Weekend Gallery Guide

It's supposed to be almost 80 degrees in New York today which would make it a great day to visit the Frieze Art Fair on Randall's Island. Over 180 of the world's leading galleries will be exhibiting their works inside and out and some of New York's best restaurants are on hand when you need a pick me up. Getting there is half the fun too. You can take the ferry or the Joe Fresh Shuttle Bus.  

Frieze Art Fair New York

Randall's Island

Friday, May 10: 11am–7pm

Saturday, May 11: 11am–7pm

Sunday, May 12 : 11am–7pm

Monday, May 13: 11am–6pm

Tickets $42

Students $26

When the rain returns on Saturday, I recommend heading inside to take advantage of all the new gallery openings.  Elizabeth Peyton will be showing her new works at Gavin Brown through May 13th.

One of my favorite art books that was also on Jenna Lyons desk is Cecily Brown.  I've never seen her work in person so I'm excited to head over to Gagaosian Gallery on Madison Avenue to see her new show.  It will be on view through June 22nd. 

While at Gagosian on Madison Avenue, why not stop in and see the Dennis Hopper: The Lost Album show also up through June 22nd. It includes the actor's photographs from the 1960's that haven't been exhibited since the 1970's.

While you're uptown, why not pop over to Sotheby's to see the amazing Man Made: Jean-Michel Basquiat.  I've already seen this one and can attest that it's worth seeing before it ends on June 9th. 

If you prefer to stay downtown, then make sure you check out the Anselm Kiefer show at Gagosian at the  West 21st Street gallery. 

Bon Weekend!

Basquiat at Gagosian

If you want to brave the snow drifts in New York this weekend, I suggest an outing to the Gagosian Gallery on West 24th Street for the Jean-Michel Basquiat exhibition.  Or you can wait for warmer weather since it runs through April 6, 2013.  This major exhibition will feature over fifty works by the artist who died before his time at the age of 27 in 1988. As with any Gagosian show, I can already tell this one is going to be amazing. I just might wait to see it until my street is plowed. Bon Weekend!

Gagosian Gallery

555 West 24th Street

New York, NY 10011

212.741.1111

Tuesday - Saturday

10:00am – 6:00pm

JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT
Untitled (Julius Caesar on Gold), 1981

JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT
In Italian, 1983

Top: JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT
Untitled, 1981

Gallery Guide

There are so many amazing art exhibitions and events beginning this weekend that it feels like Christmas all over again.  Yesterday, I popped into the Gagosian Gallery on Madison Avenue to see the gorgeous Picasso and Françoise Gilot: Paris–Vallauris 1943–1953 exhibition.  This is the fourth Picasso show at Gagosian and the first uptown which was a pleasant surprise. What is not a surprise are the vivid greens, blues and other inspiring colors.  Each show makes me want to start scheming room colors.  Even more stunning were the simple pencil drawings of Françoise by Picasso that I could have stared at all day.  

For those who don't know, Françoise Gilot was Picasso's muse and the mother of Claude and Paloma Picasso.  The family plays a large role in many of the pictures and biographer John Richardson worked directly with Françoise on this show. Many of her paintings also appear as well as Picasso's pottery and sculptures.  It's definitely worth a trip uptown or just walk over to Madison Avenue. 

Picasso and Françoise Gilot: Paris–Vallauris 1943–1953
Gagosian Gallery 

980 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10075

May 3 - June 3, 2012
Tuesday - Saturday 
10:00am - 6:00pm

One of the art events with the biggest buzz is the Frieze Art Fair taking place on Randall's Island.  The wildly popular British based is creating a huge waterfront tent housing 180 contemporary art galleries in addition to  an outdoor sculpture park. Since you are sure to be exhausted from all the walking you are sure to do, you can take a rest and refuel at one of the restaurants on site like the Fat Radish or grab a beer at the Standard pop up Biergarten or hopefully a gelato at Sant Ambroeus. And since no New Yorker knows how to get to Randall's Island, the Frieze Art Fair is graciously offering a Frieze Ferry from 35th Street on the East River that runs every 15 minutes. I was going to check it out today but now I might wait until better weather on Saturday. 

