this week in art

URS FISCHER: BIG CLAY #4

Urs Fischer’s “Big Clay #4” rises in Midtown (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Seagram Building
375 Park Ave. between 52nd & 53rd Sts.
Through September 1, free
www.gagosian.com
big clay #4 slideshow

Four years ago, Zurich-born, New York-based artist Urs Fischer installed “Untitled (Lamp/Bear),” a twenty-three-foot-tall, nearly twenty-ton cuddly yellow teddy bear wearing a working lamp for a hat on the plaza in front of Mies van der Rohe’s Seagram Building on Park Ave.; the piece sold at auction that summer for more than $6.8 million. Fischer has now returned to that triumphant location with “Big Clay #4,” a forty-two-and-a-half-foot-tall aluminum sculpture of a piece of squeezed clay, complete with the artist’s fingerprints. When the piece was being installed, a printout of plans left near construction materials on the plaza showed the ultimate sculpture (actually for “Big Clay #3”) in multiple colors, reminiscent of Jeff Koons’s “Play-Doh” from his recent Whitney retrospective. But alas, the colors were just to help identify which section went where; the final sculpture is plain silver, twisted metal rising like the Midtown skyscrapers surrounding it, though not quite as orderly. Fischer, who has worked with such materials as bread, wax, and vegetables, here goes back to the very source, a small lump of clay that he squeezed, scanned, digitally enlarged, and now has cast for all to see but not touch.

FRIEZE ART FAIR 2015

Participants paint Jonathan Horowitz’s “100 Dots” at Frieze (photo by twi-ny/ees)

FRIEZE ART FAIR
Randall’s Island Park
May 14-17, $28-$109
friezenewyork.com

The ferry, the crowds, the food, and the fashion may all seem familiar and as well done as ever at Frieze, but what’s new under the big white tent? Well, Gavin Brown’s Enterprise got a lot of press because of Jonathan Horowitz’s participatory project, “700 Dots,” which enlisted early attendees’ minds, hearts, hands, and Instagram feeds by providing them with brushes, black acrylic paint, a white square, a $20 check, and lots of helpful support for painting a perfect eight-inch circle. The circles became part of Horowitz’s project, which actually consists of seven sets of ten-by-ten grids of 100 dots, two of which had sold for $100,000 a piece by Thursday. Single-artist stands captured most of our attention, and the Frame section, for galleries less than eight years old showing solo exhibitions, felt particularly strong. In fact, the Stand Prize, a $15,000 award sponsored by Champagne Pommery and given by a panel of distinguished judges, went to a Frame gallery for the revelatory Martha Araújo show at Galeria Jaqueline Martins (São Paulo), focusing on Araújo’s body-based performative practice in Brazil from the 1970s through the present, little known to date.

Gallerists prepare a performance of Kris Lemsalu’s “Whole Alone 2” at Temnikova & Kasela, Frieze New York 2015 (photo by twi-ny/ees)

Also in Frame, as fairgoers arrived just after eleven on Thursday morning, gallerists at Temnikova & Kasela (Tallinn, Estonia) prepared Kris Lemsalu’s “Whole Alone 2,” a sculptural installation and performance that featured a well-manicured woman under an intricately enameled and rhinestone-bedazzled tortoiseshell, while London’s Supplement Gallery showed Philomene Pirecki’s lovely and more subtly nontraditional painting, comprising old paintings processed into supports for new, and sculptures made of layers of images of previous works, processed as photographs of digital screen images and overlaid with transparencies of water droplets. The latest medium seems, somewhat bewilderingly, to be ceramics, as artists as diverse as Lucio Fontana, Milena Muzquiz, Takuro Kuwata, and Dan McCarthy all displayed glazed clay pieces, some quite beautiful, such as Fontana’s “Dolphins” and “Piatto-Battaglia,” some less so, like the scary yellow glazed smiley Face Pots by McCarthy.

