The New York Times publishes an in depth story on Kathy Grayson and  The Hole Gallery, which blends a forward thinking curatorial practice with a vibrant atmosphere. The gallery has charged into an art scene still bemoaning the loss of Jeffrey Deitch’s Deitch Projects space.  “There hasn’t been a gallery like this since Deitch,” said Mike Malbon, of Frank151 magazine. “It’s got a good buzz and a cool, creative vibe. Other art shows, to me, are just stuffy.” (more…)

Los Carpinteros  Güiro – Pop up bar on the Beach – All photos in this post by Art Observed

The events surrounding Art Basel Miami Beach have grown noticeably in the past few years, thankfully so has the pixel count in the latest issue cell phone cameras of our Art Observed staff on site (though some photos below seem to belie this capability). Below is a selection of some of the people, art, cars-as-art, parties and events we tweeted and instagrammed live during the week @ArtObserved, in case you missed it.

Azealia Banks at the Standard Hotel for Terrywood on Friday Night

(more…)

The inaugural Untitled fair in Miami has announced its exhibitor list, among them Art in General, DODGE, Lu Magnus and The Hole, among others. Mostly from New York (and within that group, mostly from the Lower East Side), there are also a handful of international galleries. The fair will be curated by Omar Lopez-Chahoud in a beachfront tent at 12th Street and Ocean Drive and runs from December 5-9. (more…)

Eric Yahnker, Finger (Bush’s Country Style Baked Beans), 2012 via The Hole, New York

LA-based artist Eric Yahnker’s first solo exhibition in New York City, entitled Virgin Birth ‘n’ Turf, opened earlier this month at The Hole.  An irreverent and and visceral exploration of the current socio-political climate, Virgin Birth ‘n’ Turf “provides a mad lab where “I get to swab the inner-cheek and place under a microscope a petri dish of the contemporary American experience in the shadow of another blisteringly contentious Presidential election, analyzing the gray matter and microorganisms which make us tick as well as the flesh-eating bacteria which plague us.”, according to the artist.

(more…)

André Saraiva posing with work

Starting with the opening last night, for the next two months The Hole in New York will feature two shows in its gallery space, André Saraiva‘s “Andrépolis” and  “Portrait of a Generation”.

Portrait of Rita Ackermann

Photos for Art Observed by Charles Shoener, Zoe Zabor, and Lisa Marsova

(more…)

All photos by Lisa Marsova for Art Observed.

Canadian artist Bruce LaBruce has done extensive work in photography and film, with world premiers at such festivals as Sundance.  He is perhaps best known for his erotic zombie content as seen in his 2010 film L.A. Zombie and 2009 solo show “Untitled Hardcore Zombie Project”, which opened at Peres Projects in Los Angeles.  His most recent solo exhibit was “Obscenity” at Madrid’s La Fresh Gallery this past February.  Yesterday evening he showed both his print and live work at The Hole gallery in New York City.  His book signing for the new release of Bruce(X)ploitation was accompanied by a bloodied and fairly jarring performance piece, featuring the assault of a prisoner by two suited army men.

(more…)

‪‬New York Botanical Garden to open new exhibition “Monet’s Garden” this Saturday, modeled after the artist’s Giverny estate by Tony Award-winning scenic designer Scott Pask

‪ (more…)

Kembra Pfahler and Spencer Sweeney. All photos on site for Art Observed by Samuel Sveen.

E.V. Day and Kembra Pfahler have collaborated on a series of photographs in the French gardens of Claude Monet‘s Giverny estate, displaying the project within a thorough installation simulacrum thereof at The Hole Gallery in New York City. A pebble walkway through tulips and trees, around a lilly-padded pond complete with Monet’s famous Japanese bridge, guided the likes of Jeffrey Deitch, Terence Koh, Spencer Sweeney, Aurel Schmidt, and gallerist Kathy Grayson, among a full house Friday night. A clothed Pfahler—of the Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black (see video)—had an unclothed red ‘Femlin’ in tow, the artist’s strong feminist creature originally inspired by a character of Playboy.com, which happened to fund the entire exhibition.

(more…)

Judy Chicago collaboration with Materials & Applications, Disappearing Environments (2012). All images on site for Art Observed by Megan Hoetger.

January is a notoriously busy time here in Los Angeles when the two major art fairs in the city, the LA Art Show and Art LA Contemporary, set up shop across town from one another, daring fair-goers to make the arduous trek back and forth across one of the lifelines of the urban sprawl, the dreaded 10 freeway. The opening night performances at both fairs also marked the start of the much-anticipated Pacific Standard Time Performance and Public Art Festival, which itself encompasses over 30 performances and events across the city.