Frieze Art Fair New York

Randall's Island

Friday 4 May 12 – 7pm
Saturday 5 May 12 – 7pm
Sunday 6 May 12 – 6pm
Monday 7 May 12 – 6pm

Tickets are Required

Many people know the work of the husband and wife artists Claude and Francois-Xavier Lalanne thanks to all the sheep that keep appearing in chic homes.  Now you can see their work up close at the Les Lalanne show at the Paul Kasmin gallery. There is also a lovely new book with photos taken at the Les Lalanne home by Mr. Kasmin to be published by Rizzoli on May 15, 2012 entitled Claude and Francois-Lalanne: Art. Work. Life. 

Les Lalanne

Paul Kasmin Gallery

293 Tenth Avenue and 

515 West 27th Street

New York, NY 10001

May 3 - June 16, 2012

His paintings of sweets and candy are so amazing that Katy Perry tapped Will Cotton to create sets for her videos.  You can see his work up close at the Mary Boone Galley but be warned, they may be hazardous to your diet! 

Will Cotton 

Mary Boone Gallery 

745 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10022

May 3 - June 30, 2012

Tuesday - Friday 10am - 6pm

Saturday 10am - 5pm

Another not to miss show is Richard Avedon: Murals and Portraits at the Gagosian Gallery in Chelsea. Andy Warhol and Alan Ginsberg figure prominently as do many of their famous friends. 

Richard Avedon: Murals and Portraits

Gagosian Gallery

522 West 21st Street

New York, NY 10011

May 4 to June 6, 2012 

Monday - Saturday 

10:00am - 6:00pm

I love auction previews because you never know what treasures you may get to see.  Christie's has a special treat on view before the auction on May 8.  They are offering one of Yves Klein fire painting FC1 from which a portion of the proceeds will benefit Oceana.  You have to watch the video and see how it was created. 

Yves Klein FC1

Christie's

20 Rockefeller Center Plaza

New York, NY 10022

May 4 10:00am - 5:00pm
May 5 10:00am - 5:00pm
May 6 1:00pm - 5:00pm
May 7 10:00am - 5:00pm
May 8 10:00am - 12:00pm

At the Mary Boone Gallery in Chelsea is a new Francesco Clemente exhibition Nostalgia/Utopia.  

Francesco Clemente

Mary Boone Gallery 

541 West 24th Street

New York, NY 10001

May 5 to June 30, 2012

Tuesday - Saturday

10:00am - 6:00pm

This also happens to be Open House Weekend for the Partners in Preservation project.  You can check online for the institutions and sites that will be holding special events and tours this weekend in all five boroughs.  Some sites participating include the City Museum of New York, The Guggenheim, The Apollo Theater, Federal Hall, the New York Botanical Garden, and even The Tenement Museum I wrote about yesterday. Also keep in mind that you can vote once per day for the site you think should win the grant money until May 21, 2012. 

One of the most impressive shows I've seen in a long time is The Steins Collect at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.  I honestly might go back again because it was that good.  Gertrude Stein's family weren't just patrons, they were friends with many artists they collected including Matisse and Picasso.  There are even photos and videos of the home that architect Le Corbusier designed for Sarah and Michael Stein. The show runs through June 30, 2012. 

The most hotly anticipated event is not the Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations exhibition at the Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art but the Met Gala that benefits it on Monday, May 7.  We joked last year that they needed to televise the red carpet like they do for the Oscars and our wish has been granted.  You can watch the arrivals live here on Monday from 6:30-8:30pm.  I will also be attending the press preview earlier in the day and can't wait to see the show and pre-party decorations.  

Bon Weekend!