MAD. SQ. ART: EXPLAINING PUBLIC ART

Jaume Plensa’s “Echo” is a prime example of the innovative public art program in Madison Square Park (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

One Madison Ave. at 23rd St., twelfth floor
Monday, May 18, free with advance RSVP, 9:00 am
www.madisonsquarepark.org

One of our favorite places to experience public art is in Madison Square Park, where the Mad. Sq. Art program has featured site-specific works by Antony Gormley, Alison Saar, Roxy Paine, Rachel Feinstein, Leo Villareal, Shannon Plumb, Jim Campbell, and so many others over the years. On May 18, the park will host a morning symposium, “Explaining Public Art,” in the One Madison Ave. building, starting with a welcome from Madison Square Park Conservancy board chairman David Berliner, executive director Keats Myer, and Parks Department director of art & antiquities Jonathan Kuhn, followed by an introduction by senior curator Brooke Kamin Rappaport. Beginning at 9:15, eight Mad. Sq. Art participants will make presentations: Richard Deacon, Orly Genger, Paula Hayes, Mel Kendrick, Jaume Plensa, Jessica Stockholder, Ursula von Rydingsvard, and Teresita Fernández, whose new installation, “Fata Morgana,” is being installed right now for a June 1 opening. At 10:30, there will be three panel discussions, one on “Site” with Bill Fontana and Charles Long, moderated by Ariella Budick; a second on “Medium,” with Sandra Gibson, Luis Recoder, and Villareal, moderated by Phong Bui; and a third on “Public,” with Feinstein, Plumb, Bill Beirne, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, and Jacco Olivier, moderated by Robin Cembalest. The symposium concludes with a keynote conversation between Bloomberg Philanthropies arts program head Kate D. Levin and Ford Foundation president Darren Walker. Admission is free, but advance RSVP, is required. New York City just wouldn’t be the same with public art, so this should be a fascinating way to gain insight into its creation and development.

WIKIPEDIA EDIT-A-THON: SELECTIONS FROM THE GUGGENHEIM COLLECTION

Attendees of the inaugural Guggathon edit new Wikipedia entries last October (photo by Kris McKay © 2014 Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York)

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
1071 Fifth Ave. at 89th St.
Tuesday, May 19, free with advance registration, 3:00 – 7:00
212-423-3587
www.guggenheim.org

Ever look at a Wikipedia page and want to make changes to an entry but didn’t know if you were allowed to or how to do it? On May 19 from 3:00 to 7:00, the Guggenheim is hosting its second Wikipedia Edit-a thon, as the uptown institution donates one hundred images to the online encyclopedia and invites the general public to help flesh out the entries, either at the museum or remotely. Among the images that will become part of Wikipedia Commons are works by Edgar Degas, Paul Klee, Vincent Van Gogh, and others. The Guggenheim’s inaugural Wikipedia Edit-a-thon was held last October, dedicated to museum architecture. Tuesday’s Guggathon begins with a welcome address from Guggenheim curatorial assistant Natalia Lauricella and remarks from Wikimedia NYC president Richard Knipel, who will then lead a training session for registered attendees. Then the hands-on editing — participants must bring their own laptops and power cords — takes place from 4:15 to 5:45, followed by a review of the results. At 6:00, gallery educator Lewis Kachur will give a private tour of the Thannhauser Collection.

A SECRET AFFAIR: SELECTIONS FROM THE FUHRMAN FAMILY COLLECTION

Ron Mueck’s ultra-realistic “Spooning Couple” is part of “A Secret Affair” at FLAG (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

The FLAG Art Foundation
545 West 25th St. between Ninth & Tenth Aves.
Wednesday through Saturday through May 16, free, 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
212-206-0220
flagartfoundation.org

The name of the current exhibit at the FLAG Art Foundation, “A Secret Affair,” conjures thoughts of clandestine coupling. Indeed, the show, which continues through May 16, features works that explore, both as physical objects and conceptual ideas, the notion of pairs, of the double, built around what senior curator Heather Pesanti refers to in her catalog essay, “The Subversive Body,” as “meditations on the most primal and basic emotional need in life: that of human connection.” Spread across two floors of the Chelsea gallery, “A Secret Affair: Selections from the Fuhrman Family Collection” consists primarily of sculptures, along with several C-prints, that are either partnered within themselves or with another piece, by the same or a different artist. The subjects in Ron Mueck’s ultra-realistic but miniature “Two Women,” a pair of older women in heavy coats standing together but looking away, might recall fondly, or jealously, the nearby “Spooning Couple,” in which a partially naked man and woman spoon each other on a hard surface representing a bed. Meanwhile, not far away, Subodh Gupta offers a counterpart, “Spooning,” a sculpture of two large-scale stainless-steel spoons one on top of the other. In Juan Muñoz’s “Two Laughing at Each Other,” a pair of men sit in chairs halfway up a wall, not far from Maurizio Cattelan’s “Frank and Jamie,” two life-size wax figures of New York City policemen standing on their heads. In Louise Bourgeois’s “Couple,” a naked and armless man and woman, in pink fabric, face each other in a vitrine, belly to belly, while Yinka Shonibare’s “Girl Girl Ballerina” depicts a pair of headless female figures wearing colorfully patterned fabrics, hiding guns behind their backs. Gillian Wearing’s lifelike “Olia,” a topless model in jeans, finds its counterpoint in Marc Quinn’s “Sphinx (Fortuna),” a painted bronze sculpture of Kate Moss in a seemingly impossible pose. And Thomas Schütte’s patinated bronze and steel busts, “Wicht (4)” and “Wicht (7),” are on plinths next to each other, a pair of mysterious, already fading figures.

