Each week, we search New York City for the most exciting and thought-provoking shows, screenings, and events. See them below.
Tuesday, January 23
Still from Tomáš Rafa, New Nationalism in the Heart of Europe, (2017). Courtesy of ISCP.
1. Screenings and Artists’ Talk on “Concrete Truth: Art and the Documentary” at the International Studio and Curatorial Program
After screenings of work by artists Tomáš Rafa and belit sağ, cultural commentator Siddhartha Mitter will respond to Rafa’s work. Both artists use reportage video to highlight community activist groups and the effect of social and political engagement. The event complements the exhibition “Concrete Truth.”
Location: International Studio and Curatorial Program, 1040 Metropolitan Avenue
Price: Free
Time: Talk 6:30 p.m.–8 p.m.
—Caroline Goldstein
Wednesday, January 24–Sunday, August 5
2. “Out for the Camera: The Self-Portraits of Leonard Fink” at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art
A new exhibition at the Leslie-Lohman Museum debuts the little-known work of photographer Leonard Fink, a photographer who documented the bustling gay scene of the 1970s and early 1980s in the West Village. Hundreds of Fink’s photographs will be juxtaposed with works by artists including Frank Hallam and Stanley Stellar, all from the museum’s holdings.
Location: Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art, 26 Wooster Street
Price: $9 suggested admission
Time: Wednesday–Sunday, 12 p.m.–6 p.m.; Thursday, 12 p.m.–8 p.m.
—Caroline Goldstein
Thursday, January 25
A kinetic sculpture by Arnaldo Morales. Courtesy of El Museo del Barrio.
3. Definitely Contains Moving Parts: An Evening with Arnaldo Morales at the School of Visual Arts
In conjunction with Arnaldo Morales’s current exhibition at El Museo del Barrio, on view through February 3, the artist will speak with curator Rocío Aranda-Alvarado and activate some of his kinetic sculptures.
Location: School of Visual Arts, Chelsea Galleries, Starrett‑Lehigh Building, 601 West 26th Street, 15th Floor
Price: Free
Time: 6 p.m.–8 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Thursday, January 25–Sunday, February 25
Shuvinai Ashoona. Courtesy of Arsenal Contemporary.
4. “Eye to Eye: An Exhibition Benefitting Sanctuary for Families” at Arsenal Contemporary
Arsenal Contemporary has organized its upcoming group show to benefit Sanctuary for Families, a New York nonprofit that assists survivors of domestic violence. Featured artists include Carol Rama, Diana Al-Hadid, Chloe Wise, Ivy Haldeman, and Rita Ackermann.
Location: Arsenal Contemporary, 214 Bowery
Price: Free
Time: Opening reception, 6 p.m.–9 p.m.; exhibition, Wednesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.; Sunday, 12 p.m.–6 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Thursday, January 25–Sunday, January 28
Vermeer: The Complete Works by Karl Schütz. Courtesy of Taschen.
5. Taschen Books Winter Sale
Still got some cash left over from your holiday gifts? Check out Taschen’s biannual sale for up 75 percent off the publisher’s gorgeous books. The volumes, mainly display copies, are unwrapped but in mint condition, and include Taschen’s entire catalog, including tomes on art, photography, and pop culture.
Location: Taschen, 107 Greene Street, and online
Price: Varies by title
Time: Opening reception, 6 p.m.–8 p.m.; Wednesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.; Sunday, 12 p.m.–6 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Thursday, January 25–Sunday, March 10
Bill Beckley’s Front Porch (1987). Courtesy of Albertz Benda.
6. “After the Orgies: Bill Beckley, the Eighties” at Albertz Benda
Bill Beckley was one of the pioneering Soho artists of the 1970s associated with the influential 112 Greene Street space. His second exhibition at Albertz Benda pairs early “conceptual narrative” artworks dating from 1968–78 with wall sculptures and rare and never-before-seen paintings from the 1980s.
Location: Albertz Benda, 515 West 26th Street
Price: Free
Time: Opening reception, 6 p.m.–8 p.m.; Tuesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Thursday, January 25–Sunday, March 18
Thornton Dial’s Ground Zero: Decorating the Eye (2002). © Estate of Thornton Dial. Photo: Stephen Pitkin/Pitkin Studio, collection of the Souls Grown Deep Foundation.
7. “Mr. Dial’s America” at David Lewis Gallery
Thornton Dial managed to simultaneously honor and confront the icons and ideals of America, deftly weaving in current events and historical motifs. The show will feature early self-portraits as well as paintings treating Jim Crow–era America and the struggle for civil rights, the O.J. Simpson trial, and the site of the World Trade Center after the 9/11 attacks.
