Hello From Scope Miami Art Fair!!

Hi Friends!

We apologize for the lack of presence- Art Nerd New York was put on hold while we gear up for the next step. 

First things first- our new site is being designed, and will be live by December, and mostly loaded in early 2012!

Secondly, we’ve been asked to put together a miniature booklet for Scope Miami Art Fair promoting our new site! A copy will be in each of their 500 VIP tote bags, and others I will be handing out at the various Miami fairs. Can’t wait! 

I’ll keep you updated on more sites and good art nerdery soon!

Thanks for following!

xoLori Zimmer

Head Nerd

Painter Thomas Hart Benton was known as a Regionalist, painting day to day life of the United States. He considered himself an enemy of modernism, and did not edit his painting of “everyday American life”- which included paintings of Ku Klux Klan members- without disdain nor empathy.

The mural here, “America Today,” was heavily influenced by El Greco (whom I love, the color palette is evident of this). A panoramic interpretation of America during the Jazz Age of the 1920s, the popularization of this mural helped sparked the mural program of the Works Project Administration. His murals  and teaching career at the National Arts League heavily inspired such artists as Diego Rivera, Dennis Hopper and Jackson Pollock.

Who: Thomas Hart Benton

What: America Today

Where:  1290 Avenue of the Americas, lobby

The Dakota has been a legendary residence for years. John and Yoko lived here, in addition to a zillion other famous people, including Lauren Bacall, Leonard Bernstein, Connie Chung and Maury Povich, Roberta Flack, Judy Garland, Steve Guttenberg (very important), Boris Karloff, Sean Lennon, Albert Maysles, Gilda Radner and a ton of other actor types.

In fact, in 1980, John Lennon was shot just outside by Mark David Chapman. Earlier in the day, Annie Lebowitz photographed the infamous John/Yoko Rolling Stone cover. Afterward, Lennon and Ono headed to the recording studio, stopping outside to sign a few autographs for fans, including Chapman.

When they returned home, they were dropped off across 72^nd Street, instead of in the Dakota’s courtyard. Ono ran ahead, but Chapman was waiting for Lennon. He shot him 5 times in the back, then waited for the police calmly.

Who: John Lennon, Yoko Ono, and various other celebrities residence

What: The Dakota

Where: 1 West 72^nd Street

This is where, formerly the Loews Theater, the famous picture of Marilyn Monroe, shielding the gusts from the subway grate, was taken.

Formerly the Loews theater, it was on this site that in 1954 the overly famous scene of Marilyn Monroe, shielding her dress from the gusts from a subway grate, was taken. As a promotional photo and scene for the film The 7 Year Itch, the scene was shot over and over, in front of a huge crowd of spectators. Amongst the crowd was Monroe’s husband, Joe DiMaggio, which became infuriated by the scene of his wife’s dress being blown over her head (over and over).  The argued, avoided the media for two weeks, then suddenly announced their divorce!

Married for less than a year, could this spot have been the catalyst for break up? DiMaggio must’ve been nuts.

Who: Marilyn Monroe

What: 7 Year Itch photographic site

Where:  569 Lexington Avenue

Many people don’t realize that Auction houses are essentially free museums. So much important work from art history gets passed from private hands to private hands, occasionally lent to a museum, but not a necessary requirement of the private owners. You don’t have to let them check your bank account in order to see the works up for auction.

Christie’s Auction house is located in the tourist- heavy (read: ANNOYING) north side of Rockefeller center. Their space is really beautiful, and they have a separate gallery space to exhibit work prior to auction. They also display work infront of the building, recently a stabile by Alexander Calder, and  Jeff Koon’s Blue Balloon Dog earlier in November.

Christie’s was impressively founded in 1766 in London. It is now privately owned by mega collector and Gucci owner Francois Pinault, whose son is married to Selma Hayek. Pinault does have good taste, he turned a villa in Venice into his personal museum, and collects works  by Robert Gober, Felix Gonzales-Torres, Mike Kelley, and other artists who aren’t a waste of time.

Auction houses are weird places. I did a stint at one. I couldn’t get used to referring to art as “property number__” nor did I want to. Auctions also severely alter artists’ careers, as they are a public record of the price of a piece of work. Too high, and an artist’s pieces increase in price,  sometimes pricing out their loyal collectors. Too low, and collectors speculate that the work is now worthless. All this, and the artist doesn’t receive any of the winning funds, just the owner. Tricky, tricky. In 2000, Christie’s and competitor Sotheby’s were accused of price- fixing/collusion. The art world is a dirty dirty business my friends.

But- enjoy the free exhibitions, just don’t grind your teeth out in stress while dodging tourists getting their photos taken with Elmo (like I do).