Fuhrman Family Collection exhibition focuses on doubling and human connection (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Even the single pieces in the exhibition, curated by Louis Grachos, deal with pairs. “I decided that the exhibition would focus on interrelated themes concerning the body and the figure, as well as coupling and conversation,” Grachos explains in his catalog foreword. In Charles Ray’s “Light from the Left,” the artist offers flowers to a woman, trying to make a connection. In Katharana Fritsch’s “Oktopus,” an orange cephalopod mollusc holds aloft a faceless human figure in black in one of its tentacles. Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s 1995 untitled work comprises two silver-plated brass rings flat against a wall, touching each other, evoking the magician’s trick as well as the prize one can win on a merry-go-round. Anish Kapoor’s “Blood Solid,” a red balloon-like sculpture that resembles a huge drop of blood, invites viewers to see their reflection in it, their own double. There are also works by Matthew Barney, Kiki Smith, Robert Gober, Jim Lambie, David Hammons, and Jim Hodges that provide yet more insight on the theme. In conjunction with Frieze week’s Chelsea Night, Hodges, whose “picturing: my heart” dual skulls and “First Light (Beginning of the End)” mirrored glass pieces are on display at FLAG, will be at the gallery on May 16 at 5:00 for a special closing conversation with FLAG founder Glenn Fuhrman, who owns the collection with his wife, Amanda.

FRIEZE ART FAIR WEEK 2015

The art world will descend on Randall’s Island for the Frieze Art Fair this week (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

FRIEZE ART FAIR
Randall’s Island Park
May 14-17, $28-$109
friezenewyork.com

The giant white tents of the Frieze Art Fair will cover Randall’s Island once again for four days in May, promising crowds of eager patrons and onlookers both provocative, astonishing, world-class, expensive art and a group of often delightful, sometimes mystifying, occasionally participatory projects, as well as superlative people-watching and classy eats. Those looking to acquire museum-level works can check out the booths of Marian Goodman, which features the work of Giuseppe Penone, a member of the Italian Arte Povera group; or Paul Kasmin, who has works by Sigmar Polke, Iván Navarro, Jules Olitski, and Laylah Ali on its temporary walls. Matthew Marks will show lots of Nan Goldin and Paul Sietsema; Cheim & Read has Ghada Amer, Louise Bourgeois, and Lynda Benglis; Yoko Ono is at Galerie Lelong; and fans of German painting can choose from Martin Eder, David Schnell, and Melora Kuhn at Eigen + Art. With more than two hundred galleries, Frieze can be overwhelming, but there’s an app to download here and sustenance provided by high-end dining-scene stalwarts Frankie’s Sputino, Milk Bar, Prime Meats, and Roberta’s, among others.

Performance art and an outdoor sculpture garden are part of annual Frieze fair (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Performance projects and an outdoor sculpture garden are part of annual Frieze Art Fair (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

We enjoy the Frieze projects immensely; you can see our video with Marie Lorenz here, as we exited the fair in a rather unique way. This year, there seems to be a theme; two projects boast mazelike layouts and a third is highlighted by a hidden subterranean chamber. Japanese-born Aki Sasamoto makes his maze into a sort of personality test and multiple-choice questionnaire via a series of rooms and doors (shades of Door Number Two and Let’s Make a Deal, perhaps?) while the Flux-Labyrinth reconceives George Maciunas’s 1975 Fluxus work as a participatory set of narrow corridors and mysterious door handles. Korakrit Arunanondchai’s massage chairs and Pia Camil’s free fabric giveaways add to fairgoers’ fun. Los Angeles-based artist Samara Golden’s secret room beneath the fair reveals the working underbelly of pillars, electric cables, and air-conditioning vents — vents that we fervently hope work very well as the enormous crowds descend on this, one of twi-ny’s all-time favorite New York art fairs. Below are some of the special programs at Frieze, as well as information about the other fairs in town this week.

