Dealer Christopher D’Amelio, formerly of Paula Cooper Gallery and his own space in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, has announced that he will be closing his gallery to join the expanding gallery network of David Zwirner.  Mr. D’Amelio will be positioned at the gallery’s 20th Street space in New York City.  “Chris brings a lot of experience and knowledge, especially when it comes to Minimalism.” Said Zwirner in an interview with the New York Times. (more…)

On February 5th, Sotheby’s will offer Salvador Dali’s portrait of international socialite Mona Bismarck as part of their Modern Art auction.  The painting will look to follow the recent spike in auction prices for Dali’s work, and is forecasted to sell at $2.41 to $3.21 million.  Samuel Valette, a specialist at Sotheby’s, calls the estimate for “Portrait of Mrs. Harrison Williams” “a fair estimate that leaves room for excitement.” (more…)

Wolfgang Tillmans, Exhibition View, via Moderna Museet Stockholm

20 years of photographic works by Wolfgang Tillmans, the first photographer ever to win the Turner Prize, are currently on view at Moderna Museet, comprising his first major show in Sweden.

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Jonas Mekas, Jonas Mekas (Installation View), Via Serpentine Gallery

Lithuanian-American artist Jonas Mekas has worn many hats over his sixty-plus year career. Emigrating to the United States after his imprisonment in labor camps during World War II, Mekas began creating films that embraced a diaristic approach to documenting the events of his own life, but were informed by his active participation in the New York avant-garde film scene of the 1950’s. (more…)

Andrea Mary Marshall, Gia Condo (Installation View) – All photos by Elene Damenia for Art Observed unless otherwise noted.

Blending fashion photography, performance, video and painting, the second solo exhibition by artist Andrea Mary Marshall explores the artist’s alter ego – the drag-embracing, Mona Lisa-fixated painter Gia Condo.  Across 13 canvases and a series of photographs, the artist explores issues of gender and identity that surround the famous painting of the smiling woman, re-imagining them in the style of predominantly male contemporary artists like Keith Haring, Francis Bacon, and Marcel Duchamp.

Andrea Mary Marshall, Gia Condo (Installation View)

Art Observed spoke with Marshall at the opening of her exhibition at Allegra LaViola Gallery about the character of Gia Condo, and her motivations for the exhibition.

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Larry Gagosian responded yesterday to a lawsuit by client Ronald O Perelman over money lost in the exchange of 11 works valued at over $45 million, including an unfinished Jeff Koons sculpture, a Cy Twombly painting, and a sculpture by Richard Serra. In a series of papers filed this week in New York State Supreme Court, Gagosian claims that he had lost money in the transactions, and that Perelman’s claims were “frivolous.” (more…)

Olafur Eliasson, The volcano series, (2012), via neugerriemschneider

Olafur Eliasson, in his sixth solo show at neugerriemschneider Berlin, exhibits new work portraying Iceland, his familial homeland. His new photographic series captures the country’s infamous natural features, and through these stunning images transports the viewer into the scale and physicality of the Icelandic landscape. (more…)

Musician, artist and writer Nick Cave will bring 30 of his signature Soundsuits, intricately designed to resemble horses, to Grand Central Station this March.  The horses, which are operated by two actors, will “graze” in the main hall of the station, and will occasionally break into dance when accompanied by two harpists.  The project, titled “Heard•NY” is co-produced by Creative Time and MTA Arts for Transit. (more…)

Scandinavian artists Elmgreen and Dragset have announced their partnership with the Victoria and Albert Museum for an installation project that will open this fall.  Titled “Tomorrow,” the piece will imagine the residence of a fictional architect, exploring the disconnect between the character’s architectural vision and actual living arrangements.  “We really wonder what goes on inside architects’ heads,” said Elmgreen. “They have all sorts of ideas about creating places for people to live, and yet they are often completely detached from these people’s everyday lives. What does it mean for posh people to be designing social housing?” (more…)

Alex Hubbard, Bent Paintings (Installation View), Courtesy of Galerie Eva Presenhuber

Bent (Why Horses Paint), is a selection  of new works by multimedia artist Alex Hubbard, and his first solo show with Galerie Eva Presenhuber in the gallery’s Löwenbräu complex exhibition space. Hubbard’s paintings move beyond the medium’s traditional two dimensional form, bending into shapes and structures which often seek complete autonomy from the wall.

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Frieze has announced the gallery list for its second annual Frieze New York art fair.  The fair will see 53 galleries from New York join a strong contingent of exhibitions from around the globe.  Running from May 10th to the 13th, the fair will return to its location overlooking the East River on Randall’s Island between Manhattan and Brooklyn, and will again feature a full lineup of commissions, panel discussions and featured exhibitions. (more…)

The New Art Dealers Alliance will return to New York City this year for its second art fair in the city, and will look to the Basketball City sports complex in the Lower East Side to accommodate its stable of artists and exhibitors.  The event will showcase new and emerging contemporary artists and galleries, complementing the concurrent events of Frieze New York on Randall’s Island that weekend. (more…)

Peter Burr, Special Effect (2012), Courtesy of Peter Burr

Over the course of his career, video artist Peter Burr has worn many hats; founding avant-garde animation label Cartune Xprez, playing and animating for the performance art duo Hooliganship, and working on a variety of video projects and installations around the globe.  His newest work, titled Special Effect, will hold its U.S. premiere at the Museum of Moving Image on Friday, January 18th.  Taking the eerie, haunting film Stalker by Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky as its jumping off point, the show is a multifaceted media presentation, incorporating music, live performance, projection, body mapping, and a selection of videos from contributors across the new media landscape.

Art Observed had the opportunity to speak with Burr about the show, his take on Stalker, and his approach to creating this ambitious work.

