Real Wedding Spotlight: Drawn Together in Santa Monica, California

For artists Hannah Polskin and her husband Gil Manzuri, a painting not only sparked a love story, but an entire wedding.

“Art has steered my whole life,” says Beverly Hills-based artist Hannah Polskin. “It brought me Gil, so I didn’t mind it driving on the wedding front.”

It was Hannah’s art, after all, that first brought them together. As the world slowed into lockdown in 2020, Gil Manzuri, a business developer for Revolve, discovered one of her paintings on Instagram. An email later, he bought the piece — Gil’s first major art acquisition. The exchange of the painting was a logistical sign of the times. “It was a contactless handoff,” she says. “We never met.”

A year later, both single, Hannah and Gil matched on a dating app. Their first date struck an effortless balance between playfulness and polish, with arcade games at Dave & Buster’s, followed by drinks at Delilah, an upscale cocktail lounge. That set the tone for a relationship defined by humor and ease. “He felt like family from the jump,” Hannah says. Three years later, at sunset on a boat off the coast of Turkey, Gil proposed.

Taking Shape

When it came to wedding planning, Hannah admits she felt out of her element. “I’ve never been the type of girl who had Pinterest boards of what she wanted her wedding day to look like,” she says.

There was one component Hannah was certain about including though: the painting that started it all. She reimagined its abstract, undulating shape into a chuppah, the Jewish structure the couple would exchange vows under. “I’m not a terribly romantic person,” Hannah says, “but it felt poetic to have the shape that brought us together house us on the big day.”

The chuppah dictated the location. Hotel Casa del Mar in Santa Monica, a luxury beachfront hotel that could accommodate her custom-built structure, was an easy choice. “There’s something magical about an evening of partying and celebrating and revelry by the beach,” Hannah says. “It’s the best of what life has to give.”

Hotel Casa del Mar could also house all 165 guests, keeping logistics simple for those who traveled from New York, London, Israel, and around the Northeast. The sunsoaked itinerary began Friday with a Shabbat dinner across the street at Shutters on the Beach, followed by a ceremony on the sand and ballroom reception on Saturday, and wrapped the next day with a pool party at the couple’s home.

The weekend’s mood reflected the couple themselves — elevated but unpretentious, and perhaps a bit wild. “On Sunday, I definitely wanted our guests to feel exhausted and hungover.”

A Perfect Fit

The morning of the wedding, Hannah slipped into a sleek Sarah Seven gown with a dramatic train and corseted bodice. Hannah credits her tailor, Daniela Kurrle, for transforming the structured gown into a silhouette she could dance all night in. “This dress had no business doing that,” Hannah says. “It should have been like trying to swim with your clothes on, but it fit so well.”

From her hotel suite, Hannah watched carpenters assemble the chuppah on the sand below. Ever the artist, she couldn’t resist finessing last-minute details, texting her crew tweaks while in hair and makeup. The wind proved relentless, forcing the team to reinforce the fabric again — then again and again. “When you’re working in the midst of Mother Nature,” she says, “you’re going to get curveballs like that.”

The effort paid off. The sculptural yet ethereal canopy symbolized both the couple’s love story and Jewish tradition, covered above but open on all sides as a nod to life’s ever-shifting nature.

Party Time

Inside Casa del Mar, the ballroom glowed with candlelight illuminating minimalist floral arrangements by Lindsey Cummins, whose restrained approach complemented Hannah’s aesthetic. Even the Shabbat candles held personal meaning; they were prototypes from her own line.

Gil had only two requests: great drinks and even better music. Check and check. Guests sipped on two signature cocktails named after the couple’s nicknames for each other. “The Turtle” featured Casamigos Reposado, soda water, and a slice of orange. “The Turtle No Shell” was a stronger, sodafree version.

Dinner began with a bright Caprese salad of cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil. For guests’ main dish, they chose between miso-glazed cod with bok choy and shiitake mushrooms, red wine–braised short ribs with Yukon Gold potato purée, or a seasonal vegetable risotto. Late-night snacks — cones of French fries and tater tots, plus mini gelato cookie sandwiches in pistachio, chocolate, and stracciatella — kept guests dancing all night long too. Dessert was the true standout though. Guests indulged in a classic vanilla bean cake layered with buttercream and a carrot cake with walnuts and cream cheese frosting, both from The Butter End. Months later, guests are still raving about dessert.

The couple’s entrance song, “Hello” by Dragonette, set the tone for a high-energy evening. “It felt like one big celebration from the second we walked in,” Hannah says. The dance floor closed out on a tender note, with Michael Jackson’s “Will You Be There,” as guests gathered around the couple.

The party then moved upstairs to the couple’s suite. “Everyone was in their black-tie gowns, on the floor huddled around the coffee table and the fireplace,” Hannah recalls.

Lasting Impressions

The celebrations culminated in a three week-long honeymoon that spanned Wimbledon, Sardinia, Saint-Tropez, and a particularly memorable stay in Ibiza. There, the couple stayed at La Torre del Canonigo, a luxury boutique hotel perched atop the fortified medieval village of Dalt Villa, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. “No notes,” Hannah says. “We spoiled ourselves, and it was phenomenal.”

If wedding planning felt foreign, marriage has felt like home. “I didn’t like being a bride,” Hannah admits, “but I love being a wife.” To her, married life is intentional and deeply romantic.

Hannah’s advice to other brides is refreshingly unsentimental. “If the bridal stuff isn’t resonating with you, pick and choose the moments you want to focus on — your bachelorette or your honeymoon,” she says. “The wedding’s the main event, but there are other ways to reclaim yourself.”

For Hannah, that sense of self was woven through every part of the journey, from the painting that first caught Gil’s eye, to the sculptural chuppah that framed their vows, to the creative life they continue to build together. As for that chuppah? She hopes it sees new life one day, maybe at another couple’s wedding, or possibly as a jungle gym for future grandkids.

On the Menu

First Course: Caprese, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, extra virgin olive oil

Mains: Choice between: Miso-glazed cod with bok choy, shiitake mushrooms, green onion, lotus root chip, matsuri rice; Red wine-braised short ribs with yukon gold potato puree, grilled asparagus, roasted root vegetables; Seasonal vegetable risotto with fresh herbs, green peas

Dessert: Vanilla bean cake with vanilla bean buttercream; Carrot cake with walnuts and cream cheese frosting

Late-Night Snacks: French fries and tater tots in a cone; Mini gelato cookie sandwiches: pistachio gelato with orange cookie, chocolate gelato with chocolate chip cookie, stracciatella gelato with oatmeal cookie