Monday, June 26, 2006
West Side Stories
I managed to spend a little time in Chelsea on Saturday. Between it officially being summer now, the on-and-off rain that afternoon, and the recent art world binge in Basel, the neighborhood was the most quiet I have ever seen it on a weekend.
I did, though, make a few sightings of note:
I did, though, make a few sightings of note:
I'm betting that it's only a matter of time until Charlie Finch starts to slobber all over work by Mayumi Lake (at right). Her show, My Idol, which closed Saturday at M.Y. Art Prospects featured several photographs of an attractive, unclothed young Asian woman and an inflatable doll whiling away an afternoon in a love hotel.- Justin Lowe's installation, Helter Swelter, at Oliver Kamm 5BE takes the prize for least likely gallery installation of the summer. It's also one of the most fun.
- Overheard in an otherwise empty gallery (they all were on Saturday): an artist dropping off work and a gallerist discussing how the materials should be described on the price list. The dilemma centered on whether to mention specifically that the piece contained Shrinky Dinks or whether they should go with the more generic, but somewhat more dignified "mixed media." I weighed in with a preference for touting the Shrinky Dinks. They lend a retro, kitch vibe to the work, and that vibe is certainly selling these days.
