NEW YORK, NY.- Members of The Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA), the nation's foremost nonprofit organization of leading art dealers, return together this fall for
The Art Show to showcase their dynamic programs-- featuring more than 40 solo presentations, as well as an array of dual, thematic, and group exhibitions. Inaugurating a new moment on the international fair calendar and enlivening the fall arts season in New York, the 2021 edition takes place at the Park Avenue Armory with new fall dates, November 4 through November 7, with the annual Benefit Preview on Wednesday, November 3. This year's fair sees the launch of an accompanying online hub, TheArtShow.org, for collectors and the public to engage with The Art Show from anywhere in the world. Beginning this fall, the site will offer virtual access to works from the fair, experts from ADAA member galleries, and the fair's on-site programming.
All proceeds from fair admissions to the Benefit Preview and the run of show support Henry Street Settlement, one of New York's leading social service, arts, and health care organizations. The Art Show represents Henry Street Settlement's greatest source of unrestricted funding, having raised over $33 million through its three-decade partnership with the ADAA. For the 10th consecutive year in 13 years of partnership, AXA XL, a division of AXA, a pioneering specialist in the fine art and collectibles insurance space, is the Lead Partner of The Art Show.
Recognized for its unhurried atmosphere that enables one-on-one conversations with gallerists, The Art Show comprises 72 thoughtfully-curated exhibitions proposed by ADAA members, which are selected by The Art Show Committee, also constituted by members, to ensure the standard of connoisseurship that is synonymous with the fair.
Over half of this year's presentations are dedicated to exploring the practices and significance of artists from around the world, ranging from key art historical figures of the 19th century, to up-and-coming voices in contemporary art. Highlights of solo and dual presentations include:
Major new drapo Vodou works by Haitian artist Myrlande Constant, curated by gallery-represented artist Tomm El-Saieh and presented by Luhring Augustine;
Yancey Richardson's presentation of iconic self-portraits by Tseng Kwong Chi, and Tseng's photo sequence made in collaboration with Keith Haring and Bill T. Jones;
Corbett vs. Dempsey's showcase of drawings by Emilio Cruz and canvases by Omar Velázquez, both of different generations of the broader Caribbean diaspora, their work engages their national and ethnic identities through allegory and allusion;
A selection of works by Argentinian artist Xul Solar, curated by Gabriela Rangel, former Artistic Director of Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires, and presented by Sicardi | Ayers | Bacino;
Tina Kim Gallery's showcase of paintings and works on paper with bright colors and bold gestures by Korean artist Wook-Kyung Choi;
The debut of five monumental tapestries by Navajo weaver Melissa S. Cody, in her first Art Show appearance, with Garth Greenan Gallery;
Sprüth Magers' solo presentation of recent and historic works by pioneering conceptual artist John Baldessari;
Jenkins Johnson Gallery's presentation of rare paintings by Wadsworth Jarrell, along with fine art garments and sculptures by Jae Jarrell, both of whom are founding members of AfriCOBRA and helped create and define the aesthetics of the Black Arts Movement;
P.P.O.W's three-decade survey of Katharine Kuharic's simultaneously pastoral and pop paintings that have defined a genre of distinctly queer image-making;
Bluemner and the Critics, organized by Menconi + Schoelkopf Fine Art, uniting American modernist Oscar Bluemner's drawings, watercolors, and paintings, with his "Easel Notes" sketchbooks, and writings on art, as well as text from Dr. Roberta Smith Favis, Professor Emerita of Art History at Stetson University;
David Kordansky Gallery's two-person exploration of luminosity, featuring Parabolic Lens sculptures by Fred Eversley and new works on paper by Mary Weatherford, made especially for The Art Show;
Avery Galleries' presentation of works by Arthur B. Carles, examining the artist's important contributions to early American modernism;
Over three decades of Dorothea Tanning's seminal paintings, ranging dramatically in scale and idiom, accompanied by a complementary salon-style grouping of her smaller paintings and works on paper, exhibited by Gallery Wendi Norris;
Collage paintings and works on paper by Benny Andrews that explore the themes of religious spirituality and community, presented by Michael Rosenfeld Gallery; and
Photography-based works and sculptures by Venice Biennale Golden Lion recipient Su-Mei Tse, presented by Peter Blum Gallery.
Vibrant group and thematic presentations are consistently a highlight of The Art Show each year. This year's exhibitions range from explorations of twentieth-century art-making in Brazil and Mexico, to a collection of more than 400 years of prints, drawings, and paintings by key figures of art history. They include:
An exploration of the impact of Forrest Bess' "visionary" paintings on post-war American abstraction, presented by Franklin Parrasch Gallery;
A collection of 400 years of print, drawing, and painting mastery, including rare works by Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt van Rijn, John Robert Cozens, Gustave Courbet, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso, mounted by David Tunick, Inc.; and
Leon Tovar Gallery's multigenerational examination of the radically experimental and eclectic artistic practices that emerged in Brazil during the twentieth century to challenge the bounds of the insular art object.
"It's so exciting to bring members of the ADAA back together again, after an unprecedented year, to share their vibrant programs with the public, and engage directly with collectors and each other. With its new spot on the fall arts calendar moving forward, The Art Show is well-positioned to continue with its more than three-decades-long history of showcasing the high quality programs and expertise of our member galleries, as well as supporting the important work of Henry Street Settlement," said Anthony Meier, President of the ADAA and Founder of Anthony Meier Fine Arts and Susan Sheehan, Chair of The Art Show Committee and Founder of Susan Sheehan Gallery.
"Henry Street Settlement joins the ADAA in embracing our return to the Park Avenue Armory, with a new date on the calendar and a deeply meaningful opportunity to come together in support of community members in need," said David Garza, Henry Street Settlement President and CEO. "For 33 years, The Art Show has served not only as a seminal New York City cultural event but the largest source of unrestricted funding for Henry Street Settlement. During the pandemic, this funding allowed the Settlement to keep its doors wide open and its services uninterrupted; in fact we have significantly expanded programming, opening three food pantries, providing emergency cash assistance to unemployed workers including undocumented individuals and artists, and taking on new mental health and job-training programming. As ever, Henry Street is indebted to the ADAA and The Art Show patrons for sustaining this tradition of combining a world-class art experience with support for New Yorkers in need."