A Thermodynamic Relationship
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
As New Yorkers flock to the Hamptons during the summer months, so does the city’s art scene. Think of it as a thermodynamic relationship: When the city art scene cools down, the Hamptons heat up, and no more so than over the next month. This weekend’s unofficial kickoff of the Hamptons art fair season offers a chance to assess what’s on offer, what’s new, and what’s to come.
First up is ArtHamptons, the International Fine Art Fair, which opens Friday. With 55 participating galleries, ArtHamptons is the largest Hamptons show of the summer. The fair, housed in four buildings on the grounds of the Bridgehampton Historical Society, includes work from international galleries such as Toronto’s Nikola Rukaj Gallery, Wally Findlay Galleries International, which has an outpost in Barcelona, and London’s Frost & Reed and Waterhouse & Dodd galleries. But it doesn’t ignore the locals, such as East Hampton’s Spanierman Modern, Bridgehampton’s Mark Borghi Fine Art, Southhampton’s Peter Marcelle Contemporary, and Water Mill’s Ark Project Inc. In addition to the art offered by the fair’s exhibitors, the fair’s associated galas and collector’s preview, and fund raisers offer chances to bid on works including Andy Warhol’s “Committee 2000 (FS-289)” (1982), Wolf Kahn’s “Unused Barn (L.I.)” (2002), and Lee Krasner’s “Embrace” (1974).
Competing for attention during the busy, post-Fourth-of-July weekend is the 17th Hamptons Antiques Classic, hosted by Matt Lauer, which opens today at the Bridgehampton Community House.
Beginning July 24 is Scope Hamptons, the Long Island outpost of Scope Art Fairs, which includes sister fairs in New York City, Basel, Switzerland, London, England, Miami, and Madrid. Now in its fourth year, Scope Hamptons offers more than 40 contemporary galleries from 15 countries, including 33 Bond, Jack the Pelican Presents, and Michael Steinberg Fine Art. The show is housed in the 25,000-square-foot East Hampton Studios.
And if your tastes run more bohemian than big-name, the late-summer, Amagansett-based East Hampton Fine Arts Festival, which is on view August 30 and 31, offers jewelry, mixed media, glass, and fiber artists alongside its painters and photographers.
If art fairs aren’t your thing, Hamptons gallery shows gear up, too. Guild Hall, in East Hampton, has on display through July 27 “Inspired by the Light: Landscapes by East End Masters,” which showcases Landscape painters Jane Wilson, Jane Freilicher, and April Gornik, all of whom are East End residents. The museum’s other summer exhibition, “Larry Rivers: Major Early Works,” which opens August 9, is an introduction to the paintings of the Bronx-born artist caught between Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art.
If you like your art up close and personal, the Artists Alliance of East Hampton sponsors its annual Artists Studio Tour of the Hamptons, which takes place today through Sunday. A self-guided excursion, the tour introduces visitors to artist workspaces across the region, including Southampton, Shelter Island, and East Hampton. The following weekend, the AAEH hosts an exhibition of work by Jackson Pollock, Ibram Lassaw, Willem de Kooning, and Lee Krasner in Ashawagh Hall in East Hampton.
Finally, a Hamptons gallerygoer standby: the Dan Flavin Art Institute. Housed in a charming converted church in the heart of Bridgehampton, the Institute’s permanent installation of nine fluorescent works by light artist Flavin has been a fixture on the scene since 1983, and the gallery has also featured temporary exhibitions by artists including Louise Bourgeois, Warhol, and John Chamberlain. This summer, it offers a special exhibition of the work of German artist Imi Knoebel. The show, “Imi Knoebel, Knife Cuts,” a collection of 35 vibrant collages, will be on display through October 12.