As the city heats up and summer settles in, artists are flocking to the Hamptons—and we suggest you join them. Group shows, solo exhibitions, and even a few small fairs will add a dose of culture to your seaside excursions. From the Sculpture Garden at the LongHouse Reserve to the inaugural edition of the Upstairs Art Fair, we’ve got a roster of shows and events to get you through this summer.
Yoko Ono’s Play It By Trust (1999). Image © the artist and LongHouse Reserve.
1. The Sculpture Garden at LongHouse Reserve
LongHouse Reserve is spread out over 16 acres, founded by Jack Lenor Larsen, who sought to create an oasis of artwork and natural beauty. The property consists of 18 spaces over four levels, in addition to the ornamental gardens and sculpture park. The park features work by internationally famed artists like Yoko Ono, William de Kooning, Buckminster Fuller, and Dale Chihuly.
LongHouse Reserve is located at 133 Hands Creek Road, East Hampton, NY 11937.
John Graham, Head of a Woman (1954). Collection of Leonard and Louise Riggio, New York. Photo by John Labbe; and Mascara (1950). Image courtesy Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA/ Art Resource, NY.
2. “John Graham: Maverick Modernist” at the Parrish Art Museum
An exhibition celebrating the life and work of Graham, who was a painter, curator, and scholar—and whose influences shaped the 20th-century art world as we know it. Graham was an artist in his own right, aligned with Arshile Gorky and Stuart Davis. He also advised Duncan Phillips of the Phillips Collection as well as the Cone Sisters of Baltimore, and he curated a show of Jackson Pollock’s after publishing the influential essay “Primitive Art and Picasso” in 1937.
Parrish Art Museum is located at 279 Montauk Highway, Water Mill NY, 11976; May 7–July 30
Taryn Simon, Charles Irvin Fain Scene of the crime, the Snake River, Melba, Idaho. Served 18 years of a Death sentence for Murder, Rape and Kidnapping. (2002).
3. “Taryn Simon: The Innocents” at the Guild Hall Museum
Fifteen years after its debut at MoMA PS1, Taryn Simon’s photographic series “The Innocents” is just as prescient. The work is an investigation into the often flawed systems that dictate criminal justice, and how images—photography especially—inform our perspectives on the narrative. Simon interrogates our preconceptions about art and its relationship with the truth, presenting haunting images that are resonant and poignant.
The Guild Hall Museum is located at 158 Main Street, East Hampton, NY 11937; June 17–July 30
Neil Welliver, Study for Prospect Brook (1994).
4. “American Landscape“ at ILLE Arts
A group show featuring artists Casey Chalem Anderson, Fairfield Porter, and Neil Welliver, “American Landscape” brings together different approaches to the environment. Later this season, check out a group show of New York-based abstract painters, and a forthcoming presentation of the ’70s and ’80s club scene by artists Billy Sullivan and Katherine Rudin.
ILLE Arts is located at 171 Main Street, Amagansett, NY 11930; June 24–July 14
Ben Wilson’s Bird’s Eye View. Image © Quogue Gallery 2017.
5. “Ben Wilson“ at Quogue Gallery
Ben Wilson’s abstract compositions are typical of the New York School with which he was associated, beginning in the 1950s. After submersing himself in the aesthetic of the Abstract Expressionist movement, he began to experiment with medium and technique, often using housepaint or sand. Although he left the New York scene shortly after that, he remained a prolific painter. Much of his work is archived at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC.
Quogue Gallery is located at 44 Quogue Street, Quogue, NY 11959; June 29–July 19
Mary Heilmann, Rio Nido (1987). © Mary Heilmann. Photo Thomas Muller, courtesy the artist, 303 Gallery, NY, and Hauser & Wirth.
6. “Mary Heilmann: Painting Pictures“ at the Dan Flavin Institute
The Dan Flavin Institute, an offshoot of the Dia Foundation, showcases a new survey of artist Mary Heilmann, whose practice ran concurrently with minimalist artists like Flavin and Donald Judd. Heilmann’s work was distinct. Though it shares some of the visual sparseness of her contemporaries, she embraced a more traditionally craftsman-like approach—treating everyday objects with a hand-painted finish. The newly opened show covers paintings from the early ’70s, after Heilmann arrived in New York City, along with ceramics and later works, providing a full range of her oeuvre.
On Thursday, August 24, Dia director Jessica Morgan will be speaking with artists Mary Heilmann and Laura Owens at the Parrish Art Museum; details here.
