Ray Yoshida at Venus Over Manhattan, via Art Observed
The first entry in what’s sure to be a bustling week spanning the end of February and start of March in New York, the ADAA Art Show has opened its doors at the Park Ave armory again this week, offering an early start on the mass of exhibitors opening across the city in the days to come. With its usual focus on tightly-curated programming and laser-focused booth concepts, the show once again offering an impressive opening note on the week, with packed hallways and excited buyers buzzing about the aisles.
With a history of programming that ranges from artist performances to dynamic keynote presentations, The Art Show’s wide scope was on full view this year, with more than half of the fair dedicated to solo presentations, including 19 focused on female artists, as well as a number of joint and thematic presentations. At Pace Gallery’s booth, one could view a solo presentation of works by Adam Pendleton, reflecting the artist’s ongoing examination of image, text, and material, and his continued interrogation into issues of representation and meaning. Also earning early attention were impressive pieces by James Welling at David Zwirner, showcasing his experimental leanings and expressive ability with the camera lens.
There was a particularly strong focus on women this year throughout, with 19 booths total dedicated to women artists. Cheim & Read was presenting work by Alice Neel, while over at Pavel Zoubouk, one could peruse a series of complex assemblages by Vanessa German. Also of note was a shared presentation by Bortolami and Andrew Kreps, one could view a selection of works by the late abstract painter Carla Accardi, showcasing the artist’s complex constructions.
With the clusters of artists and works each competing for the viewer’s attention, yet drawn together by the fair’s encouragement of curatorial rigor and focused exhibitions, the fair’s presentation as a series of micro-exhibitions has long made it a draw and a consistently strong bet for those looking to see a great number of works, and to learn a bit while doing it, has maintained the ADAA’s strong position.
The fair closes March 1st.
