Image via Complex Original
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Thousands upon seemingly billions of dealers, curators, collectors, and artists from all corners of the world will converge on New York City this weekend for The Armory Show and it's contingency of art fairs, festivals, and foils... just don't call it a trade show. Over four days, the global contemporary art scene will be stretched across the city, scattered in various galleries, warehouses, and, well, armories for all to see. And to buy, if the exhibitors play their cards right.
To help you navigate the sea of white walls and black turtlenecks, here is Complex's list of 10 Armory Week Events Not To Miss.
1
The Armory Show
Location: Piers 92 & 94, 711 12th Avenue
Dates: March 8-11
Admission: $30 general; $15 students; $60 4-day pass; $40 The Armory Show + VOLTA NY dual pass.
The week’s eponymous event and mother of New York art fairs, the 14th annual Armory Show will fill over 200,000 square feet along the Westside Highway with art imported by dealers around the globe. This year, a special will highlight art from the Nordic countries, in a special invitation-only section of 19 galleries from Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway. While most fairs this week will focus on contemporary work, a whole pier of the Armory Show will, as always, be dedicated to modern art.
2
VOLTA NY
Location: 7 W 34th Street
Dates: March 8-11
Admission: $15 general; $10 reduced; $40 The Armory Show + VOLTA NY dual pass
If the Armory Show is a dealer’s playground, VOLTA aims to bring focus to artists themselves with its more concentrated selection of solo artist projects. Because the same production company is behind them both, dual passes and shuttle buses are available between VOLTA and The Armory Show to help you maximize your weekend.
3
Independent
Location: 548 W 22nd Street
Date: March 8-11
Admission: free
Independent self-consciously drops the “art fair” suffix and bills itself as a “temporary exhibition forum devised by and for gallerists.” Exhibitors run the gamut from gavin brown’s enterprise in New York who rep big names like Urs Fischer and Elizabeth Peyton, to Creative Growth Art Center in Oakland, which assists developmentally disabled adults. The show is set up more like a true exhibition than Unlike many of the other events this week, it is totally free to check out and decide for yourself.
4
Kehinde Wiley/The World Stage: Israel
Location: The Jewish Museum, 1109 5th Avenue
Preview & concert: Thursday, March 8, 8pm
Admission: $12 advance; $15 at the door
The exhibition comprises 14 of Wiley’s paintings of young Israeli men, depicted in street clothes as classical portraits against backgrounds inspired by traditional Jewish papercuts. They will be shown alongside works from the museum’s collection selected by the artist, including ornamental papercuts. Besides a chance to see it, the show’s opening event on Thursday will include performances by Ethiopian-Israeli hip-hop artist Kalkidan Mashasha and DJ Spooky.
However, if you don’t make it this week, there’s plenty of time: the exhibition runs through July 29th.
5
Fountain Art Fair
Location: 69th Regiment Armory, 68 Lexington Avenue
Dates: March 9-11, 1-7pm
Opening: Friday, March 9, 7-11pm
Admission: $8 advance/$10 door daily; $13 advance/$15 door weekend; $40 VIP
The angsty teenage son of the art fairs, Fountain will bost an indoor/outdoor installation of street art (including Chris Stain, Know Hope, GILF, Imminent Disaster, Joe Iurato, LMNOP, Elle, and ShinShin), with the periphery set by 60 alternative galleries. VIP access to the fair includes open bar and free coat check, but the opening night reception is open to the public.
6
NYC Street Art, Writing and Graffiti
Location: 5 Pointz, 45-46 Davis Street, Long Island City
Dates: Friday, March 9th, 2-6pm
Admission: free
5 Pointz will be an Armory Show outpost, showcasing graffiti and its special take on graffiti preservation. There will be frequent tours of the outdoor exhibition space, as well as the opportunity to meet and mingle with aerosol artists and exhibitors alike.
7
PooL Art Fair
Location: The Flatiron Hotel, 9 West 26th Street
Dates: March 9-11, 3-10pm
Admission: $10 suggested donation
Here’s where the minutiae of art fair naming gets tricky – this was originally billed as the Independent Art Fair when it was conceived in 2000, but it is NOT related to the “by and for gallerists” Independent. The PooL Art Fair cuts out the gallery altogether and provides a platform for unrepresented and independent artists.
8
The Dependent Art Fair
Location: Comfort Inn, 136 Ludlow Street
Date: Saturday, March 10, 12-8pm
Admission: free
This un-art-fair art fair, Dependent brings together some more adventurous or un-gallery-like galleries, like CANADA, James Fuentes, and Specific Object. Rather than “booths,” they will install their wares in a suite of economically-priced hotel rooms. Stay cheeky, art world!
9
The Whitney Biennial
Location: Whitney Museum, 945 Madison Avenue
Dates: March 1-May 27
Admission: $18 general; $12 students
Despite its conveniently-timed opening date, the Biennial is not technically a part of the Armory Week madness – it’s just the Whitney Biennial. On the other hand, it is THE Whitney Biennial, one of contemporary art’s defining events, and you really should stop by. The museum will be open for regular visiting hours this week, but is also hosting several performances, screenings, and tours in conjunction with the Biennial.
10
The Ungovernables: 2012 New Museum Triennial
Location: New Museum, 235 Bowery
Dates: February 15-April 22
Admission: $14 general; $10 students
The New Museum Triennial arrives as a kind of new generational, showcasing young artists, born in the 70s and 80s. Unlike the Whitney’s all-American bunch of artists, The Ungovernables has a patently cosmopolitan crew of almost entirely foreign-born artists.
Again, this is not an Armory event or competitor, but a show that’s bound to be part of the buzz.