Whitney Museum – Real/Surreal, Cubes and Anarchy, Calder’s Circus

There are many reasons to skip out of work for lunch at the Whitney. Top on my list is Danny Meyer’s new restaurant, Untitled, on the lower level. They’re serving up “updated coffee shop classics,” which means matzo ball soup and pastrami reubens but also crispy kale salads and aged gouda grilled cheeses. Oh, and need I mention breakfast all day?! 

This is an exciting time to visit the Whitney. In preparation for its move downtown curators are dusting off the deep holdings and presenting exhibitions drawn entirely from the permanent collection. As Ken Johnson said in the NYTimes, “Seeing ‘Real/Surreal’ … is like visiting your grandmother’s attic and finding it loaded with forgotten treasures.” It’s such fun! 

That said, if you only have time for one show, I’d pick David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy. Smith is considered on of the best American sculptors, and this exhibition of sculptures, drawing and paintings, plus rarely seen sketchbook and photographs, gives you a rich understanding of his masterful work. These geometric abstractions will have you seeing things in a whole new way.

On your way out, do not miss Calder’s Circus. Before he got started on his exquisite mobiles, Alexander Calder invited guests to sit on bleachers, eat popcorn and observe as he enacted the circus using wire, wood, metal, cloth, yarn, paper, cardboard, leather, string, rubber tubing, corks, buttons, rhinestones, pipe cleaners, and bottle caps. The video footage is incredible!

With so many great options and so little time, what will you choose to see?

 

Ingredients:

Venue: Whitney Museum of American Art

Artists: David Smith, Alexander Calder, Federico Castellon

Streets: Madison Ave, 74th-75th Sts

Eats: Untitled

Map:

Wooster St – Landscape, Transgressive

At first glance Jean-Frédéric Schnyder’s landscapes seem like sweet storybook pages. Look closer and you will find flies in the honey. There is a mushroom cloud rising over the pastoral countryside threatening to block the smiling golden sun. Swastikas light the sky over fairytale-like houses. Like in Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods, these lullabies slip softly into kitschy nightmares. However that makes you feel, Schynder isn’t concerned. “I do not care which associations my paintings provoke,” he says. “Swastika, crucifix and sugar cubes are just motives which are interesting to paint. To apply color—this is what painting is about, right?—is for me the common thread.” Do you agree?

Whether you’re on Schnyder’s side or not, don’t judge before you see the video installation downstairs. Titled Corso Schnapsparade it features mini hand-carved wooden horses pulling wagons with airplane-size schnapps bottles. It’s a toy liquor parade complete with brass-band soundtrack, and it’s kind of amazing.

Whip out your smartphone and take advantage of the new order online capabilities at Le Pain Quotidien. (There’s even an app for that!) As you make your way over to pick up your tartine, check out Transgressive, the window gallery exhibition at Leslie/Lohman. Featuring powerful large format prints by photographer Jess Dugan and oil paintings by Joelle Circé, the exhibition presents intimate portraits of individuals who happen to be transsexual and transgender. These arresting portraits will draw you in. Don’t linger too long, though. Your sandwich is waiting…

Ingredients:

Venues: Swiss Institute, Leslie/Lohman

Artists: Jean-Frédéric Schnyder, Joelle Circé, Jess Dugan

Streets: Wooster St

Eats: Le Pain Quotidien

Map:

Cloisters Museum & Gardens – Game of Kings

You could easily kill this holiday Monday eating leftovers and watching a TV-show marathon. (I vote for Inside the Actor’s Studio on Bravo!) At some point, though, you should probably ward off cabin fever and breathe in some fresh air. Jump on the A train and journey way uptown to the medieval oasis that is The Cloisters Museum & Gardens. There are many reasons to go any time of year (see below), but go now to see The Game of Kings: Medieval Ivory Chessmen from the Isle of Lewis. The Lewis Chessmen date from 12th century Scotland and are carved in intricate detail from walrus ivory. They are so individualized and interesting, and this is the largest collection to ever travel outside the UK. Take this chance to see them in NYC!