Myths of Rape (1977/2012)

(more…)

All photos on site for Art Observed by Caroline Claisse and Samuel Sveen

The New Art Dealers Alliance (NADA) art fair explores “new or underexposed art that is not typical of the ‘art establishment.'” Posting up nearly 50 blocks north of the main fair—Art Basel Miami Beach—the satellite fair moved to its Deauville Beach Resort location in 2009 to cut costs, making it a more affordable venture for the younger galleries while remaining a non-profit organization. Since first launching in 2003, the fair has clearly demonstrated the demand for emerging artists and their work, many of the galleries consistently selling out their booths within the first few days of the fair, if not hours. And despite this year’s questionable global economic environment, the fair proved a success once again, with galleries like Lisa Cooley, Kate Werble Gallery, The Hole, The Journal Gallery, Leo Koenig Inc., and White Columns all pleased with the results, prices topping out around $50,000. Also at the fair, multimedia artist Jayson Musson A.K.A. Hennessy Youngman lectured/performed “His History of Art” Thursday evening.

Kate Werble Gallery

(more…)

All images on site at NADA Hudson 2011. Courtesy of Ian Hassett for Art Observed.

Art Observed was on site for the first NADA Hudson, described by its organizers, the New Art Dealers Alliance as “not an art fair, but rather a site-specific project”. The surrounding area has been known as a site to which New York art expatriates flock, with their numbers especially heavy this weekend around the 8,000-square-foot Basilica Hudson, a former foundry and railway wheel factory built in 1884. Hudson itself is a former whaling town, with its access to the Hudson River providing a berth during wartime that was less exposed to raids than coastal towns such as Nantucket and Boston.  As a result, the town has a rich architecture base that is reflective of irregular boosts in industry over its history.  As it has become a destination for food, antiques and second homes, Hudson is an understandable venue for NADA, which has been known to pioneer in its chosen locations (the NADA Miami art fair located in the Deauville Beach Resort, is about 40 blocks north of the main epicenter of activity yet is consistently a must-visit part of the general offering during the week of Art Basel Miami Beach).

more story and images after the jump…

(more…)

Tiermetabolismus V (Katzchen) by Jonathan Meese at Bortolami Gallery, Art Basel Main Fair, Hall B, Booth I-09.

Art Observed will be on site as of today for the ninth edition of the America’s biggest contemporary art fair: Art Basel Miami Beach which will open to the public on Thursday December 2 and will run through Sunday, December 5.

The main section of the fair will house over 180 galleries and over 40,000 are expected following the December 2nd opening.  Annette Schönholzer and Marc Spiegler are the main fair organizers alongside its main sponsor UBS with Cartier, NetJets and AXA Art as the associate sponsors.  While Art Basel is still the main draw, the NADA Fair (the New Art Dealers Alliance) up the road at the Dauville Beach Resort will open to the public Thursday December 2. It will run through Sunday December 5 and also should not be missed.

Untitled (Art Fair Floor) by Ryan Reggiani.  Kate Werble Gallery at Nada Art Fair, booth 312.

The fair week is notable for its bridging of the Latin American buyers with American and British art centers as well as its uniquely intense amalgamation of social, media, fashion and other spheres of influence into the business of selling art.

The global art market seems to have stabilized this year and the main fair, along with its very significant satellites, should be met with lively buying this round.  Beyond this, all around Miami, the social calendar will be infused with events to the point where there is little chance to avoid regretfully missing something.

A view of an installation by Terrence Koh at The Island, an event during the week (see bel0w).

More text and related links after the jump… .

(more…)

Kathy Grayson mid-smooch. Image courtesy Taylor Derwin for Art Observed.

Currently on view at the new art outfit, The Hole, on 104 Greene St. in Soho is “Not Quite Open for Business.” The show, which opened to much hype last night, runs until August 21st. The Hole is run by former directors at the legendary and now-closed Deitch Projects, Kathy Grayson and Meghan Coleman, in collaboration with former Executive Director at Deitch Projects, Suzanne Geiss. With the gallant goal of filling a hole in the downtown community, they are off to a running start.

The first exhibition is called “Not Quite Open for Business,” a conceptual group show of unfinished art, unfinished poems, and unfinished symphonies. The installation is designed by Taylor McKimens and the show includes over twenty artists from the community.

Left: Ben Jones, Unfinished Video, 2010, single channel DVD, edition of 5. Right: Kunle, Vomit, 2010, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 in.

More text, images, and an interview with Kathy Grayson after the jump…

(more…)