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The Art of The Big Apple
New York City
It’s easy to get lost in the New York art scene, especially with the city’s extravagant abundance of art galleries. There are over 1,500 art spaces concentrated mostly in Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn, but we’ve curated some of NYC’s best hubs to guide your aesthete heart! From the garages of Chelsea to the streets of Bushwick, let us take you on an artistic journey to satisfy your visual craving, broaden your perspective, and break your personal boundaries—as is what you do in The Big Apple.
The capital of the Chelsea art scene, Gagosian Gallery—of Larry Gagosian, one of the first mega dealers of the international contemporary art market—is a sprawling 20,000-square-foot, cathedral-like warehouse floor that rivals the city’s great visual museums. With a vast network across the world, Gagosian Gallery exhibits artworks from a vibrant roster of leading global artists, such as minimalist sculptor Richard Serra, painter Anselm Kiefer, and contemporary artist Damien Hirst. It doesn’t stop there, though, as the space also mounts historical shows of maestros like Pablo Picasso, Lucio Fontana, and Jackson Pollock.
- +1 212 741 1111
555 West 24th Street, New York, New York City, USA
- https://www.gagosian.com/
A walk along Troutman Street is a feast for the eyes, thanks to The Bushwick Collective. It is an outdoor gallery created by a group of artists who transformed the neighborhood into the street art epicenter of Brooklyn. Surround yourself with captivating murals of bright characters, intricate patterns, and inventive graffiti by virtuosos from all over the globe—Smithe from Mexico, Icy and Sot from Iran, and the “Father of Stencil Graffiti” Blek le Rat from France, to name a few. Try to spot paintbrush-holding bodies and towering red ladders to witness the behind-the-scenes magic of Bushwick’s booming art scene.
Troutman Street, Brooklyn, New York, USA
- http://thebushwickcollective.com
David Zwirner Gallery (West 20th Street, New York)
1 saveNew York City, United States • Recommendation •
From a modest space in SoHo, David Zwirner cultivated an art empire that has expanded into five galleries in New York, London, and Hong Kong. As one of the most influential individuals in the art world, he represents international contemporary prodigies, including Jeff Koons and Lisa Yuskavage. Join Chelsea’s artist collective at the art dealer’s minimalist purpose-built gallery on West 20th Street to witness acclaimed museum-quality exhibits of past artists and movements.
- +1 212 517 8677
537 West 20th Street, New York, New York, USA
- https://www.davidzwirner.com/
New York’s art enthusiasts come to Luhring Augustine Gallery for its forward-thinking, boundary-pushing, and theoretically rigorous shows—case in point: contemporary artist Paul McCarthy’s provocative YAA-HOO TOWN show of 1996, which recalled sexually explicit scenes of the Old American West through tableaus of life-sized mechanical sculptures. Its diverse group of renowned and up-and-coming artists show expression through different mediums, making each exhibit a different experience from the other.
- +1 212 206 9100
531 West 24th Street, New York, New York, USA
- https://www.luhringaugustine.com/
A well-established uptown blue-chip venue, Acquavella Galleries has been a cornerstone in the New York art scene since opening in 1921. The family-run gallery specializes in the fields of 19th to 21st century art, including Italian Renaissance, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, Post-war, and Pop Art. The French neoclassical townhouse regularly houses the works of Claude Monet, Andy Warhol, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. With younger artists like Damien Loeb, Enoc Perez, and Zeng Fanzhi joining the community, Acquavella Galleries proves that it continues to be a force in the contemporary market, making it a must-see on your art gallery list.
- +1 212 734 6300
18 East 79th Street, New York City, New York, USA
- https://www.acquavellagalleries.com/
Pick up a paddle and pay close attention to the barking auctioneer as you enter one of Sotheby’s famous bids. The first, oldest, and largest recognized international auction house continues to draw crowds yearning to get their art-hungry hands on world-class artworks, jewelry, realty, and collectibles (including wine). If you’d rather steer clear from the hubbub, navigate through the building’s halls to peruse through various free exhibits.
- +1 212 606 7000
1334 York Avenue, New York City, New York, USA
- https://www.sothebys.com/
Find yourself in a bubble of theoretical questioning at Paula Cooper Gallery, the first art gallery in SoHo. For 50 years, it has put a spotlight on conceptual and minimal art by notable artists like Carl Andre, Dan Flavin, and Donald Judd, among others. Currently housed in a 19th century building (by architect Richard Gluckman) in Chelsea, the exhibition space also regularly hosts music symposiums, dance performances, and poetry readings in between art shows.
- +1 212 255 5156
534 West 21st Street, New York, New York, USA
- https://www.paulacoopergallery.com/
Aesthetes commune at Secret Project Robot, an artist-run space in Brooklyn that integrates overlapping art forms into a fluid, casual, and friendly environment. Enter the eclectic (and sometimes confusing) world of video art, installations, performance art, concerts, and parties—and feel free to throw yourself into the mix! For those who need a little dutch courage to break out of their shell, grab a drink from Cuckoo, the gallery’s in-house bar.
1186 Broadway, Brooklyn, New York, USA
- https://www.secretprojectrobot.org/
Andrea Rosen Gallery is all about conceptual experimentation—challenging conventional notions of beauty by breaking down subjectivity through critical thought and practice. Its roster of artists (which include filmmaker Ryan Trecartin and sculptor David Altmejd) are all defined by a responsibility to question the role of their respective mediums in the public realm. Come into the space with an open mind, and you’ll come out with a new-found perspective.
- +1 212 627 6000
544 West 24th Street, New York, New York, USA
- https://www.andrearosengallery.com/
Gavin Brown’s Enterprise (Grand Street, New York)
1 saveNew York City, United States • Recommendation •
Avant-garde art dealer Gavin Brown’s social hub features exhibits that constantly re-imagine the definition of art. Amongst its most popular exhibits are relational pioneer Rikrit Tiravanija’s “Fear Eats the Soul,” where guests are invited to taste the artists’ cooking; and conceptual artist Urs Fischer’s “You,” which showed a dug up two-and-a-half meter deep crater in the middle of the space.
- +1 212 627 5258
Third Floor, 291 Grand Street, New York, New York, USA
- http://gavinbrown.biz
For decades, Michael Werner has represented some of the most important artists of our time, such as poet and visual artist Marcel Broodthaers, installation sculptor James Lee Byars, and figurative painter Peter Doig. Discover the esteem attached to the legendary German art dealer’s name as you visit his New York gallery. Witness contemporary American and European pieces, as well as works from modern masters like abstract artist Hans Arp and avant-garde virtuoso Piero Manzoni.
- +1 212 988 1623
4 East 77th Street, New York, New York, USA
- https://michaelwerner.com/
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