There are roughly 500
art
galleries in the city, and
even if you have no intention of
buying, many of these galleries
are well worth seeing. Most
galleries are found in five main
areas: in the 60s and 70s on the
Upper East Side for antiques and
the occasional (minor) Old
Master; 57th Street between
Sixth and Park avenues for big,
established modern and
contemporary names; SoHo for
established but hip artists;
Chelsea for trendy and
up-and-comers; and TriBeCa for
more experimental displays.
Opening times are roughly
Tues-Sat 10am-6pm, but many
galleries have truncated summer
hours and are closed during
August. The best time to
gallery-hop is on weekday
afternoons; the absolute worst
time is on Saturday .
One of the best ways to see
the top galleries is with Art
Tours of Manhattan, which runs
informed (if pricey) guided
tours. Also, pick up a copy of
the Gallery Guide -
available upon request in the
larger galleries - for listings
of current shows and each
gallery's specialty. The weekly Time
Out New York offers broad
listings of the major commercial
galleries. We've listed some of
the more interesting options in
Manhattan.
Soho and Tribeca
123 Watts 123 Watts St
(between Greenwich and Hudson)
tel 212/219-1482.
Trendy gallery known for its
photography, along with other
forms of contemporary art; has
shown work by Robert
Mapplethorpe, Arturo Cuenca
and Bruno Ulmer.
John Gibson 568
Broadway (at Prince St), Suite
101 tel 212/925-1192.
Avant-garde and old school
American painting, sculpture
and prints, with an emphasis
on conceptual art and abstract
works.
Lehmann Maupin 39
Greene St (between Canal and
Grand sts) tel 212/965-0753.
Shows a range of established
international and American
contemporary artists working
in a wide range of media.
Louis Meisel 141
Prince St (at West Broadway)
tel 212/677-1340.
Specializes in Photorealism -
past shows have included
Richard Estes and Chuck Close
- as well as Abstract
Illusionism.
Chelsea
Anima Nosei 530 W 22nd,
2nd floor (between 10th and
11th aves) tel 212/741-8695.
Global works, especially
contemporary pieces by
emerging Latin American and
Middle Eastern artists.
Mon-Fri 11am-6pm.
Barbara Gladstone
Gallery 515 W 24th St
(between 10th and 11th aves)
tel 212/206-9300.
Paintings, sculpture and
photography by hot
contemporary artists such as
Matthew Barney and Rosemarie
Trockel.
Gagosian Gallery W
24th St (between 10th and 11th
aves) tel 212/228-2828.
This stalwart of the New York
scene, owned by an ex-LA
poster salesman, features
modern and contemporary art.
Matthew Marks Gallery
522 W 22nd St (between 10th
and 11th aves) tel
212/243-0200.
The centerpiece of Chelsea's
art scene, it shows the work
of such well-known minimalist
and abstract artists as Cy
Twombly, Ellsworth Kelly and
Lucien Freud. See also the
branch at 523 W 24th St.
Pat Hearn 530 W 22nd
St (between 10th and 11th aves)
tel 212/727-7366.
This longtime venue was an
influential presence in its
former SoHo location, and
continues to specialize in
abstract and conceptual
artists, and risky exhibits.
Paula Cooper 534 W
21st St (between 10th and 11th
aves) tel 212/255-1105.
Another influential gallery
that shows a wide range of
contemporary painting,
sculpture, drawings, prints
and photographs, particularly
minimalist and abstract works.
Robert Miller 524 W
26th St (between 10th and 11th
aves) tel 212/366-4774.
Exceptional shows of
twentieth-century art,
including paintings by David
Hockney and Lee Krasner, and
photographs by artists sich as
Diane Artus and Robert
Mapplethorpe.
Sonnabend 536 W 22nd
St (between 10th and 11th aves)
tel 212/627-1018.
A top gallery featuring
painting, photography and
video from contemporary
American and European artists,
including Robert Morris and
Gilbert and George.
Midtown and Upper East Side
Knoedler & Co. 19 E
70th St (between 5th and
Madison aves) tel
212/794-0550.
Highly renowned gallery
specializing in abstract and
Pop artists and post-war and
contemporary art with a focus
on the New York School. Shows
some of the best-known names
in twentieth-century art,
including Stella, Rauschenberg
and Fonseca.
Leo Castelli 59 E
79th St tel 212/249-4470.
One of the original
dealer-collectors, Castelli
was instrumental in aiding the
careers of Rauschenberg and
Warhol, and offers big
contemporary names at big
prices.
Marlborough/Marlborough
Graphics 40 W 57th St tel
212/541-4900.
Internationally renowned
galleries show the cream of
modern and contemporary
artists and graphic designers,
including Francis Bacon, R.B.
Kitaj and others.
Mary Boone 745 5th
Ave, 4th floor (between 57th
and 58th sts) tel
212/752-2929.
Specializes in installations,
paintings and works by
up-and-coming European and
American artists. A top
gallery, now with an
interesting Chelsea addition
(541 W 24th St between 10th
and 11th aves tel
212/752-2929).
PaceWildenstein 32 E
57th St tel 212/421-3292.
This celebrated gallery has
carried works by most of the
great modern American and
European artists; from Picasso
to Rothko. A SoHo satellite
located at 142 Greene St (tel
212/431-9224) specializes in
edgier works and large
installations.
Spaces
The galleries below provide a
forum for the kind of risky
and non-commercially viable
art that many other galleries
- reliant on trying to get art
into the hands of buyers - may
not be able to afford to show.
Artists Space 38
Greene St, 3rd floor (between
Canal and Grand sts) tel
212/226-3970. One of the most
respected alternative spaces,
with frequently changing
theme-based exhibits, film
screenings, and the like.
Clocktower 346
Broadway (between Worth and
Leonard sts) tel 212/233-1096.
Temporary exhibitions, and an
annual studio program run by
PS1, in which artists work in
the studio space within the
clock tower. Visitors are
allowed to wander around and
talk to the artists about
their work. Go just to see the
incredible views of downtown.
DIA Center for the Arts
548 W 22nd St tel
212/989-5566, www.diacenter.org
. The pre-eminent Alternative
Art Foundation's largest
gallery space shows yearlong
exhibitions of work by artists
such as Joseph Beuys, Dan
Graham, Robert Ryman and Kids
of Survival.
PS 1 Contemporary Arts
Center 22-25 Jackson Ave
(46th St, Long Island City,
Queens). tel 718/784-2084, www.ps1.org
. $2 suggested donation. Based
in an old schoolhouse, this is
the place for avant-garde and
experimental new art.
