New York, NY (June 29, 2007)—Love it, hate it, everyone has an opinion of New York. I was reminded of this in early March in the middle of nowhere. Sorta literally. I was on a bus travelling a private road over a pass to Doubtful Sound off the west coast of the South Island of New Zealand when I heard this: “Times Square is my favorite place in the world!” It was the shriek of a passenger with the very-long “i” accent, a Kiwi for sure.
Times Square is not my fave place in the world but I heart NY. By geography, I cannot claim NY as my hometown; by genetics, I can. All four of my grandparents passed through Ellis Island and settled in NY; my parents and all their brothers and sisters were born there; my brother was born there as were all my cousins. I alone was born outside the fold—in a small, rural Pennsylvania town--where the idea was to get back to NY as often as possible.
So I do. I just spent several packed days here again, this particular visit loaded, as usual, with family, friends, and near always art.
Here are my top picks (and indeed all my art stops) on this trip:
1. orderline, the Chelsea show that opened last night, featuring two talented young artists, Eliza Stamps and Matt Phillips. The show features Eliza's drawings and textiles and Matt's paintings. Well curated and very worth seeing.
2. Act quick as it's closing tomorrow: Ralston Crawford at the Salander-O'Reilly Gallery, including his drawings, photographs, and paintings. I first became acquainted with Crawford's work when I was sixteen and I had the great fortune of viewing this show today with his equally talented son, Neelon Crawford, my dear high school friend. Among Neelon's many contributions to the arts (including his films, paintings, and movie sound work) are his stunning photographs of the Antarctic taken on a number of visits there, including his having wintered over. Both Father and Son Crawford, fine artists in the deepest sense of the words.
3. The Richard Serra show at MOMA. You have to see Serra's work at least once - but take your dramamine. His massive steel constructs that stand en pointe must be walked through to be appreciated. This is my second Serra experience (the first at Gagosian Gallery several years ago). Both made me dizzy but the gravity-defying angles that Serra achieves with such massive sculptures are worth the momentary discomforts they provoke.
