Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Risky Business.

Chelsea may be the epicenter of the art scene, but the Lower East Side (LES) and Chinatown areas of NYC have gained a reputation as the risk takers who needed more freedom. This week I offer you a chance to get your fix in LES/ Chinatown. Check out the gallery hop trail below:  

Chris Norris, Chuck Yuen, Daniel Davidson, Ernest Conception, Garyt Shiflett, Jenny Kendler, Rob Lee "Daniel Davidson: Fat Fingers and Mundus Incognita (Group Show)" at Mulherin + Pollard
Chinatown/LES: 187 Chrystie street, 6-9pm

Kelsey Bennett "Black Velvet: The Godfather of Soul" at Christopher Henry Gallery
Chinatown/LES: 127 Elizabeth street, 7-10pm

Get a nice dose of photography by Kelsey Bennett of the infamous James Brown impersonator, Black Velvet.

Carlos Noronha Feio, Kai-Oi Jay Yung, Mary Temple, Michael Mandiberg, Rinat Kotler, Yevgeniy Fiks "Image Wars" curated by Miguel Amado at Henry Street Settlement, Abrons Arts Center
Chinatown/LES: 466 Grand street, 6-8pm

Deb Sokolow "Notes on Denver International Airport and the New World Order" curated by Miguel Amado at Henry Street Settlement, Abrons Arts Center
Chinatown/LES: 466 Grand street, 6-8pm

View the unveiling of Deb Sokolow's new body of work that investigates the New World Order Headquarters bunker below the Denver International Airport. 

Preview: Akbar Padamsee, F.N. Souza, M.F. Husain, Ram Kumar, S.H. Raza "POP - Progressive on Paper" at Aicon Gallery 4 Street: 35 Great Jones street, please RSVP: newyork@aicongallery.com or 212.725.6092, 6-9pm

Performance: Chelsea Knight "Frame" curated by Miguel Amado at Henry Street Settlement, Abrons Arts Center
Chinatown/LES: 466 Grand street, 6-8pm

Where would art be without some good ole' fashioned political controversy? Should be eyebrow- raising!

Panel Discussion: Catherine Howe, Colette Robbins, Helen O'Leary, Micah Ganske, Vincent Desiderio "The View from the Cill Rialaig" a roundtable discussion at Lesley Heller (Workspace)
Chinatown/LES: 54 Orchard street, 7pm

Cill Rialaig is an artist colony in Ireland. I am curious to know about the current trends they are sparking these days.

Book launch: Paola Ferrario "19 Pictures 22 recipes" at Sue Scott Gallery
Chinatown/LES: 1 Rivington street, please rsvp to: info@suescottgallery.com, 6:30-8pm

Listen to the author as she discusses her book on blending meditation with food and photography, while enjoying some treats prepared by the writer herself.

Monday, July 18, 2011

HIGH-light

HIGH-light, Thursday, July 14

Now that you have the 12 Steps to Gallery Hopping and where to get your quick fix each week, it only seems fitting to offer you a HIGH-light of last week's gallery hop. 

Last week's first of many stops for my quick fix was Under African Skies at Tria Gallery which featured the works of Delphine Diallo, Lloyd Toone and Ezra Wube. Upon arrival, a tribal band played music of the African lands, setting the ambiance of the exhibition.  As I listened to the eclectic sounds of the band, I took notice of a life-size mixed media work by Delphine Diallo (in collaboration with Sidi VS Leghead Calabo) from her Empire of Illusion series.   
Drawing off of the author and journalist, Chris Hedges' book Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle, she senses "perfection is an illusion" and presents the viewer with a chance to draw them into the trueness of society's blurred reality.  The question of real versus artificial, came into play when Sidi and Diallo affixed painted expressions upon the model and mannaquin during a live performance that took place some months back.  Later Diallo painted the silver and gold frame with a pure automatism (writing/ painting without thinking) practice, utilized by the Dadaists throughout the Turn of the Century, to navigate herself around the question of reality and the image of beauty. 
Not only did the work stop me in my tracks but the actual artist herself exudes a breath-taking attitude of positive energy. Definitely an artist worth tracking. 

