Your Weekly Art Rx

Here at Hyperallergic we are allergic to a lot — dust, nuts, cats, insipid art criticism, bad art shows, people who suck. Enter our weekly remedy: a list of exhibitions and events that will serve as your weekly dose of art medicine.

This week’s prescription packs a New York-area punch including a great reason to visit Newark this weekend that you can’t argue with, a walking tour of Brooklyn Heights and an artist who is opening two concurrent shows … plus lots more.

*   *   *

 Newark Arts Council Presents Open Doors Studio Tour 2011

When: Thursday, October 20 – Sunday, October 23
Where: All over Newark, New Jersey

Good things do happen in Newark, New Jersey, and they start tonight! In fact, Hyperallergic’s Brendan Carroll wrote, “Newark is getting ready to blow up this weekend” … in a good way. This weekend the Newark Arts Council presents the 10th anniversary of Open Doors, a four-day arts tour that features 300+ local and international artists. Check out Brendan’s full post for what to see.

 BOMB Poetry/Short-fiction Reading in Greenpoint

When: Friday, October 21, 2011, 7 – 9pm
Where: The Fowler Arts Collective (in the historic Greenpoint Terminal building on the East River waterfront at 67 West Street, Greenpoint, Brooklyn)

This Friday, BOMB Magazine has organized a poetry and short-fiction reading at our favorite Greenpoint arts collective. The event will feature writing by Luke Degnan, B.C. Edwards, Sarah Gerard and Paul Legault. The reading coincides with Fowler’s current exhibition, The Pinch, in which three local artists (Kurt Freyer, Elizabeth Hoy and Emilie Selden) explore the value of art in a time of economic hardship. With Occupy Wall Street chiming in on this same issue, we can’t think of a more timely show. RSVP on Facebook. 

 OPENING: William Powhida’s Derivatives at Postmasters

When: Opening Saturday, October 22 at 6 – 8pm
Where: Postmasters Gallery (459 West 19th Street, Chelsea, Manhattan)

It’s like the universe knew William Powhida was going to have a show that tackles the prickly topic of money and the financial crisis and it started a grassroots revolution as a backdrop. Whatever happened, this dude is one lucky fellow. What should you expect? There will be drawings, charts, flowcharts and lists … hell, I bet you there will be some name calling and finger pointing to boot. We all can’t wait to see what Powhida has to say about the fucked up condition of the world’s economy.

 Revisit America’s Bauhaus, Black Mountain College

When: Saturday, October 22 at 4pm
Where: Loretta Howard Gallery (525-531 West 26th Street, Chelsea, Manhattan)

It was one of the most important episodes of modernism in America, and this Saturday curator Jason Andrew takes us back to the legendary (and experimental) Black Mountain College with a lecture on his recent exhibition and publication on Jack Tworkov. He will talk about the golden age of Black Mountain College and some of its stars, including John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Robert Rauschenberg and Dorothea Rockburne. While you’re there, check out the exhibition, which closes October 29.

 CLOSING: Do Ho Suh’s Spatial Experiments at Lehmann Maupin

When: Closes Saturday, October 22
Where: Lehmann Maupin (540 West 26th Street, Chelsea, Manhattan)

This artist, who lives between New York, London and Seoul, is understandably obsessed with the notion of displacement and how we experience space. His exhibition is a wondrous world in miniature that plays with notions of memory and the everyday.

 Historic Brooklyn Heights Walking Tour

When: Sunday October 23 at 11am
Where: Around Brooklyn Heights, Meet at the steps of Brooklyn Borough Hall, facing the plaza

If you’re looking for a nice Sunday stroll this weekend (provided it doesn’t pour) than look no further. As part of the Brooklyn Historical Society’s Brooklyn Walks and Tours series, the museum partners with Big Onion Walking Tours for a tour of Brooklyn Heights, the city’s first historic district. The tour is fit for any architecture or New York history geek, complete with discussions of the neighborhood’s roots and history. Also they’ll be pointing out sites associated with Seth Low, George Washington, Arthur Miller, WEB DuBois and Gypsy Rose Lee.

 Civic Action: A Vision for Long Island City

When: Continuing
Where: The Noguchi Museum (9-01 33rd Road, Long Island City, Queens)

The Noguchi Museum and Socrates Sculpture Park have joined forces to spark a discussion about the rapid changes occurring in their neighborhood. The institutions have invited five artists (Natalie Jeremijenko, Mary Miss, Rirkrit Tiravanija and George Trakas) to conceive new approaches to development.

 OPENINGS: Edward Burtynski Opens Two Manhattan Shows

When: Opening Wednesday, October 26 at 6 – 8pm — Opening Thursday, October 27 at 6:30 – 8:30pm
Where: Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery (505 West 24th Street, Chelsea, Manhattan) — Howard Greenberg Gallery (41 East 57th Street, Midtown, Manhattan)

On Wednesday, Chelsea’s Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery will feature large-scale works from Burtynsky’s newest series Dryland Farming, which was shot in the Monegros region of northeastern Spain. The next day, Howard Greenberg Gallery will present a retrospective of the Canadian photographer’s career in Midtown. Burtynsky is known for this richly colored images that explores the collision of the manmade and natural worlds.