Ok, OK so it took me a few days (possibly weeks) to write the actual reviews of the three fairs I saw last month. I've been busy to say the least but that is no excuse. In fact it just makes it more difficult for me to actually dig through my notes and recount the scribble in the margin of a book, "Great color...(misspelled name) really doing (word I can't read)." So I decided to just dive in and write a quick response so I can get on with other things and make some upcoming promises I may not keep.
Scope NYC was held at The Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center. One of the main reasons I went there was because I work at Lincoln Center and I spent the better part of my morning answering questions about where the fair was, how much it cost and what the hours were. After the third or fourth person I decided to take a walk over and see it for myself. The lay out was manageable, roughly three large white tents made up the fair and within it, walls and hallways were erected to segment the different galleries. It was very much the white cube (or white tent) but the feeling was immediately fresh and inviting. I was expecting a snootier affair but found a very open and inviting space. It was also cool because I almost walked into Chuck Close on the way in. He is a very nice man.
A few things about Scope interested me. One is that the majority of NY galleries were smaller, very interesting spaces from Brooklyn. Secondly there were mostly international galleries exhibiting and the entire fair really did a wonderful job of NOT being a Chelsea pissing contest.
Jack The Pelican Presents was the first space I saw after saying, "Oh sorry..." to Mr. Close. I was drawn in at first by Scott Wolfson's wall sculpture "Mirror Mountain" from 2007. Wolfson creates "pictures" which are also relief sculpture. The spaces and points of entry allow for endless investigative work on the part of the viewer.
Curator's Office, Washington D.C had Peter Fox's drippy, glob paintings that looked like wax, or was it oil? It didn't really matter to me as I investigated the coagulated surface and field of color it created when you pulled back.
Now I am just breezing through this: Cladia Herrera's works on paper of watercolor and ink were simply beautiful and Gallery Baer from Dresden had some wonderful paintings by Stefan Lenke. Lenke's Abstract, geometric fields of saturated color with large breaks of black and grey neutrals evoke Neuman, with an 80's aesthetic. Think The Sublime meets Tron.
Dean Project from L.I.C, NY was apparently..."FUN!" according to my notes. Here another Hunter Student, Kristine Moran had smallish landscape paintings. I have always admired her handling of the medium (oil paint). Her marks are fresh and alive, her images obscure and unpredictable. All in all she makes good paintings. Carlos Carcano (apologies if that is spelled wrong) had a sort of negated abstractions. His unsaturated fields of color are blocked over spray painted, quicker almost "tags" of color and mark. Abstract painting over graffiti.
Rare, NY showed some wonderful abstract landscapes by an artist who I did not catch the name of. He infused a bit of Diebenkorn with De Konning and a palette that was lush with color. Painterly and smart, these landscapes made my afternoon.
That was quick, my notes were scribbles but in a word Scope was fresh and very entertaining. The younger, international feel came through and really set the bar for the other two shows I saw that weekend.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Armory
NYC Art Fairs: LAArt, Scope NYC, and The Red Dot Fair
March 29-31, 2008
This past weekend I set out on a mission. I was going to tackle the Armory Show at Pier 94. I will reveal an embarrassing confession. I am a painter, living and working in New York, finishing my MFA…and I have never been to the Armory. I go to Chelsea, I see shows, and I always make it to the Whitney Biannual and even got to Venice this past summer for the Biennale. So what was the problem? Clearly it was not a lack of motivation or interest.
To be perfectly honest I have always seen the art fairs in NY and all over as nothing more then seasonal malls. Fancy tents or hotels filled with all those “art goers” who schmooze, and sip their white wine, unconcerned with the actual art, indifferent to the actual artists. It was a bitter chip on my shoulder mostly formed by opening nights in Chelsea where I left nauseated by crowds, market driven work and one too many drinks. I had naively assumed there was no way an art fair; a literal place of commerce could be any different, it had to be worse.
This past weekend determined to see the Armory Show (arguably the biggest and most prestigious fair) I found myself instead wondering happily through three smaller fairs: LAArt, Scope and The Red Dot. The reason for my diversion from the Armory was simple. The person I was going to see the show with had gone already, it was getting late in the day and with a simple, “Eh, it’s not all that, meet me at LAArt,” my decision was made.
The amount of work I saw at these three fairs, the interesting people I spoke with, the gallery directors, press and fellow artists I met are to vast to fill in this write up. It confirms a long held idea of mine that avoiding the big bang for the smaller intimate affair is always a good idea. I will keep it as brief as I can and try to break it up between the three fairs in the following posts. Lets just say most of my preconceived notions were replaced by a real excitement to make work and get involved in the functioning “art world.” However, like anything else, some of the sham of a travesty of the boozy art world still seeped through.
March 29-31, 2008
This past weekend I set out on a mission. I was going to tackle the Armory Show at Pier 94. I will reveal an embarrassing confession. I am a painter, living and working in New York, finishing my MFA…and I have never been to the Armory. I go to Chelsea, I see shows, and I always make it to the Whitney Biannual and even got to Venice this past summer for the Biennale. So what was the problem? Clearly it was not a lack of motivation or interest.
To be perfectly honest I have always seen the art fairs in NY and all over as nothing more then seasonal malls. Fancy tents or hotels filled with all those “art goers” who schmooze, and sip their white wine, unconcerned with the actual art, indifferent to the actual artists. It was a bitter chip on my shoulder mostly formed by opening nights in Chelsea where I left nauseated by crowds, market driven work and one too many drinks. I had naively assumed there was no way an art fair; a literal place of commerce could be any different, it had to be worse.
This past weekend determined to see the Armory Show (arguably the biggest and most prestigious fair) I found myself instead wondering happily through three smaller fairs: LAArt, Scope and The Red Dot. The reason for my diversion from the Armory was simple. The person I was going to see the show with had gone already, it was getting late in the day and with a simple, “Eh, it’s not all that, meet me at LAArt,” my decision was made.
The amount of work I saw at these three fairs, the interesting people I spoke with, the gallery directors, press and fellow artists I met are to vast to fill in this write up. It confirms a long held idea of mine that avoiding the big bang for the smaller intimate affair is always a good idea. I will keep it as brief as I can and try to break it up between the three fairs in the following posts. Lets just say most of my preconceived notions were replaced by a real excitement to make work and get involved in the functioning “art world.” However, like anything else, some of the sham of a travesty of the boozy art world still seeped through.
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