By Delphine Diallo and Sidi VS LegHead

 "Money is love because it means you have the chance to give back."
-Quoted by Diallo during the opening when I inquired about a dollar bill paper-clipped to the top of the work.


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Stayed-tuned... One HIGH-light will be featured weekly from my gallery hopping extravaganzas. 

Music, performances, talks with the creators of the featured art, let's not forget the wine and of course, the reason for it all... ART, ART, ART! - How could you not be addicted?!



Wednesday, July 13, 2011

A Quick Fix.

Now that your all aware of the 12 Steps, here is your quick fix into the art world.  I have decided to start you off with the greatest supplier of art - Chelsea.  Below is a listing of art openings taking place Thursday, July 14th in Chelsea that I think will satisfy those thirsty eyes.  
Keeping in mind the time management format I mentioned in my previous post, I listed the openings according to time and location. FYI, the summer is considered to be the slower months of the art world - so expect many more listings come fall time.


1. "Rude and Reckless: Punk/Post-Punk Graphics, 1976-82" at Steven Kasher Gallery
23 street: 521 W 23 street, 6-9pm

Ever wonder who influenced all the punk rockers? Come to this exhibition to find out! 

2. Delphine Diallo, Ezra Wube, Lloyd Toone "Under African Skies" at Tria Gallery
25 street: 531 W 25 street, 6-8pm

Keep an eye out for Diallo's culturally rich photographs of self discovery in a world of diversity. 

3.  Joachim 'YoYo' Friedrich, Joshua Abelow, Matt Connolly "Can I Get A Witness?" curated by Dakotah Savage, Jashin Friedrich, Tisch Abelow at Art Blog Art Blog
26 street: 508 W 26 street, floor 11, 6-9pm

The name alone has me intrigued. I'll be a witness. 

4. Photography: Anna VanMatre, Carl McGrady, Carla Berger, Denise Fulton, Janice Panaro, Jennifer Deppe Parker, Joni Rose, Kenneth, Kenneth rst Vick, Matthew Derezinski, Milhone Tosta, Richard Lon Rowland, Rosemary Connor, Scott Finckler, Stephen Barnwell, Timothy Bulone "Chelsea Biennial Art Exhibition 2011" curated by Myriam Rotzetter at PaulaBarr
26 street: 526 W 26 street, suite 9G, 6-8pm

For those hungry folk who need a big fill - here's where it's at. Although it's a curated event, it's a biennial - which means no overall theme will be present. Basically, you will see an array of imagery. 

5. Abraham Storer, Alex Arzt, Ilene Sunshine, Jonathan Ehrenberg, Josh Peters, KK Kozik, Megan Cump, Megan Foster, Mike Calway-Fagen, Susan Bricker, Tyler Matthew Oyer "Cabin Fever" at Mixed Greens
26 street: 531 W 26 street, 6-9pm


Humor with a twist. Seems promising! 

6. Arne Arnejorg, Dannielle Tegeder, Jesse Hayes, Kati Schenk, Nadia Lovinescu, Pierre Denis Moreau, Richard Coleman, Vo Nyuyan Thu "Silver Bullet organized by Dannielle Tegeder" at Priska C. Juschka Fine Art
27 street: 547 W 27 street, floor 2, 6-9pm

If you run out of time, the gallery's very own, Dannielle Tegeder will be offering a walk-through and a Q & A of the "Silver Bullet" exhibition on Thursday July 28th at 7 p.m.

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Just in case the gallery hopping is too big a dosage for you...

Escape the early evening and listen to the the magical sound of the Guacharaca by the musical collective, Frente Cumbiero, in the architecturally forward design of the Museum of Modern Art. You'll even get to see some art (performance and art - that's a double dose)!

Performance: "MoMA Nights with Frente Cumbiero" at MoMA
53 street: 11 W 53 street, 5:30-8:45pm

If the art isn't enough...

Listen to an art talk about the Jack of all trades, Buckminster Fuller and the guy who made chairs out of bubble wrap, Eli Levenstein. 

