A few months back, some artist friends of mine told me about
this infamous art show on a couple of Manhattan
piers. They said it was an amazingly unique experience not to be missed, they
were completely right. This weekend I decided to check out the show for the
first time and am so completely happy I did.
I was initially curious about the name of the show, since an Armory is, by
definition, a place where arms are kept. I decided to do some digging
and find out whether or not Piers 92 and 94 were armories. I was surprised to find
out the current version of The Armory Show has a history
of changing locations and received it's name when it was moved to the
69th Regiment Armory building on New York's upper East side in 1999.
Previously, an art exhibition called The Armory Show was held there in
1913. Fun fact, since the current version of the show took on the name, this year is technically The Armory Show's 100 year anniversary.
The trip from Hoboken
was quick, super easy and scenic. It was a beautiful day, so I decided to take the NY Waterway ferry from 14th Street in Hoboken to the 39th
Street pier in Manhattan. The $9 each way can be a little difficult to stomach, but on a beautiful *almost* spring day, it was totally worth the extra cash for the convenience and the view.
From the 39th Street pier, I took a leisurely stroll
up the river, passing by the Intrepid Museum and snapping a couple of photos.
I arrived at Pier 94, located at West 55th Street and 12th Avenue,
around 12:30. Since the show opened at noon, the line for tickets was short. I
quickly and easily purchased my tickets and even received some helpful hints from the
girl at the ticket booth. Anticipation was high, but I still had no idea what I was in for.
Once I entered Pier 94, containing contemporary art, I was taken aback. The
pier was an expansive space, many football fields long, containing hundreds of
spaces sponsored by art galleries from around the world. Many of the small
gallery spaces had different layouts and installations; each was distinctly
different from all of the rest. I barely knew where to start!
I aimlessly began walking down the first aisle. Art featured
among the galleries ranged from anything and everything one might be able to
imagine. Pop art, classic art, inventive, creative, loud, quiet, scary,
beautiful, empowering, functional, imaginative… any word you might imagine
could describe a piece of art somewhere within The Armory Show. Galleries represented came from across the United States, Brazil, Japan, Turkey, The United Kingdom, China, Canada, Italy, France, and many more - I wish I could find a complete list!
I would have to say, one of the artists I enjoyed most at the show was David Kramer. His art featured an intertwined old school aesthetic with a pop art twist. I related to both the words in his art and his graphic style. The coolest thing about contemporary artists is the experience of actually following their careers as they develop instead of just appreciating their body of work after they are gone. The coolest thing about David is that he's a New Yorker so our paths even have a possibility of miraculously crossing sometime!
Another powerful piece I was enraptured by was a single large painting by Ryan Foster, Sunset (Smiling Landscape), 2012. It was a single piece, but to me it was the most striking. Foster seemed to be one of the singular contemporary artists utilizing old school oil techniques in a piece harkening back to that of masters before his time. Absolutely stunning.
After spending hours on the contemporary pier, I moved over to Pier 92, housing the modern exhibits, including artists from Andy Warhol to Pablo Picasso and many more known and unknown artists. Unfortunately, by the time I made my way over there, I was already starting to get a little tired. However The Armory Show was very deliberate by choosing to include many respite stops with functional artsy seating areas. I took a load off and soaked in my surroundings. One of the funniest things I saw was two small children also taking a break (who knows where their parents were, but they were no where to be found). These two kids sat amongst hundreds of priceless art pieces and, what were they doing? Their heads were buried in electronic games on smart phones. I guess I have to give them a pass since little kids can get tired in an adult art world, but it was still pretty ironic and kind of sad.
The show was truly amazing and I was so glad I was able to check it out. If you might have missed this year's show, you can still browse the art from the show here or check out my images below.
Thanks for stopping by!
~The Hobokenista
David Kramer, The Armory Show, 2013
Ryan Foster, Sunset (Smiling Landscape), 2012 - The Armory Show, 2013
After spending hours on the contemporary pier, I moved over to Pier 92, housing the modern exhibits, including artists from Andy Warhol to Pablo Picasso and many more known and unknown artists. Unfortunately, by the time I made my way over there, I was already starting to get a little tired. However The Armory Show was very deliberate by choosing to include many respite stops with functional artsy seating areas. I took a load off and soaked in my surroundings. One of the funniest things I saw was two small children also taking a break (who knows where their parents were, but they were no where to be found). These two kids sat amongst hundreds of priceless art pieces and, what were they doing? Their heads were buried in electronic games on smart phones. I guess I have to give them a pass since little kids can get tired in an adult art world, but it was still pretty ironic and kind of sad.
The show was truly amazing and I was so glad I was able to check it out. If you might have missed this year's show, you can still browse the art from the show here or check out my images below.
Thanks for stopping by!
~The Hobokenista
Contemporary Art (me in the middle)
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