Picasso and Marie-Thérèse: L'Amour Fou

If you are looking for something to do this weekend, I suggest heading over to the Gagosian Gallery to see the new Picasso exhibition, Picasso and Marie-Thérèse: L'Amour Fou.  When Picasso saw the beautiful and blonde Marie-Thérèse Walter outside the Galeries Lafayette department store in Paris in 1927, he told her, "You have an interesting face.  I would like to do a portrait of you.  I have a feeling we will do great things together."  The fact that she was 16 and he was 45 and married didn't matter and she went on to become his muse and mistress.  The exhibition chronicles the life of Marie-Thérèse and their love affair through Picasso's paintings. There is a wonderful excerpt from the exhibition catalog written by John Richardson in the May 2011 issue of Vanity Fair and online for those of you who can't make it to the show in person.  The exhibition was also made possible with help from Diana Widmaier-Picasso, the granddaughter or Picasso and Marie-Thérèse.

Picasso and Marie-Thérèse: L'Amour Fou

Gagosian Gallery

522 West 21st Street

New York, NY 10011

April 14 - June 25, 2011

www.gagosian.com

Marie-Thérèse Leaning on One Arm, 1939

Marie-Thérèse Coiffee d'un Beret, 1927

Photo of Marie-Thérèse Walter, date unknown

Top Painting: Marie-Thérèse with Garland, 1937

Joan Mitchell: The Last Decade

Joan Mitchell is one of my favorite artists.  I was disappointed to find that there was only one of her paintings in the Abstract Expressionism exhibit at The Museum of Modern Art on view now.  I wish I lived in Beverly Hills.  If I did, I could view fourteen of her gorgeous works at the Gagosian Gallery.  The Last Decade includes paintings from the last ten years of her life when she lived in France.  I highly recommend making time for this wonderful exhibition which runs from November 13 through December 23, 2010.  You can make it a present to yourself.  I'll guess I'll have to make due with the catalog.  Sigh.

Claude Monet: Late Work

I was blown away by the Picasso exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery in Chelsea last summer and I've been hearing that the Claude Monet: Late Work exhibition is even more amazing. "The most significant gathering of Monet's late paintings to take place in New York in more than thirty years, it will focus on the most important late subjects drawn from his gardens at Giverny—Nymphéas, Le pont japonais, and L'allée de rosiers—which are among the most treasured paintings of his long and prodigious career" I am looking forward to seeing it and if you are too, make sure you go soon. It closes June 26th!

Gagosian Gallery
522 West 21st Street
New York, NY 10011
T. 212.741.1717
Monday-Saturday 10:00am-6:00pm
May 1 - June 26, 2010

Picasso: Mosqueteros

When I was little, I used to paint and draw all the time. I visited museums and loved art but hated Picasso. I always thought I could paint better than he could. During my senior year of college, I took an entire course devoted to Picasso. On the first day, the professor told the story of how Picasso could paint like a master at the age of 15 and then spent the rest of his life trying to paint like a child. Then I got it.

If there is anyone who doesn't get that Larry Gagosian is the most powerful man in the art world, they should see Picasso: Mosqueteros. "It is the first exhibition in the United States to focus on the late paintings since Picasso: The Last Years: 1963-1973 at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 1984." I had the pleasure of walking through the show last week and I can say is that it is amazing! The Gagosian Gallery is inconveniently located but the trek is worth it. The exhibition was curated by Picasso biographer John Richardson who you can hear speak about the artist and his paintings on the New York Times website.

Picasso may have tried to paint like a child but these paintings were done in the last few years of his life when he was focused on death. You can see this in many of the self portraits and even though he was in his late 80's when these were painted, they are still vibrant, brilliant, and full of energy and spectacular. They are also full of beautiful color combinations that as a designer, I found truly inspiring. I highly recommend that you check it out so you can get Picasso too! Although, you might want to first get a taxi!