Face-to-face art fairs are officially back. Here are the highlights of the presentations and activities that take place during Frieze New York.
Happening in the Shed
The 10th edition of Frieze New York begins at its new location on Wednesday, marking the return of in-person art fairs. This year, Frieze is more accessible than ever, no more trekking to Randall’s Island. More than 60 galleries will present work during the show at The Shed on Manhattan’s West Side, as well as digitally as part of the virtual Frieze Viewing Room. While Frieze’s in-person component runs through May 9, the Viewing Room exhibit runs for an extended period, through May 14. The ticketed fair is already sold out, although fair candidates can join the waiting list for additional spaces. Visitors will need to fill out a health and safety form in advance, as well as show proof of a recent COVID-19 test or a complete vaccination.
For those who make it into the fair, there is a lot of new and remarkable work to find. Highlights include new sculptures by Rachel Feinstein for Gagosian, three assemblages of the late Thornton Dial for David Lewis, a new six-panel folding screen painted by Hernan Bas for Lehmann Maupin, large-scale paintings by Dana Schutz created specifically for the presentation. Frieze by David Zwirner and three works by French artist Daniel Buren, exhibited for the first time in the United States by Lisson Gallery.
The Shed is also the backdrop for “The Looking Glass,” an augmented reality display of the work of artists Precious Okoyomon (winner of the 2021 Frieze Artist Award), Cao Fei and Kaws. His pieces, located around The Shed and its surroundings, are only visible through the Acute Art phone app.
In addition to the gallery presentations, a central component of Frieze this year is a tribute to the Vision and Justice Project, founded by Harvard Associate Professor Sarah Elizabeth Lewis. The project analyzes the relationship between art, race and citizenship in the United States. The tribute encompasses a series of talks, collaborations and exhibitions with contributions from different galleries. Programming includes an online screening of “Aggie,” a documentary about philanthropist and collector Agnes “Aggie” Gund, conversations between black cultural leaders, and works by Carrie Mae Weems and Hank Willis Thomas created in tribute to the Vision and Justice Project. Thomas, who founded For Freedoms, recreated his Who Taught You To Love? (2020), which will be exhibited alongside a billboard created by Mel Chin that marks solidarity with the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. Aperture magazine will also release The Vision & Justice Book Series as part of the tribute on Frieze.
Who taught you to love? (2020) Courtesy of Hank Willis Thomas
Sarah Elizabeth Lewis, founder of the Vision & Justice Project and Harvard Associate Professor. Courtesy of Stu Rosner
Virtual and video events
Prada Sponsorship Discussion Panel for Vision & Justice Tribute
On Thursday at 2:30 pm EST, Vision & Justice Project Founder Sarah Elizabeth Lewis will moderate a panel discussion (which is supported by Prada) on Zoom. Lewis is bringing together creative leaders from film, art, and music – Wynton Marsalis, Ava DuVernay, Franklin Leonard, Carrie Mae Weems, and Theaster Gates – to discuss opportunities and challenges within black cultural creation.
Matchesfashion launches Art Matches Fashion and partnership with Frieze
Matchesfashion has launched a monthly series that will facilitate conversations about the connection between art and fashion. The retailer has also partnered with Frieze on an audio talk series, “Voices From Frieze New York,” in which artists and curators will share their experiences from the show. Antwaun Sargent, who recently guest curated Art in America’s New Talent, will present a video walking tour and is the next theme in Matchesfashion’s “Curated By” series. Matchesfashion is also the exclusive partner for the launch of Frieze 91, a membership program designed to immerse new and young collectors in the Frieze experience.
Institutional art curator Kimberly Drew, for Matchesfashion’s “Voices From Frieze New York.” Courtesy
Adjacent frieze
Technically not at the fair, but close enough.
Maison Margiela premieres «Nude Descending a Staircase No. 3 »by Marco Brambilla
Maison Margiela presents Marco Brambilla’s video installation work “Nude Descending a Stair No. 3” at its Crosby Street boutique on Wednesday. The 11-monitor video piece was inspired by Marcel Duchamp’s “Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2,” with Brambilla performing the work in a dynamic presentation of contemporary video art. Brambilla’s debut of the piece marks a series of upcoming artist “interventions” set up for Maison Margiela’s SoHo concept store.
Still from «Nude Descending a Staircase, n. 3 ». Courtesy
Another Marco Brambilla debut, at Hudson Yards
Ahead of Brambilla’s solo show at Pérez Art Museum Miami this June, the artist will present another work of video art. On Wednesday at 5 pm, Hudson Yards will preview “Heaven’s Gate,” a satirical video collage of iconic Hollywood moments: Leonardo DiCaprio in “Great Gatsby,” Audrey Hepburn from “Funny Face.” There are also images of dinosaurs and the Capitol riot in January. The work will be played on 65 public digital screens at Hudson Yards.
Frame from the video art piece “Heaven’s Gate” by Marco Brambilla. Courtesy
New international random work “Body / Light I” takes flight in the public square of Manhattan West
Artist collective Random International (of “Rain Room” fame) is debuting their latest public art work in collaboration with Arts Brookfield, Superblue and BMW. “Body / Light I” will illuminate the Manhattan West Public Square, across the street from The Shed, for a limited time from Thursday through May 9. The experiential installation (which is inspired by Pablo Picasso’s 1949 “light drawings” for Life magazine) invites visitors to interact with the piece through movement, as their movements are traced in light. Three times a day during the installation, musician Lester St. Louis will perform a live score along with a performance by dancers from the New York Theater Ballet.
«Body / Light I.» de Random International Cortesía
More of the eye:
The painter Robert Nava takes his angels to Chelsea
Brooklyn Museum joins the Kaws party
Is blockchain the future of art collecting?
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