Visitors are encouraged to make themselves at home at Chelsea exhibit (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
7Eleven Gallery
169 Tenth Ave. at 20th St.
Through Sunday, June 6 (closed Monday)
Admission: free
www.7elevengallery.com
exhibition slideshow
Back in 2008, Friends Seminary graduates Sabrina Blaichman, Caroline Copley, and Genevieve Hudson-Price opened 7Eleven Gallery, so named not only because it was located at 711 Washington St. but because of the low-rent convenience store its name evokes. The three friends have since curated several shows at other temporary spaces, the latest being “Make Yourself at Home,” a charming and fun exhibit that has taken over a Chelsea garage on Tenth Ave. While much of New York has left town this Memorial Day weekend, art lovers can have a field day at the show, walking from room to room, taking seats in specially designed chairs and couches, turning on unusual radios and tape players, and relaxing in a small garden. In the bedroom, David Deutsch has installed a different kind of water bed, alongside a Scott Burton table, a Scott Healy mirror, and a Tom Sachs turtle lamp. In the bathroom, someone appears to be using Steven Spretnjak’s shower installation. The office is decorated with five mixed-media pieces by Joe Gaffney, a desk by Dustin Yellin, an unusual pair of shelves by Casey Neistat, and a light-projection drawing by Zilla Leutenegger that shows a woman hard at work. In the living room, visitors can lie down on Kwangho Lee’s knit rubber cord couch while watching Michael Smith’s short video or listening to Thomas Beale’s rather unique stereo cabinet. Other highlights include the maids quarters, a pantry with Johanna Landsheidt’s lovely “Hausfrau” C-print, a kids room designed by Carlton DeWoody, a music room featuring strange instruments by Shelby Gaines, a garden where Alex Rickard’s “Four Header Picknicker” keeps muttering to himself, dining room tables by Mary Heilmann and Richard Tuttle, fly and helicopter wallpaper by Francesco Simeti and Rob Wynne, respectively, a light sphere by Leo Villareal, glassed-in fairy-tale fantasies by Meghan Boody (who also made the awesome table of photographs behind tiny doors), and Max Lamb’s tall, black “Shelter,” which you can climb up inside for a different kind of view of the exhibition. (Be sure to lean against the back as you negotiate the somewhat treacherous footholds.) There is also home work by Chris Beeston, Nick Doyle, William Stone, R. M. Fischer, Steve Keister, and many other artists. For those New Yorkers who find themselves at home this week, checking out “Make Yourself at Home” is a great way to take a break, at least for a few hours. The exhibit ends Sunday, June 6, with an all-day party featuring live music by Gaines; visitors are strongly encouraged to bring some beer and have a blast at this home away from home.