at the Luxe Sunset Hotel on March 25-26, 2022, and drew a big crowd of Oscar winners, 2022 nominees and other very familiar faces.
DPA took over five suites as well as a garden space to present a wide range of brands, including Swiss Nescens cosmeceuticals skin-care gifting and a pop-up facials spa. Fascinatingly, Nescens spokesperson Guilliaume Vanthier practically guaranteed that “what we call the ‘zombie cells’ that we all have, which are dead skin cells that don’t slough off, will be destroyed by our Nescens products, making the skin look younger.” Hooray! Attendees received three key products to try, in advance of this luxurious Swiss line’s release in April 2022.
Actress Natasha Henstridge receives her gift from Nescens.
The Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) also created a very special space for stars (like Oscar winner Viola Davis and her family) to visit. Transforming a luxury suite into a “safari lounge” hosted by Nana Gecaga, the chief executive officer of the KICC, along with James Omosa, Charge d’Affairs of the Consulate General of the Republic of Kenya in Los Angeles, they brought an enticing slice of Kenyan culture, arts and travel to the DPA Lounge.
“We are here to promote the idea that Kenya is more than just the game safaris we are known for,” Gecaga explained. “Did you know we have gorgeous beaches? But we are not only about safaris and beaches, we have many surprises in Kenya.” Gorgeous handmade jewelry, leather goods, sculptural fans and more Kenyan-produced products made the room glow with the spirit of that incomparable African nation. Guests like Viola Davis, 2022 Best Picture nominee “King Richard” star Saniyya Sidney and other top celebrities and influencers received a five-day vacation to a Kenyan beach or on a safari.
There was plenty of other high-end swag to collect at the DPA Lounge, including Pizza Girl’s homemade pasta sauce, Peaches organic skincare products and the easy-to-apply Sparti Scents created by Abby Wallach, a media executive turned entrepreneur, who revealed that she “left the entertainment industry to revolutionize the fragrance world.” Her Sparti Scents are delivered via a “fragrance cooler swivel stick,” and come in scents like “Dance” and “Love.” There were Annick Levesque handbags, Maine Island soaps, beautiful flower art pieces created by Kelley Anderson of Art Botanica and many other gifts to carry home.
Other well-known and up-and-coming faces made the two-day scene, including actors Danny Glover, Natasha Hentsridge, Shaun Toub, Carrie Bernans, Gilles Marini and Jabari Banks. 2022 Oscar nominees on hand included Chris Corbould, Christopher Townsend and James Mather, along with “Summer of Soul” producer Beth Hubbard.
More exclusive trips were also a top prize, with stays at the French Polynesia private island resort called Le Taha’a and Bali’s Soori Bali Hotel given to the select few. And in light of the war between Ukraine and Russia, Dubois created a fundraiser via the Ukrainian Creative Coalition of Hollywood at her gifting suite, where famous faces recorded personal messages of solidarity with the Ukrainian people.
All photography courtesy of Claire Painchaud.
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