It's Art-World Summer in NYC
Celebrate with a visit to Betye Saar's doll collection and Roberto Lugo's ode to Puerto Rico.
Welcome back! We hope you had a lovely Memorial Day Weekend. Is it just me who thinks of this period as the secret start of summer? (I'm really hoping I won't regret these words, especially after the year we've had ...)
But the art world is indeed (thankfully) slowing down. We've wrapped up the last of the fairs, and we're about to enter the summer slumber, insofar as that exists in New York.
There are many lovely ways to welcome it: Enjoy the dreamy weather with a visit to Roberto Lugo's brand-new love letter to Puerto Rico in Madison Square Park. Or visit nonagenarian legend Betye Saar's personal collection of Black dolls at the New York Historical, a promised gift on the occasion of her 100th birthday this summer. Or attend Pioneer Works's boat regatta, or celebrate AIR Gallery's new space at their moving party, or a hundred other things, because slow season in New York is still fast season everywhere else.
How Betye Saar Set Black Dolls Free
Nearing the occasion of her 100th birthday, an exhibition at the New York Historical celebrates Saar’s promised gift of her collection of dolls to the institution. | Jasmine Weber
Upstate Artists
The Divine Powers of “Chicken Linda”
Pioneering performance artist Linda Mary Montano gave me a tour of her home-shrine and a glimpse into her lifelong spiritual quest through art. | Taliesin Thomas
MFA Shows
An Artist’s MFA Show Confronts Columbia University Over Gaza
Alejandro Valencia’s multipart installation alludes to the institution’s failure to come to terms with Israel’s genocide of Palestinians. | Daniel Larkin
From Our Critics
Bryan Martin
Ceija Stojka: Making Visible at the Drawing Center
"What she accomplishes is more than a reminder to never forget history: It is a painstaking argument for the value of remembering, at both the personal and collective levels."
Brian Karl
Karla Knight’s Cosmic Conspiracies at Andrew Edlin Gallery
"Are they richly composed blueprints for mysterious systems connected to extraterrestrial lifeforms — schematics for advanced engines that could guide us toward wormholes to new coordinates of potential? Or attempts at mapping some underlying substrate of the universe?"
What Else Is Happening?
- Roberto Lugo's ode to Puerto Rico, comprising hand-painted portraits of Bad Bunny, his parents, and other inspiring figures that conjure boyhood summers, is now on view in Madison Square Park.
- The Stonewall Monument doesn't just mark a milestone in queer history — it's an actively embattled part of it now, having just been named one of the most endangered sites in the US amid the Trump administration's attacks. Let's show it some love.
- Sure We Can and the Canal Street Research Association are holding a single-day, pop-up can and bottle redemption center at the Columbus Park Pavilion today. (Tues May 26) [Sure We Can]
- AIR Gallery's moving party is tomorrow, featuring a performance by Asia Stewart and DJ sets by cute boys! (Wed May 27) [airgallery.org]
- The Schomburg Center is closing its 100 Years of New York Stories exhibition with a free sing-along screening of The Wiz. (Wed May 27) [nypl.org]
- Pioneer Works is hosting its annual regatta of 3D-printed boats this weekend! (Sat May 30) [pioneerworks.org]
- The Film-Makers’ Cooperative is hosting a free 16mm camera-less filmmaking workshop with Joel Schlemowitz. (Sat May 30) [film-makerscoop.com]
- The Africa Center is hosting its annual free Africa Day celebration this weekend, featuring a vendor market, drum circle, screenprinting, and more! (Sat May 30) [theafricacenter.org]
- The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space is screening a slide presentation on the history of Tompkins Square Park with Eric Drooker. (Sat May 30) [Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space]
- Arts and Letters, the Hispanic Society Museum & Library, and the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance are hosting an Uptown Arts Stroll next Monday, June 1. [Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance]