What: Christie’s Auction house

Where: 20 Rockefeller Center, #6

I always loved the idea of the time capsule. There’s one I mentioned at the  1939 World’s Fair site in Queens, not to be opened until  6939 AD. There’s the one in my parents’ back yard that I buried for future kids that includes a slew of Garbage Pail Kids, Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” on cassette, and Pop Rocks- my favorite candy at the time.

In 1999, the American Museum of Natural History decided to follow suit, and held a contest to design a time capsule that would remain on display a the museum- and not to be opened until the year 3000. 6939 AD, 3000 AD, these are some optimistic people.

Anyway, the winner was Valencian architect-engineer Santiago Calatrava, with his twisted and gleaming silver sculpture/capsule, which resembles an abstract infinity sign.

The contents of the capsule are sort of strange. First of all, the town of Fountain, Colorado had a large portion, as it was designated as the “archetypal suburban American town,” which included bar codes and an anti-shoplifting tag from WalMart (what the hell?!), a unicorn Beanie Baby, barbed wire, a firearms registration form, a pager, and dog tags. Basically proving to the year 3000 that Fountain, Colorado is primarily rednecks.

Other items include: a soccer jersey from Brazil, condoms from Zimbabwe, Penicillin from France, archives from New York Times Magazine, hair samples from a ton of people plus Dolly the cloned sheep, a bunch of books, Post-it notes and an Alcoholics Anonymous pamphlet, amongst a lot of other things. This is what was deemed important to preserve.

Hmmph.

What: New York Times Capsule

Who: Santiago Calatrava

Where: The American Museum of Natural History, 79 Street And Central Park West

This hidden arch was once the entrance way to the lavish 1855 Seagram-Drake “country” estate which sat on 25 acres near Broadway and 215^th Street. It is a replica of Paris’ Arc de Triomphe, and the only remaining piece of the estate- the arch alone cost $30,000 at the time. The marble mansion was surrounded by an elaborate Italian-style garden, complete with statues, scenic walks, ponds and sitting areas.

The wealthy Seagram-Drake family, who first settled in Long Island in 1647, were captains of industry, one (Dr. Valentine Seaman) was famous for introducing the smallpox vaccine that saved thousands. The estate was finished in the late 1850s (for $150,000), and occupied by various members of the family until the early 1900s, when it was then rented out, and slowly fell into more and more disrepair. It was leveled in 1938 to make room for the 400 unit apartment complex, Park Terrace Gardens. The arch was rented out for various offices, including an auto shop.

It is hard to believe this jam packed area was considered the “country just over a hundred years ago. But what is even harder for me to believe is that the arch is still standing! Behind an auto shop and a café, it was recently for rent, it totally blows my mind that a relic like this is just pushed aside and built around. Amazing.

What: The Seaman Drake Arch, remnant of the country estate

Where: Broadway and 215^th street, west side

The subways truly amaze me. From thinking about how they were built over a hundred years ago with lesser construction technology, to the fact that they transport over 5 million rides a day- and make my carbon footprint a little smaller- there are part of our day to day lives here in New York. Lately, I’ve been inspired by the Underbelly Project, an impromptu gallery in an abandon subway track that is now sealed- which also reminds me of the documentary “Dark Days,” which chronicles a colony of society’s cast offs that lived in an abandoned tunnel in the late 90s.

The first subway in New York was just 312 feet long under lower Broadway in 1869 using pneumatic tube technology- aka air pressure, like those capsules at the drive thru at the bank. (I love those things) but was later replaced in the beginning of the 1900s with the two private lines – the Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) and Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit (BMT) whose signs can still be seen amidst MTA signs. The MTA has made sure to commission art in many of its stations, but at one time the stations itself were the works of art.

To celebrate the opening of the new subway, the IRT built the Romanesque Revival jewel of a station below City Hall, which opened in 1904, but has been closed since 1945. City Hall Station features skylights, colored glass tiles, brass chandeliers and arched tile work, named after the station’s designer Rafael Guastavino, that can also be seen in the dining level of Grand Central Station- particularly in the Oyster Bar. Closed it may be, but you can still catch a look at its splendor. The 6 train turns around to head back to the Bronx, and loops through City Hall station- just stay on the train and Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall and take a ride into history.

What: Decadent and closed City Hall Subway Station

Where: Lower Manhattan, ride the 6 train from South to North

O’Keefe and Stieglitz lived on the 30th floor when the Marriott was known as the Shelton Hotel in 1925.  Stieglitz, 23 years O’Keefe’s senior, met the young artist when he put 16 of her charcoal drawings in an exhibition at his 291 gallery in 1916- unbeknownst to her. Her friend Anita Pollitzer had given then to Stieglitz to show, O’Keefe heard about it through friends, then came to the gallery to see them hung. Shortly after, Stieglitz put O’Keefe up in a small studio, and a few months later they were madly in love- breaking up his marriage to Emmeline (apparently he had a thing for homely women)…

They lived here for 12 years, and the breathtaking views influenced their work, it was here that O’Keefe painted the beautiful “Radiator Building, Night” in 1927.