Location: 88 Eldridge Street, fifth floor
Price: Free
Time: Opening reception, 6 p.m.–8 p.m.; Wednesday–Sunday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
—Caroline Goldstein
Friday, January 26–Thursday, March 1
Erin Treacy’s Think Pink (2013). Courtesy of the artist.
8. “Erin Treacy: Scrupulous Records” at Sunny’s Bar
New York-based artist Erin Treacy works in a variety of materials, creating abstract canvases that reference the fluidity of forms in space. The opening reception will feature live music by Stevie From St. Lou.
Location: Sunny’s Bar, 253 Conover Street, Brooklyn
Price: Free
Time: Opening reception, 6:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m.; Monday 5 p.m.-12 a.m.; Tuesday 4 p.m.-2 a.m.; Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday 4 p.m.-4 a.m.; Saturday 11 a.m.–4 a.m.; Sunday 11 a.m.–12 a.m.
—Caroline Goldstein
Friday, January 26–Sunday, May 6
Dorothea Lange’s San Francisco, California, April 20, 1942. Courtesy National Archives and Records Administration.
9. “Then They Came for Me: Incarceration of Japanese Americans During World War II” at the International Center of Photography
Some 120,000 US citizens and legal residents of Japan ancestry were summarily incarcerated during World War II. Photographers such as Dorothea Lange and Ansel Adams were there to document events like the mass evictions of West Coast families and life in the camp. This exhibition also presents images from Toyo Miyatake, who was among those uprooted from their homes.
The show opens alongside “Edmund Clark: The Day the Music Died,” featuring photographs documenting how the US has responded to the threat of terrorism, such as secret CIA prisons and so-called extraordinary rendition.
Location: International Center of Photography, 250 Bowery
Price: $14
Time: Thursday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Saturday, January 27
Auguste Rodin’s Bourgeois de Calais (The Burghers of Calais) (1889). Philippe Huguen/AFP/Getty Images.
10. “Talk: Exploring Rodin’s Influence” at the Brooklyn Museum
Scholars and critics will discuss French sculptor Auguste Rodin and his sphere of influence. The panel includes artnet News’s own Rachel Corbett, who lends her insight on the artist’s relationship with German poet Rainer Maria Rilke, a topic she explores in her book You Must Change Your Life: The Story of Rainer Maria Rilke and Auguste Rodin.
Location: 200 Eastern Parkway, Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, third floor
Price: $16, includes museum admission
Time: 2 p.m.
—Caroline Goldstein
Monday, January 22–Sunday, April 29
Paul Cézanne’s Ginger Pot with Pomegranate and Pears (1893). Courtesy of the Phillips Collection, Washington, DC.
11. “The Artist Sees Differently: Modern Still Lifes from the Phillips Collection” at the Princeton University Art Museum
A selection of 38 paintings from Washington, DC’s Phillips Collection by European and American masters presents the still life as an important site for the development of the theories of Modernism. Featured artists include Paul Cézanne, Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Marsden Hartley, Milton Avery, and Georgia O’Keeffe, many of whom are represented by rarely seen works.
Location: Princeton University Art Museum, Elm Drive, Princeton, New Jersey
Price: Free
Time: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m.; Sunday, 12 p.m.–5 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Sunday, January 28
Photo courtesy of Topical Cream/MoMA PS1.
12. Anti Bodies at MoMA PS1
Topical Cream, described by MoMA as “a platform for female-identifying and gender non-conforming persons working at the intersection of contemporary art and technology,” presents an afternoon of performance, readings, and installations. The lineup includes “an exploration of surveillance, control, and seduction” by Julia Scher; live music by Zsela and Deli Girls; and a screening of videos by Redeem Pettaway.
Location: MoMA PS1, 22-25 Jackson Avenue, Queens
Price: $15 (members $13)
Time: 2 p.m.–6 p.m.
—Sarah Cascone
Through Saturday, March 10
13. “Analia Saban—Where We Start From” at Gemini G.E.L. at Joni Moisant Weyl
Los Angeles-based artist Analia Saban’s practice explores the fundamentals of painting and challenges traditional printmaking practices, for example by creating prints that are deliberately varied, rather than seeking uniformity throughout an edition.
Location: Gemini G.E.L., 535 West 24 Street, third floor
Price: Free
Time: Tuesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
—Caroline Goldstein
Through Friday, February 9
Colette Brunschwig’s Sans Titre (1972). Image courtesy of OSMOS.
14. “Colette Brunschwig: La Roue Revisited” at OSMOS Address
This career-spanning survey of works by French artist Colette Brunschwig re-stages her 1971 exhibition at Galerie La Roue in Paris, where the atmospheric ink- and paint-based works were suspended throughout the gallery.
Location: OSMOS Address, 50 East First Street
Price: Free
Time: Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
—Caroline Goldstein