Artist Talk: Buckminster Fuller, Eli Levenstein "Ebb" at Meulensteen
22 street: 511 W 22 street, 6:30pm,

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Next post will feature some eye candy!




Tuesday, July 12, 2011

The 12 Steps of Gallery Hopping

First off, for those of you who are not aware of what 'Gallery Hopping' is...

Every week the bustling City of New York (my Artopia) area holds various art exhibitions with a grand opening night. It is on this night that random galleries/ art institutions/ artist alternatives unveil the artist(s) works that will be featured for about the duration of one month.
The blockbuster night takes place predominantly on Thursdays around 6-9 p.m. all through out NYC. (However, keep in mind for those Artoholic folks, one can find an art opening in NYC on just about every night of the week!) 
So revel in the plethora of culture that NYC has to offer and participate in what I refer to as 'Gallery Hopping', where one can drink a complimentary glass of wine (or two or three...), while conversing about art.

Now, on to the 12 Steps of Gallery Hopping...

1. Often those that join me on a the gallery hop, ask the simple questions - what do I wear?
If your worrying about what to wear - it's New York, eh em, Artopia! A suit, a dress, a t-shirt and jeans, pink, blond or purple hair, you can get away with anything.  Remember, this is your chance to go wild - it's art, the skies the limit!

2. Choose a section.
The problem with gallery hopping in NYC on a Thursday night with only a few allotted hours, is how do you see it all? The answer, impossible! The trick, pick a section of NYC and hit up as many art openings as possible. See the list below:

Downtown
Chinatown/LES
SoHo
Chelsea
Uptown
Brooklyn/Williamsburg
Queens

(Caution, see number 5).

3. Make a 'Must See' list.
Once you choose your section of NY, compile a 'must see' list of all the art openings that you might find of interest.
Some may ask me, "how do I find out about these openings?" Although I will post every week my own list of 'must see' exhibitions, each individual has their own taste.  There are various sites that list art openings where you can click on the link to get a press release that will discuss the concept of the exhibition. (My favorite is artcards.cc)

4. Realize NY is busy. Not only is there car traffic but also pedestrian traffic, as well!
Since you only have a short amount of time to hit up your 'must sees', time management is a must when getting to your desired area of NYC.

5. Don't just see the art works, absorbs them!
Even though you want to hit up all your 'must sees', you want to be sure you actually remember what you see. (Especially so you can join me in some art talk on my blog to go over our gallery hopping extravaganzas!) So again, time management is a must. If your going to see five shows in the course of two hours, allow for about 24 minutes in each space.

6. Upon entering the art space grab a press release (usually on the front desk). Give it a quick once over - no need to get too much in depth - sometimes I tend to take the press release after I have viewed the exhibition - I like to let the art works speak for themselves - especially, curated shows (an exhibition with a conceptual theme, usually with two or more featured artists' works).

7. Look, don't touch!
Unless its an interactive piece, don't touch, graze, poke, or caress the art work! Definitely, a taboo in the art world.

8. Observe, absorb and possibly discuss with the fellow Artoholics around you.
Self explanatory.

7. Stay and discuss or move along.
Just because you thought the chosen exhibition "might" be of interest doesn't mean it will turn out that way. That's okay, now you have the opportunity to hit up some spaces that did not make it on the list.

8. If their not on my 'must see' list, how do I find more?
Here is a perfect opportunity to engage with the fellow Artoholics. Ask them what's on their 'must see' list. Many have something on theirs' that you may have missed.

9. If your the shy type.
Stand outside the space and look around - I guarantee a crowd has formed outside an art space, either down the block, across the street, around the corner or somewhere near by that's most likely an art opening.  When all else fails, follow the crowd.

10. Engage in art talk.
Sometimes the art works gain new and diverse meanings when speaking to fellow Artoholics. Its a wonderful way to gain various perceptions on how the art work might be viewed. Remember, there are no rights or wrongs in the art world.

11. After observing, absorbing, and discussing conjure up your own perception behind the concept of the art works you viewed throughout the course of your gallery hop.

12. Join me on my blog, ARTOHOLICS AWARENESS, where we discuss everyday, 24/7 under 'ART TALK'!