The Best Pieces to See at This Year's Armory Show
With more than 200 exhibitors spread throughout 250,000 square feet of exhibition space on Manhattan's West Side Highway, The Armory Show-which takes place on Piers 92 and 94 from March 2-5-can be a decidedly overwhelming experience. But if there's anyone who has an insider's knowledge of the best pieces to see, it's Nicole Berry, the show's deputy director.
One thing Berry considers a can't-miss? Yayoi Kusama's "Guidepost to the New World," pictured above. Made exclusively for the Armory, it's poised to be the most-Instagrammed centerpiece of the new Platform series, which intersperses 15 large-scale installations throughout the piers.
"The idea behind Platform is that we have this great industrial space, but exhibitors can only show works to a certain size in their booths. This affords them the opportunity to showcase works of larger scale on an international stage," Berry says.
Jun Kaneko's 63-foot installation of paintings entitled "Mirage" will also be at the forefront, as will Ai Weiwei's bamboo and silk sculpture. Another standout: Sebastian Errazuriz's piano, which will be suspended over the champagne lounge. Don't let its title, "The Awareness of Uncertainty," deter you from hanging out below with a glass of Prosecco.
This year's Focus section will be presented like a mini museum exhibition, featuring 12 artists from 10 countries and 5 continents, including two participants in the 2017 Whitney Biennial, Deana Lawson and Tuan Andrew Nguyen.
Other highlights include Cerith Wyn Evans's Murano glass chandelier, which is activated by a musical score composed by the artist; Doug + Mike Starn's first solo presentation in New York since their 2010 rooftop commission at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; a selection of minimalist canvas works by Francois Morellet; and works by the ever-popular James Turrell.
While Berry has her money on Kusama for crowd favorite, any of these marquee pieces are bound to end up all over social media. "You never know what's going to cause a selfie moment," she says. If you're lucky, you might be able to snag one with Jeffrey Deitch, Alex Katz, Marilyn Minter, David Salle, or any of the other art world heavyweights participating in panels throughout the weekend. See the full schedule here.
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