Bob Colacello was still a graduate student at Columbia when he wrote a review of Andy Warhol’s 1970 film, Trash, for The Village Voice, calling it a “great Roman Catholic masterpiece.” The line caught Warhol’s eye. He hired Colacello to write for his fledgling magazine, Interview, and before long made him executive editor—a role that placed him at the center of a glittering downtown world. “I wrote an article and suddenly I was at the top of Mount Everest,” he tells us.

Since leaving Interview in 1983, he has remained a fixture in the worlds of art, society, and letters—whether profiling Balthus and Liza Minnelli for Vanity Fair, writing books on Warhol and the Reagans, or advising collectors through his work at Vito Schnabel Gallery. When he’s not in Manhattan, he can often be found in Southampton, where he is the associate director of Peter Marino’s Art Foundation. Here, he shares his favorite places to eat, shop, and see in the area.

Peter Marino Art Foundation

Peter Marino’s private museum presents new exhibitions every summer, drawn from his collection and consistently of the highest quality. The programming is always strong, from Renaissance bronzes and works by Anselm Kiefer and Georg Baselitz to this summer’s exhibitions of work by Betty Parsons and Carla Accardi—under-appreciated women artists of the 1960s and 1970s—as well as Y.Z. Kami, the highly respected Iranian painter in exile, and Robert Nava, the young, quasi-abstract artist who was in residence at the Watermill Center two summers ago. (petermarinoartfoundation.org)

The Watermill Center

The Watermill Center has been one of my favorite places since Robert Wilson founded it as an experimental laboratory for performance and art in 1992. I’ve been involved from the beginning and, alongside Katharine Rayner, Carol Mack, and Virginia Coleman, helped start the annual gala, which draws people from all over the art world, both international and local. (watermillcenter.org)

Aerin

Aerin Lauder’s shop always has unique and glamorous gifts, from Murano crystal vases to rattan everything. (aerin.com)

Sant Ambroeus Southampton

I’m a Sant Ambroeus addict—I go to the ones on Madison Avenue, in SoHo, the West Village, and Palm Beach—but I especially love the Southampton location. (santambroeus.com)

Handvaerk

A great shop with wonderful polo shirts that are cut just right in exceptionally nice fabrics. (handvaerk.com)

The Monogram Shop

My favorite shop in East Hampton. I get my notepads monogrammed there with “B.C.,” and they also have beautiful gifts. It feels like one of the last old-line East Hampton stores. (themonogramshop.com)

Lulu Kitchen & Bar

One of my favorite places to eat in Sag Harbor. Casual and delicious. (luluseathampton.com)

Suki ZUki

They have the best sushi and dim sum. And there’s always an easy-on-the-eyes young crowd.

Tripoli Gallery

Tripoli Patterson curates excellent group shows that mix established art-world figures with very young, emerging artists. The exhibitions are always beautifully hung and thoughtfully themed. (tripoligallery.com)

L’Épicuriste

A wonderful gourmet shop in Bridgehampton, with everything from rarefied exotic herbs to hand-picked local produce. (lepicuriste.com)

And a few old Southampton standbys …

Hildreth’s, for home goods; Herrick’s Hardware; Fellingham’s, the classic sports bar; and Shippy’s, for wiener schnitzel and other German specialties. (hildreths.com; herrickhardware.com; fellinghamsrestaurant.com; shippys.com)