The Dan Flavin Institute is located at 23 Corwith Avenue, Bridgehampton, NY; June 29, 2017–May 27, 2018
Bob Thompson’s The Golden Ass (1963). Image courtesy of Rental Gallery.
6. “Color People“ at Rental Gallery
“Color People” is a group show curated by artist Rashid Johnson, featuring Marina Adams, Robert Colescott, Bob Thompson, and McArthur Binion at Joel Mesler’s recently revamped gallery. According to Johnson, “I’ve often found that artist-organized exhibitions are most successful when the artist chooses to include works they wish they’d made themselves. This exhibition follows that philosophy.”
Rental Gallery is located at 87 Newtown Lane, East Hampton, NY 11937; July 1–July 25
Dean West’s St. Pete’s Beach (2015). Image copyright © Damien A. Roman Fine Art 2017.
7. “Art on the Edge“ at Roman Fine Art
The latest iteration of Roman Fine Art’s presentation of emerging artists includes works by Dean West, Justin Mays, Leah Schrager, Michael Dweck, and Swoon. Also included is the artist Reisha Perlmutter, whose first solo exhibition, “Immerse,” features ethereal oil paintings of women submerged underwater.
Roman Fine Art is located at 66 Park Place, East Hampton, NY 11937; July 1–July 23
Al Loving Jr’s Untitled (1969). Ex-collection The Artist. Image courtesy Mark Borghi Fine Art © 2017.
8. “Moving Targets: American Art from 1918–2012” at Mark Borghi Fine Art
“Moving Targets” places seemingly disparate works side-by-side to glean new visual and conceptual relationships. The artists include Richard Anuszkiewicz, Carl Andre, John Chamberlain, George Condo, Gene Davis, Stuart Davis, Dorothy Dehner, Willem de Kooning, Jim Dine, Sam Francis, Jimmy Ernst, Al Loving, Ken Noland, Conrad Marca-Relli, Richard Prince, David Smith, Jack Twokov, and Christopher Wool—all stars at the vanguard of the American art scene.
Mark Borghi Fine Art is located at 2426 Main Street, Bridgehampton, NY 11932; July 1–July 30, 2017
Kat O’Neill’s King/Set in Stone. Image courtesy of the artist and the White Room Gallery.
9. “Out of Bounds” at The White Room Gallery
“Out of Bounds” at The White Room Gallery features the work of artists Ann Brandeis, Kat O’Neill, Lauren Robinson, and C Fine Art—each stretching the bounds of their chosen medium to articulate an individual perspective.
The White Room Gallery is located at 2415 Main Street, Bridgehampton, NY 11932; July 10–July 31 (Opening reception July 15, 6–8 p.m.)
Royce Weatherly’s Bupkis (2012). Image courtesy of the artist and Watermill Center.
10. “Looking Slowly: 30 Years of Painting” at the Watermill Center
A presentation of three decades worth of painting and photography produced by Royce Weatherly, who has spent his career meticulously depicting everyday objects in precise detail. Each of the paintings is an exercise in acute observation, often the result of years worth of contemplation. A North Carolina upbringing inspires much of Weatherly’s work, which functions as diaristic illustrations.
The Watermill Center is located at 39 Watermill Towd Road, Water Mill, NY 11976 by appointment; August 13–October 11
The barn and former art school will host the first-ever Upstairs Art Fair this July.
The inaugural iteration of the Upstairs Art Fair is coming to the Hamptons for one weekend only! Forget white walls and big tents. Artwork at Upstairs will be presented on the top floor of a three-story red barn, the site of a former art school. With work from a dozen galleries, many presenting artists new to the East End, this might be a fair you actually enjoy.
Upstairs will be held at 11 Indian Wells Highway, Amagansett, NY 11930; July 15–16, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
“Unquestionable Optimism” at The Barn will be open July 28.
12. “Unquestionable Optimism | The Barn Show” in East Hampton
The Lower East Side-based Johannes Vogt Gallery is presenting the third installment of his “Barn Show” series at a private residence in East Hampton this summer. The group show will be curated by Lindsay Howard, a New York-based curator, and features the work of 20 artists, including Trudy Benson, Petra Cortright, Austin Lee, Hannah Perry, Jon Rafman, and Tabor Robak, all displayed in a rustic barn setting.
The address for The Barn is available by email request: info@johannesvogt.nyc; July 28–August 13 (Opening reception, July 28 6–8 p.m.)