NY Art Fairs '10: Scope, Red Dot, and Verge

I am always jazzed for the annual art fairs in NYC! Loads and loads of art to look at, new and old galleries, and great conversations!
This'll be short due to a camera issue and no photos! But it's been fixed and I'll have it for Fountain and Pulse.
First off I went to Scope. A solid show, nothing really "spectacular" to me, but I saw alot more interesting work here than at Red Dot and Verge. Mike Weiss Gallery had a piece by Elisa Johns who is opening in his next show. Ethereal women in washy oils, loosely based on fashion ads but set in nature and most are up-shots. Mike and director Helene exhibited the finer aspects of art fairs, that is being friendly, open and informative about their artists.
ADA Gallery from Virginia had large collage/mixed media pieces by a sort of outsider artist named Jeremiah Johnson - and it's a real family name, not after the Robert Redford flick. The backstory on this artist is a trip - his dad is a gay fruit farmer in the midwest and Jeremiah was forced to work the farm as his father moved into floral design and mom split to be a truck driver. Again, a long conversation about art and the artist with the gallery owner courtesy of the Scope Fair.
David B Smith Gallery had several interesting artists including a great portrait by Kris Lewis and wax pencil bird drawings by Christina Empedocles. The Pool NYC had paintings by Soviet Georgian artist Eteri Chkadua - biographical pieces with a hint of Frida Kahlo. Karim Hamid had Bacon influenced paintings of women with allegorical and historical references at Aureus Contemporary, a self-professed group of "art nerds" who collect art and push their favorites ala fairs and exhibits and more. Very interesting approach that comes from a love for art!
Fun comic book inspired pieces by Cara Ober at Civilian Projects (DC), Opus (England) and Gerard Ellis at Lyle Oreitzel (Miami).
Overall there was a mix of pop surrealism, a few too many images of Warhol and Marilyn Monroe, drawing and alot of (mostly representational) painting.

RED DOT
Even if the admission is only $10, this is NYC, and to run a show during the Art Fair and not have a credit card machine at the entrance is mind-boggling. Spread out over three floors, this very small show didnt have much to offer. There was quite a bit of secondary market prints and few originals by big names. Saw a Larry Rivers print riffing on an old Camels cigarette ad that was interesting and not often seen. Galerie Cubana had some interesting abstract pieces by a Cuban artist. The photography at other galleries was pretty weak - digital manipulation seems passé this year. As a matter of fact, so far the photography at all three shows has been mostly derivative or safe. Most of the painting at Red Dot not by blue-chippers was uninspiring loose abstraction or garishly colored realism that quite frankly looked like work you'd see in a mall.
VERGE
Verge was a classic hotel room show at the Dylan in midtown. Again with the "sorry, no credit card machine"! At least Red Dot had a coat room.
Another small show with spotty work. An exception was the newbie Mighty Tanaka Gallery from Brooklyn. Its enthusiastic curator, Alex, had an eclectic mix of work from street to realism. Several galleries showed geometric abstractions and loose minimalism - paintings consisting of repeating brush strokes or dots. There were some large oil and encaustic nudes in one gallery (that I sadly can't find their card), realistic and loose with gestural patches of color here and there. Encaustic seems to be making a resurgence, as does hand-done collage.
Next post will be more positive I hope and have photos - Fountain and Pulse fairs tomorrow!

Obama 1-on-1 with Ahmadinejad

Jim Houser at Jonathan LeVine Gallery

There's an expression when it comes to buying a piece of art: "living with the piece" - in other words, how will the buyer feel with the artwork in his home, office, etc. It's not necessarily about the size, color, and "will it match my decor?" issues. It may be in part, but for many collectors it's about "Will I still feel as jazzed about it when I get it home as I do now? and what about after a week or two? Is this just a reactionary buzz, or will it continue to stimulate me and make me love looking at it over and over?"
At the moment, all I have of Jim Houser's work is the promo poster for his show a few years ago at Jonathan Levine Gallery hanging on my wall, and the reason it's still up is because I still stop, stare, and enjoy it. I dream of having an original - someday. His current show (Oct 24 - Nov 21, 2009) once again delivers that rush I get when I walk into a gallery with a show of great work. It's vintage Houser in that it's an installation with on-site wall paintings, shelves with 3D works, all with his signatue palette, imagery, and words. And music, too! It might be easy for some to dismiss his work at first glance as being too cartoony or a send-up of self-taught art, but with some examination you'll at first begin to appreciate his craftsmanship, his consistency, and then that the work is not just a one-note cartoon and that there's quite a bit to grab hold of.


In his Fecal Face interview, Houser discusses his palette of subdued colors: "I like red and blue and variations of red and blue. That's the direction it seems to be going. Browns and tans. No more pink. No more orange. No more green. Even my black is just super dark blue or brown. My white has blue or brown in it. Sea water, dog fur, and dried blood. That's my inspiration."

Houser incorporates hand drawn words and phrases in various novelty typefaces, "visual poems" if you will. There is the temptation to read into and analyze the meanings and thoughts behind these words, which can be a pitfall in painting, but Houser merges them seamlessly in his works without overpowering the other images. They blend. They're fun. It's a carnival ride for your eyes, going from words to recognizable image to shapes to words again.


Some of the words reflect thoughts about his late wife and his own difficulties with health issues, among other things. With "Make Room for Emptiness" the press release states that Houser "has celebrated the affirmation of a new love and also has received medical treatment for his previous health condition." Both are cathartic elements for anyone to experience, and how could it not be reflected in an artist's work, particularly Jim Houser's?
Jonathan Levine Gallery is located at 529 W 20th St (10th and 11th Ave), 9th Flr, NYC.

Yankees win! Thuhuhuhuhuhuh Yankees win!

Wish I had my camera...

I stop at Two Boots Pizza on 7th Ave & Greenwich (NYC) to grab a slice and in their window display were 2 fireman boots. OK, makes sense, right? In the boots were decorative tree branches. On the branches was a string of baseball shaped holiday lights, with the Mets logo on the baseballs. Also on the branches were mardi gras beads. And finally, sticking out of the boots were two rainbow flags.
Wish I had my camera with me...