Thursday, May 14
Frieze Talks: ‘Some may like a soft Brazilian singer,’ with Christian Jankowski, featuring the music of Caetano Veloso, 4:00

Friday, May 15
‘Aesthetics’ of ‘Female’ ‘Attractiveness,’ with Casey Jane Ellison, Grace Dunham, Reina Gossett, Karley Sciortino, and Leilah Weinraub, 12 noon

Saturday, May 16
‘Ask Jerry,’ with Jerry Saltz, 12 noon

Sunday, May 17
Paul McCarthy & Leigh Ledare in conversation with Chrissie Iles, 12 midday

COLLECTIVE DESIGN FAIR
Skylight Clarkson Sq.
550 Washington St.
May 13-17, $15-$25
collectivedesignfair.com

Saturday, May 16
“Witness to the Future: Vladimir Kagan and Michael Boodro in Conversation,” 2:30

Sunday, May 17
“Among Friends: The Collaborative Practice and Ongoing Influence of Isamu Noguchi,” 1:00

NADA NEW YORK 2015
Basketball City, 299 South St. at the East River
May 14-17, free
newartdealers.org

Thursday, May 14
“Tachyon Path,” a musical piece composed by Jay Israelson, 6:00

Friday, May 15
Regina Rex presents “Selections from Sports Closet,” a performance by Alina Tenser, 1:00 & 5:00

Sunday, May 17
“On Connectivity,” a discussion with artists from the New Museum’s 2015 Triennial: “Surround Audience,” 3:00

ART MIAMI NEW YORK
Pier 94, 12th Ave. at 55th St.
May 14-17, $15-$25 (multiday pass $55)
www.artmiaminewyork.com

Friday, May 15
Artist Spotlight: “The Diamond,” with Iftah Geva and Gal Goldner, 1:00

Saturday, May 16
“Bad Collector — A Primer on What Not to Do,” with Karen Boyer, Albina De Meio, James Kober, and Samuel Pugatch, 2:00

Book Signing with Acclaimed Photographer & Stylist Marisol, Post-Modern Booth #B19, 3:00 – 6:00

Sunday, May 17
Artist Spotlight: Alexander Zakharov — Exploring New Media Art,” 1:00

SELECT
Center 548, 548 West 22nd St. St.
May 14-17, $10-$20 (multiday pass $25)
www.select-fair.com

Saturday, May 16
“Freedom of Press?” with Lori Cole, Christopher Howard, Aruna D’Souza, and Colleen Asper, moderated by Dushko Petrovich, Select Lounge, third floor, 2:00

Sunday, May 17
“Digital Objects,” with Zoë Salditch, Greg Borenstein, Andrea Wolf, Marco Antonini, and Siebren Versteeg, moderated by Yin Ho, Select Lounge, third floor, 2:00

FRIDGE ART FAIR
Retro Bar & Grill at the Holiday Inn
150 Delancey St.
May 14-17, free
www.fridgeartfair.com

1:54 CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ART FAIR
Pioneer Works
159 Pioneer St., Red Hook
May 15-17, $5-$10 ($25 with catalog)
1-54.com/new-york

Friday, May 15
Keynote Address: “Black Aesthetics Unbound,” Margo Natalie Crawford, 1:30

Saturday, May 16
“Breaking the Ice,” with Christian Haye and Melvin Edwards, moderated by Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Nzewi, 3:00

TICKET ALERT: NEW YORK COMIC CON 2015

The mad rush for New York Comic Con begins on May 13, when tickets go on sale for the October event (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Who: Spotlight Guests Jewel Staite, John Rhys-Davies, Adam Hughes, Chris Claremont, Greg Capullo, Masashi Kishimoto, Scott Snyder, Todd McFarlane, and John Rhys-Davies, Featured Guests Allison Sohn, Amy Reeder, Charles Soule, Terry Dodson, and many, many more to be announced
What: New York Comic Con
Where: Javits Center, 655 W 34th St. at 12th Ave.
When: October 8-11, single day $40-$50, three-day pass $75, four-day pass $105, tickets go on sale Wednesday, May 13, at 12 noon
Why: New York Comic Con continues its exponential growth as it reaches its tenth anniversary, making it harder and harder to get tickets, so there’s no time to waste if you want to go to the annual celebration of pop culture, with particular focuses on gaming, science fiction and fantasy books and films, anime, and all things comic-book-related. The four days, part of New York Super Week, are chock full of panel discussions, sneak-peek screenings, photo and autograph opportunities, book signings, and tons and tons of costumed fans. It’s getting so that those who come dressed in regular clothes are the minority. Tickets will go very quickly, so get yours now; don’t wait around until the big-time celebrity attendees are announced, as there will be plenty of major stars there to promote their latest work and smile for the camera with you.