Larry Gagosian is the king of the art world. Along with his multi-million dollar wheelings and dealings, all-star artist line-up (Ed Ruscha, Richard Serra, John Currin, Cecily Brown, Damien Hirst, and many, many, MANY more), slew of international galleries (3 in New York, 2 in London, and one each in L.A., Rome, and Athens, with more to come), the master art-world businessman recently added a luxury retail boutique to his empire.
Gagosian, located at 988 Madison Avenue, just downstairs from his Madison Ave. gallery, is a 2,500-square-feet storefront stocked with countless art books, magazines, prints, posters, and limited edition items by the gallery's eye-poppingly impressive roster of talent. The Gagosian store reminds me a lot of Moss in Soho, the high-end design mecca, but with far more connections to blue-chip artists. A gazillionaire could artfully redecorate a residence with Gagosian's selection of limited edition, artist-signed prints; the Richard Prince Nurse Hat Chair ($175,000); the Damien Hirst wallpaper ($300 for a flower print or $1,000 for pills or butterfly prints); a Marc Newson table; and adorable Jeff Koons Puppy Vases ($7,500). Even if your wallet lacks the buying power, this is a fun shop to visit and browse. Read more at flavorwire.com. Learn more about Larry Gagosian from this March 2009 NYTs article.
Upstairs at the galleries is Eight Sculptures, featuring 8 new, bronze, historically and architecturally referential sculptures by 81-year-old Cy Twombly; a series of collages by Richard Prince which each consist of four, numbered, cut-and-paste images showing models (Stella Tennant, Kate Moss), bands (Sex Pistols, Joy Division, Talking Heads), and various other cultural figures; and Proud Flesh, showcasing intimate, black and white, nude portraits Sally Mann lovingly shot of her husband of forty years, Larry, who has Muscular Dystrophy. The moving, grainy, imperfect photos (Mann developed them using a tricky "wet plate" process which easily cracked and marred her images) make her husband's aging, weakening body appear statuesque. Read an interview with Mann regarding these photos at Guardian.co.uk.
Over at Gagosian's West 24th Street gallery space is Monochrome Age, a solo exhibition featuring 39-year-old, German artist Anselm Reyle's large-scale, monochromatic, reflective and shiny sculptures and paintings made from found objects.
Also on view is a new, four panel canvas by Japanese art superstar, Takashi Murakami titled, A Picture Of The Blessed Lion Who Stares At Death, 2009. Featuring a maniacal, Cheshire Cat-looking lion and some little, baby cubs peering down a bridge made of human skulls. The trippy painting depicts an allegory about cubs being thrown off cliffs by their parents in a test of strength and survival. Now that's tough love!
Learn more about all the above exhibitions at Gagosian.com.
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