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The Museum of Modern Art and MoMA PS1 have announced the winner of the 14th annual Young Architects Program.  Titled “Party Wall,” the design features an enormous set of walls incorporating repurposed skateboard wood, detachable benches, and an intricately designed water system to provide shade, seating and hydration for PS1’s Warm-Up series this summer.   The structure was designed by Ithaca, NY-based architecture firm, CODA.  “CODA’s proposal was selected because of its clever identification and use of locally available resources—the waste products of skateboard-making—to make an impactful and poetic architectural statement within MoMA PS1′s courtyard,” said Pedro Gadanho, Curator in MoMA’s Department of Architecture and Design. (more…)

Art dealer Larry Gagosian’s lawsuit against former client Charles Cowles incurred a setback by a U.S. District Court judge.  The 44-page court finding, issued last week, has illustrated issues with the nature of the sales relationship between Cowles and Gagosian which may call into question whether or not Gagosian officially represented Cowles in the sale of Mark Tansey’s “The Innocent Eye Test.”  “(We) believe that the potential strength of Mr. Cowles’s legal defenses outweighs the relatively moderate level of fault,” wrote judge Michael Dolinger.

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Gert and Uwe Tobias at FRAC-Auvergne (Installation View), via FRAC-Auvergne

The work of Romanian brothers Gert and Uwe Tobias operates in a peculiar space between diverse artistic traditions.  Combining watercolor, woodcut prints, sculptures, typewriter drawings and ceramics, the Tobias brothers have created a body of work that combines Art Nouveau with Romanian folk heritage, Paul Klee with Russian Constructivism, and archaic technologies with contemporary art theory.  Using the broad world of contemporary art as their sounding board, the Tobias brothers seek to reevaluate and re-contextualize their native heritage.  (more…)

Despite contracting markets in Asia and the Middle East, Christie’s International has announced a 10% increase in sales for 2012.  This growth over the previous year was led by the increased interest in post-war art and living artists, as illustrated by Mark Rothko’s “Orange, Red, Yellow” selling for $86.9 million last year.   According to Steven Murphy, Christie’s chief executive: “Existing clients are spending more, and many of our new bidders have previously bought from dealers and art fairs. They like the transparency of auctions.” (more…)

The exhibitor list for the 47th edition of ART COLOGNE has been finalized, with a roster over 200 galleries from 25 countries. Running from April 19th to April 22nd, the fair will again see a top-flight group of attendees, and a special section by the New Art Dealers Alliance, following its successful debut last year.  Says ART COLOGNE Director Daniel Hug: “We’re very happy we can again present a fantastic selection of major art-market players. The high-calibre exhibitor list strongly underlines ART COLOGNE’s position as one of the world’s most important contemporary art fairs. Integration of NADA into the Fair means we can offer an alternative view on up-to-the-minute, cutting-edge art.”

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Phillips, formerly known as Phillips de Pury & Co., having announced the departure of chairman Simon de Pury, and the subsequent reversion to its original name prepares to expand its London and New York operations.  “We’ll be making some dramatic changes that will increase our visibility.” Said chief executive officer Michael McGinnis. (more…)

Andy Kaufman “On Creating Reality”  (Installation View)

Revered for his vast wealth of original material and unique approach to performance, comedian and performance artist Andy Kaufman left an enduring legacy that challenged and transcended conventional assumptions of genre and presentation.  Frequently characterized as a comedian or “personality,” Kaufman’s work on television and in live performance frequently confounded and amazed his audience, and positioning him as a pioneer of new media performance and relational aesthetics.  His work in the 1970’s and 80’s before his death in 1984 included turns as an Elvis impersonator, “The Intergender Wrestling Champion of the World,” and even a foul-mouthed lounge singer named Tony Clifton. (more…)

The international art fair calendar will see a new addition to the lineup of Art Basel events this year, with the announcement today of Art Basel Hong Kong, running from May 23th-26th.  The festival mirrors the expanding prominence of the Asian art market, and will include a variety of exhibitions, public works, panel discussions and large-scale installations.  “There’s no question today’s serious international collector is looking at Asia,” Art Basel Director Marc Spiegler says. “The notion of collecting by continent is outmoded, and Asian collectors are looking beyond borders, too.” (more…)

An 18th century Chinese vase made for the Qianlong emperor has been sold for less than half of its last auction price.  The vase had sold for a record $83 million at auction two years ago, but was put back on the market after its buyer, collector Wang Yaohui, failed to pay.  The vase was recently resold for an undisclosed price said to be between  $32 million and $40 million.  “It’s the right price,’’ Dealer Roger Keverne says. “That was the figure at which most people were interested when the vase was originally offered. It’s settled to its true value.’’ (more…)

UK-based arts commissioning body Artangel has announced an open call for proposals, offering £1 million in backing for the five chosen projects.  Artangel has a history of backing Turner prize winners and shortlist candidates, including Jeremy Deller’s 2004 Turner Prize-winning “The Battle of Orgreave” re-enactment, and  is seeking proposals that attempt the fantastic and seemingly impossible.  “We hope to find younger artists who will put forward amazing proposals. We feel that we want to get ideas that are forming in the darkness into our field of vision.” Says Artangel Director James Lingwood.

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Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, French Horns, Unwound and Entwined (2005), via PKM Gallery

Since they began working together in 1971, Claes Oldenburg and his late wife Coosje van Bruggen have created a dense body of work melding together their creative approaches in a variety of large-scale public installations and gallery works.  Appropriating the form of conventional, commonplace objects and recasting them at enormous proportions, the couple’s art simultaneously plays at the viewer’s perceptions of reality and the irony of the subject matter on view. (more…)