Who: Alfred Stieglitz and Georgie O’Keefe

What: apartment

Where: 525 Lexington Avenue

This Cheshire-like fat cat that sits in front of  the 900 Park Avenue Building.  Known mostly for his plump sculptures and paintings of women, Fernando Botero’s bronze cat replaced an original Henry Moore sculpture in front of the driveway. The building is considered one of the ugliest on Park Avenue.

 900 Park can also be seen in the opening credits of Diff’rent Strokes, when Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges get out of the limo in the driveway of the building.

May Gary rest in peace….

Who: Fernando Botero

What: El Gato Sculpture

Where: 900 Park Avenue

Piet Mondrian lived in an apartment on this spot after fleeing the Nazi invasion of Holland then the London Blitz. Yikes. Inspired by the freedom of New York, he painted the famous “Broadway Boogie Woogie” in his tiny apartment, which is the only piece of his that I truly love.  Most of his works I find important to art history, but boring to look at. Broadway Boogie Woogie has movement. The varying grid work at once makes me think of a street map of the theater district, but it also captures the vibrant movement of the blinking lights and marquees of Times Square and Broadway. It is in the Museum of Modern Art’s permanent collection, be sure to check it out!

Who: Piet Mondrian

What: Artist Residence

Where: 345 East 56^th Street

This corner building on Spring and Bowery is sometimes shrouded in mystery. The exterior is a major street art target (going way back to the days of Keith Haring to present times), which was inspiration for Wooster Collective’s 111 Spring Street exhibition down the block. Homeless people constantly camp out on the porch. The building looks otherwise abandoned. But the truth is, advertising photographer Jay Maisel, his wife, and daughter are the only occupants of the building’s 72 rooms. Also, Roy Lichtenstein used to rent out the 4th floor!

Recently, the area has undergone extreme change The Bowery had always been a rough and seedy spot, formerly home of CBGB’s, (still) home to the Bowery Mission, panhandlers, hookers, and industrial storefronts. The Bowery Hotel and The New Museum changed all that, turning the area into a mix of high end venues, and kitchen supply stores. It is totally ironic, to have one of the most exclusive hotels and restaurants within a block of the Bowery Mission Homeless Shelter.

Who: Jay Maisel

What: Artist Residence and street art spot

Where: 190 Bowery

Built in 1889 by Plaza Hotel architect Henry Hardenbergh, Andy Warhol bought this modest townhouse in 1959 and lived here until 1974. In the early 1960s the ground floor was used as a studio, and it is considered to be the first “Factory”. He lived here with his mother (she moved back to Pittsburgh in 1970) and 25 cats, all named Sam. Warhol admired his mother’s drawings and penmanship, her handwriting can often be seen in his work made during the time they lived together.

Who: Andy Warhol

What: Townhouse, often thought of as the first Factory

Where: 1342 Lexington Avenue

Until 1986, the site of the Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City, Queens, was an illegal riverside landfill, abandoned and ugly. A group of local artists got together and decided to turn the area into a park and outdoor museum.

In the summer, Socrates hosts a free outdoor cinema featuring international films and sometimes live music. All are invited to bring a picnic and a blanket, and watch the film starting at dusk. Also throughout the summer, Socrates offers sculpture and art classes for all ages, tai chi and yoga on Saturday mornings until September 30 (all which are also free).

The park foundation awards several artists a residency each year. They may work on site, and have the opportunity to display extremely large scale work, the only location like it in New York. The sculptures change about every 6 months. Visitors are invited to look, play, climb, learn, photograph and let their dogs run around the sculptures and park.

The stats aside, the park is totally amazing. Not only is it an actual grassy space with trees, but it has a breathtaking view of the Manhattan skyline and East River. There are a few meandering paths and river overlooks that SOME people might deem “romantic” (yes, there are stupid kissing couples everywhere). A walk through the park really creates a sense of detachment from the hustle and bustle of New York. The sea smells like the sea, the trees are thick in areas and private, the space is open and lush. How can this be New York?

The park is also site of three controversial “politically correct ghetto kids” sculptures by John Ahearn. In 1989, Ahearn, a South Bronx resident, was commissioned to make three sculptures that would sit in front of the police station. Ahearn cast real residents,  a junkie, a hustler and a street kid, all of whom were black. The public found the sculptures offensive, and accused Ahearn of being a racist. They were removed, but are now permanently on view near the park’s workshops, having weathered badly with age. Side note- John Ahearn is the twin of “Wildstyle” director Charlie Ahearn.

Who: John Ahearn

What: Socrates Sculpture Park

Where: 3205 Vernon Boulevard, 11106, Queens