Art dealer Kenny Goss.

Growing up around Dallas, Kenny Goss had his only real exposure to art through free prints his mother would bring home from the grocery store. It wasn't until the now-46-year-old former sporting goods company director met pop megastar George Michael 10 years ago--they've been together ever since--that Goss started to hit all the art world grace notes. Now he's opened Goss Gallery in Dallas with a major showing of David LaChapelle photography.

Why David LaChapelle for the first show?

I knew that Dallas would love it [and it has] never seen anything like that before, t love what he does with celebrity culture, how he creates these amazing images around the celebrities. You can look at it forever and see something different every time.

His art is so over-the-top, both aesthetically and, you know, with the topless woman snorting diamonds. So is Dallas shockable?

It's really weird: Some of the biggest collectors in the world are in Dallas. I think Texas gets labeled with being much more provincial and conservative than it necessarily is, particularly in the art world. We haven't had protesters or anything. As a matter of fact, it's all been really positive. What I've heard from lots of people is "This is so cool; this is just what Dallas needs."

George Michael came to the gallery opening, and I'm sure that was a big draw, but are you afraid of forever being known as "George Michael's boyfriend"?

The reason I decided to do it in Dallas was because in Dallas most people know that I've been a successful businessman. Now, obviously there's cachet to [being with him], I'm not kidding myself, but you still have to have good stuff on the walls, and you have to have stuff that people want to buy. People are not going to walk in and buy art just because it's George Michael's boyfriend's gallery. In London--I live in London most of the time--I really believe that English people would have said "Who do you think you are? This pop stars boyfriend opening a gallery?"