By Julia Szabo
As museums and galleries stay open longer hours, new venues are arriving on the scene to quench our collective post-lockdown thirst for fine art—including soon-to-open Southampton outposts of two globally revered auction houses, Christie’s and Phillips. Here, a selection of current shows to take in.
Colm Rowan Fine Art
While COVID compelled many to relocate from New York City to the East End, local Hamptons artist Chris Kelly saw a few pieces of his heart return to the city: the first paintings in Kelly’s new series of “geometric abstracts,” created during the last year and a half, were purchased by Richemont North America Inc., and currently reside in their corporate headquarters on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. See the rest of the series here, May 29-June 20. 55 Main St., East Hampton; colmrowan.com
Grenning Gallery
As the valor of our American heroes continues to be applauded, a show titled Americana couldn’t be more timely. On view through May 31 are paintings by Carl Bretzke and Kelly Carmody, both beautifully referencing our country’s cultural heritage and identity. Carmody, in particular, is noteworthy for deftly executing a pivot—from paintbrush to palette knife—that brings to her already accomplished work a vibrant new normal. 26 Main St., Sag Harbor; grenninggallery.com
Keyes Art
Mysteries is an apt title for the two-person show on view through June 10 at this Sag Harbor space. Curated by gallerist Julie Keyes, the exhibition—at once sleek and soulful—features works by two abstract painters from different generations, yet whose output reveals them to be creative kindred spirits: the late David Geiser, a fixture in the Springs for the past two decades (he passed away last October at age 73); and Lucy Villeneuve, 25, who grew up in Springs. “Their common bond,” explains Keyes, “is that their work is pure emotion—it’s coming straight from their hearts.” Villeneuve especially appreciates the show’s premise: “When I paint, there’s no planning involved,” she says. “When I head into it, it’s always a mystery to me; I go wherever it takes me.” 45 Main St., Sag Harbor; juliekeyesart.com
Phillips
On June 9, as part of its highly anticipated New York Design auction, Phillips will offer a unique, upcycled suite of furniture. A collaboration between fashion maverick Marc Jacobs, interior designer Giancarlo Valle and artist/illustrator Rob Wilson, it was inspired by their fellow New Yorkers joining the chorus of nationwide outrage at police brutality and racial injustice. One hundred percent of proceeds from sales of these furniture pieces will benefit RiseOut: the Activist-in-Residence Fellowship, a new advocacy and community-mobilization program that works to achieve justice and equity for all LGBTQ New Yorkers. Preview the items June 5-8; 1 Hampton Rd., Southampton; phillips.com
Tripoli Gallery
Mastery and menace coalesce in Beasts and Clowns, an exhibition of works by Judith Hudson and Lucy Winton. Hudson’s portraits of various subjects in and out of clown costume were inspired by Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Marcel Carné’s 1946 film Les Enfants du Paradis. Winton’s multidisciplinary work—combining painting, drawing and embroidery into “tactile collages and tapestries”—is a reminder of the mother-of-invention crafting skills we all developed during the pandemic. Through June 14; 26 Ardsley Rd., Wainscott; tripoligallery.com
Jeff Lincoln Art + Design
At his imaginative repurposing of a 19th-century industrial power station into a gallery of collectible art and design, the proprietor announces two exhibitions that, he says, “perpetuate the idea of the Hamptons as an international art and design destination.” The first, Jack Tworkov and Company, Abstract Expressionist Works from the 1950s, is “not the obvious abstract expressionism,” Lincoln promises. Simultaneously, Andy and Friends, In the Hamptons is a show of black-and-white silver gelatin prints depicting Andy Warhol and his high-profile pals: Mick Jagger serving tea at the artist’s Montauk home; Tina Turner wearing a Rolling Stones T-shirt; and the eminence blanche himself disembarking a seaplane. Open on weekends; weekdays by appointment. June 15-September 15. 200 N. Sea Rd., Southampton; collectiveartdesign.com