If you’ve been there before, you know that The Cloisters is one of those NYC destinations that feels like you’ve been magically transported to a far away land. Nestled in Fort Tryon Park, the building incorporates five medieval cloisters and houses an expansive collection of medieval European artwork, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, stained glass, metalwork, enamels, ivories, and ornate tapestries. Stroll the covered walkways and open galleries and spend a good long time gazing at the exquisite Unicorn Tapestries.

Unfortunately, the museum's little Trie Café is closed for the season. Maybe bundle up and pack a picnic for Fort Tryon Park, or splurge on lunch at New Leaf. 'Tis the season for indulgences, so what's one more, right?

Ingredients:

Venue: The Cloisters Museum & Gardens

Artists: Various artists from the ninth to sixteenth centuries

Streets: Fort Tryon Park - Margaret Corbin Drive, 190th St

Eats: Trie Café, New Leaf

Map:

Madison Ave - Gaga's Workshop

So, Lady Gaga set up a boutique of limited-edition swag at Barney’s. Whatever comes to mind when you first hear this news, there is no real way to prepare yourself for the experience that is Gaga’s Workshop. From the open-mouthed entryway to the custom elevator décor, it is clear that this gratuitous display of consumerism is going to be indulgent and fun and borderline offensive. (No surprises there.)

Bypass the custom lollipops ($14) and designer press on nails ($225), and focus on the sculpture. Artists Eli Sudbrack and Christophe Hamaide Pierson, together with their art collective assume vivid astro focus (avaf), designed an all-encompassing world of Gaga that is pure cheeky pleasure. Hoards of tourists aside, it’s a neat place to explore. Plus, it's all for a good cause...

Assuming you don’t want to gorge yourself on Monster Cookies, go upstairs for a celeb-worthy lunch at Fred’s or venture back into the real world with a lite tuna sammie from Sunberry’s Café. On the way out, be sure you hit the Madison Ave windows for even more Gaga.

For more images of Gaga’s Workshop, click here.

Ingredients:

Venue: Barney’s New York, Gaga’s Workshop

Artists: Lady Gaga, Eli Sudbrack, Christophe Hamaide Pierson, assume vivid astro focus (avaf), Nicola Formichetti

Streets: Madison Ave, 60th-61st Sts

Eats: Fred’s, Sunberry's Café

Map:

66th & Broadway - Lincoln Center

It is sunny, high 50s and officially the first day of winter in NYC. Let’s not worry about what’s wrong with this picture and instead take an art stroll al fresco. When’s the last time you explored Lincoln Center? Ever since they finished their massive Diller, Scofidio + Renfro remodel, the place is actually looking modern for a change. Don't you think?  

The entire experience that is Lincoln Center, from the polished subway passage to the sleek awnings to the culinary offerings, has been upgraded. Head straight up the LED “Welcome” steps, which display the greeting in 325 languages, and make your way back and to the right. There beyond Henry Moore's Reclining Figure, atop Lincoln Ristorante, is the tranquil Illumination Lawn. This sun-drenched grassy knoll is an invitingly vibrant green, but you don't have time to dawdle. There is too much else to see!

Once you start looking for it, you will notice artwork lurking around every corner. Richard Lippold’s Orpheus and Apollo gleams through the windows of Avery Fisher Hall. Alexander Calder’s Le Guichet (The Box Office) ushers you into the Library for the Performing Arts... The highlight for me is seeing those two massive Chagalls in the Opera House lobby. What are your favorite hidden gems?

Sidle up to the bar at Jonathan Benno's Lincoln Ristorante for an indulgent lunch of gnudi di ricotta e rapini, or opt for the significantly more economical goat cheese sandwich at Tom Colicchio's 'witchcraft. Either way, you will feast on culinary artistry. Guaranteed.

Bonus: if you happen to be in the 'hood after 6pm, make sure you stop by Met Gallery for artist Peter Doig's Siegfried and Poster Project. Doig was not really an opera fan himself before this project, but somehow he managed to encapsulate the power of Wagner in each piece. His magnificent paintings are not to be missed. 

Ingredients:

Venues: Lincoln Center: Gallery Met , Opera House, Avery Fisher Hall

Artists: Henry Moore, Alexander Calder, Richard Lippold, Diller Scofidio Renfro, Peter Doig

Streets: 64^th-66^th St & Broadway/Columbus Ave

Eats: Lincoln, ‘witchcraft

Map: