W 36th St – Natural Selection & Contemporary Slavery

Any way you look at it, getting over to 10^th Avenue in Midtown is a schlep. Grab some outstanding arepas (Venezuelan sandwiches) at Shachis Arepas To Go on 35th & 8th (or order online for delivery!) and keep hoofing it westward. Once you get there, you’ll find some pretty incredible things. First, there is Christopher Adams’ Natural Selection at Hosfelt Gallery. It’s like visiting the Hall of Biodiversity without all the taxidermy. To me, Adams' work suggests those cool microorganism replicas on display in the Spectrum of Life section, and it turns out there is good reason for that. He studied evolutionary biology at Harvard, and his ceramic sculptures are meant to represent what happens when a common structure evolves in unique, varied ways. They are awesome even if you’re not into science.

While you’re at Hosfelt, with thoughts drifting to the Museum of Natural History on the Upper West Side, Jeremy Stenger’s work reminds you that you’re in New York’s Historic Garment District. Stenger's gorgeous acrylic canvases are inspired by antique textiles, contemporary bedding and cloisonné (aka multi-step enamel metalworking), among other things, and they are bursting with rich colors, patterns and textures. Still, the way these patterns seem to flow and meld and undulate might keep you mindful of Mother Nature.   

By the way, if you ever find yourself obligated to frequent the Javits Center, break free for a few minutes and check out what’s new at Hosfelt. There is almost always something worth seeing there… 

Down the block at Exit Art is a far more somber and highly alarming show called Contemporary Slavery. Did you know, according to the UN, “It is estimated that more than 27 million people are enslaved worldwide?” That is simply mind-blowing to think about! In an effort to raise awareness, Contemporary Slavery, organized by the Social Environmental Aesthetics program, presents a collection of images from photojournalists documenting the horrific reality of the various forms of slavery worldwide. It is down right baffling. 

By Jodi Cobb

Hopefully, this exhibition is a step towards prevention. Kudos to the photographers for helping document this gross tragedy. Their images are haunting and provocative, and they are not easy to take. At least you'll have that hefty walk back from 10th Ave to digest and recover...

 

Ingredients:

Venues: Hosfelt Gallery, Exit Art

Artists: Christopher Adams; Jeremy Stenger

Streets: 36^th St & 10^th Ave

Eats: Sachis Arepas To Go

Map:

W 36th St; W 39th St

Who knew there were not one but two galleries on the 500 block of W 36^th St? (Thanks to AQ Kafe there’s good coffee around here, too!)

First stop, Hosfelt Gallery. Luckily, you can still get your Jim Campbell fix here.  (His super cool Scattered Light installation in Madison Square Park just ended.) I don’t know what it is about Campbell’s extraordinary (and extraordinarily simple) light-based sculptures. They are just the perfect amalgamation of Times Square at 2am and the Montauk night sky. They’re mesmerizing. 

From LED technology to basic math, my next stop is Exit Art’s Geometric Days. This feels like such a vast and varied show, but I guess when you start by quoting Galileo on the Universe that’s probably what you’re going for. Geoffrey Owen Miller’s detailed dot paintings are riveting. They do a remarkable job of drawing your entire focus in amid the expansive gallery space. One of my favorite pieces in this show is Charles Koegel's White Lotus. Go see it up close. The crackled texture is pretty remarkable. Plus, it reminds me of my mom who doodles in cubes like these while she’s on the phone.

While I’m in the ‘hood, I want to stop by I Like the Art World and the Art World Likes Me at EFA because I clearly like the art world, and this show (an ArtCat top pick) ends on Saturday. It’s a show chock-full of artists who clearly had fun with their assignment. What's not to like?

Ingredients:

Venues: EFA; Exit Art; Hosfelt

Artists: Jim Campbell; Rico Gatson, Peter Hildebrand, Charles Koegel, Geoffrey Owen Miller, Driss Ouadahi, Paul Pagk, Nathlie Provosty, Dannielle Tegeder; Conrad Bakker, Marc Bijl, Jennifer Dalton, Eric Doeringer, Nancy Drew, Bill Drummond, Alex Gingrow, Grennan & Sperandio, Aneta Grzeszykowska, Charles Gute, Nate Harrison, Pablo Helguera, Dan Levenson  / Little Switzerland, The Matthew Higgs Society, Loren Munk, Filip Noterdaeme Laurina Paperina, William Powhida, Ward Shelley, Jade Townsend

Streets: W 36th St; W 39th St

Eats: AQ Kafe

Map: