ArtRx NYC

This week, artists make work in PowerPoint; the New-York Historical Society displays a vast collection of folk art; I, your humble author, offer free financial advice; and more.

 Ways of Seeing Lavender

When: Tuesday, May 17, 7:30pm ($8)
Where: Light Industry (155 Freeman Street, Greenpoint, Brooklyn)

Artist Amie Siegel will present a 16mm print of John Berger’s Ways of Seeing. The four-part series, which was originally broadcast on the BBC in 1972, is justly heralded as one of the greatest art historical programs ever made. Siegel borrowed this print from the Harvard Film Archive, whose copy has suffered from color dye fading and has a “distinct lavender-rose tone.” The decision to screen the deteriorated print might seem a bit silly, but it fits in neatly with Berger’s analysis of the impact of reproduction on art historical study. —TM

 Artists’ Record Labels

When: Thursday, May 19, 6–8pm
Where: Printed Matter (231 11th Avenue, Chelsea, Manhattan)

It’s no secret that visual artists adopt many roles outside of making salable objects. But this show focuses on one I haven’t given much thought to: artists as the creators of record labels. Curated by art historian Francesco Spampinato, Can You Hear Me? uses objects and ephemera to consider artists in Europe, Mexico, and the US who, over the past three and a half decades, have started independent labels and collaborated with musicians. I like the sound of that.

 Women in Printmaking in Latin America

When: Thursday, May 19, 6–8:30pm
Where: The 8th Floor (17 West 17th Street, Union Square, Manhattan)

The second in a series of annual panels organized by Guttenberg Arts, this discussion will “examine the growing cultural force of woman run institutional departments and studio practices and their global impact,” with a focus on printmaking in Latin America. Panelists include curators at El Museo del Barrio and the Metropolitan Museum of Art as well as Guttenberg Arts’ previous and forthcoming artists in residence. —CV

 Pioneers of Folk Art Collecting

When: Opens Friday, May 20
Where: New-York Historical Society (170 Central Park West, Upper West Side, Manhattan)

Upon emigrating to the United States from Poland in 1914, the sculptor Elie Nadelman began collecting folk art, and by the time the New-York Historical Society purchased it in 1937, the trove he and his wife, Viola, had amassed numbered some 15,000 objects. A choice assortment of 200 pieces from that collection will be featured here in an installation intended to evoke the pioneering Museum of Folk and Peasant Arts that the Nadelmans founded in Riverdale, New York. —BS

 PowerPointless

When: Friday, May 20, 6:30pm ($5–7)
Where: Babycastles Gallery (137 West 14th Street, Chelsea, Manhattan)

Just when you thought there were no uses left for PowerPoint, Babycastles comes to the rescue! The collective has invited eight artists to “create new works of art through the prism of the .PPT file” — an assignment that I find pretty brilliant. Let’s hope the results are too.

 From Jameco to Jamaica

When: Saturday, May 21, 12–6pm
Where: 89-62B 165th Street (Jamaica, Queens)

The historically rich neighborhood of Jamaica, Queens, has become a reservoir for stories. No Longer Empty’s Jameco Exchange will feature a range of visual and performance artists who respond to the area’s present and past, from relating the stories of migrant communities and influential activists to uncovering the histories and sites that have been concealed, including an African American homestead. Notably, the storefront in which the exhibition is held occupies a commercial strip that was once home to an ancient trade route. —EWA

 #BlackGirlLit

When: Saturday, May 21, 6:30–10:30pm
Where: FiveMyles (558 St Johns Place, Prospect Heights, Brooklyn)

Seven black female performance artists will take over FiveMyles on Saturday for a night of “work that pivots off of the written and oral traditions of both American and transnationalist black feminist/womanist frameworks.” It’s a rich, underexplored topic, and the lineup — including organizer Dell M. Hamilton, Ayana Evans, and Tsedaye Makonne — looks promising. As if #BlackGirlMagic wasn’t enough, now we get #BlackGirlLit.

 This Should Not Be Considered Financial Advice

When: Sunday, May 22, 6–8pm (RSVP required)
Where: Month2Month (225 East 21st Street, Gramercy Park, Manhattan)

Artists Jennifer Dalton and William Powhida have, for a long time, both independently and together, been investigating the economic realities of life as an artist in New York City. Their latest collaboration, MONTH2MONTH, invites members of the public into private apartments to consider questions of class, housing, and wealth more closely. The project includes a series of events that range from the serious to the absurd; I’m co-hosting one with writer Shane Ferro that (I think) falls somewhere in the middle. Ferro and I will be offering free financial advice to anyone who wants it — something we’re not entirely qualified to do, but that we plan to do in earnest.

*   *   *

With contributions by Elisa Wouk Almino, Tiernan Morgan, Benjamin Sutton, and Claire Voon