LUHRING AUGUSTINE (Chelsea) is opening a new BUSHWICK GALLERY
It's been all over the Bushwick arts publications, blogs, and chatter amongst gallerists, artists, and locals. Luhring Augustine, the prominent Chelsea gallery representing artists such as Pipilotti Rist and Janine Antoni, is opening a new gallery in "Morgantown" (as much as I absolutely despise that word, it puts the event in context a little bit). The new space is at the corner of Knickerbocker and Ingraham, neighboring Brooklyn Fire Proof, and sitting only a stones-throw away from thriving 56 Bogart. The weekend is finally here - the inaugural show opens this Friday from 6-9pm, with a show by Charles Atlas, a video artist who has been featured in the Tate Modern, MoMA, and the Whitney, and is expected to be in the Biennial this year. He is also known for collaborating with renowned performers and artists, one being Marina Abranovic. I highly suggest checking out this opening, as it is quite an unprecedented event to have a Chelsea gallery skip those 9 subway stops and head straight into, what has been known most recently referred to as, the DIY hub of the arts: industrial Bushwick. The space is at 25 Knickerbocker Avenue.
The Illusion of Democracy by Charles Atlas
In addition to this event, Friday celebrates an opening of Unreliable Narrator by Ward Shelley at Pierogi off the Bedford stop in Williamsburg. Ward creates large-scale paintings on mylar that are more like visual classrooms. The drawings are maps in a way, traveling through time focusing on one subject, such as Fluxus, the Beat Generation, Teenagers, or the Williamsburg arts scene. I suggest seeing this show, even if not at the opening, since these works take up a lot of eye and brain time, and Pierogi always seems to draw in a crowd too large to fit between the walls.
Unreliable Narrator by Ward Shelley
That's not all worth seeing. Jason Andrews of Norte Maar and (formerly) Storefront, curated a group show at NYCAMS in Chelsea. The artist lineup looks like what I'd expect - a powerhouse consisting of the biggest names in Bushwick right now.
