6 posts tagged "Tom Sachs"
Monsieur Vladimir Dit Merci
He may be a fixture on the fashion-party-circuit, but Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld continues to make a strong case for himself as an up-and-coming art world contender. Following a successful show with Sotheby’s last October, the Paris native previewed his most ambitious group exhibition to date this morning at developer Aby Rosen’s contemporary art mecca, 980 Madison Avenue. Dubbed Merci Mercy, the 35-artist show explores the power and vitality of the written word. “I was looking for a new concept to develop and discovered that many of the artists I like use text in a systematic way,” said Restoin-Roitfeld, looking every bit the power broker despite frigid climes and the before-noon preview. “It was a good opportunity to bridge the artists I love with those I’m less familiar with and contextualize them in a way that made sense.” Borrowing its title from a Louise Bourgeois inscription (left), the show features works from industry veterans Ed Ruscha and Nan Goldin) to Zeitgeist darlings (Tom Sachs and the late Dash Snow, whose work is pictured below). “We wanted to find pieces that were less expected or typical,” said co-curator and Bortolami Gallery director Christine Messineo, who was introduced to Restoin-Roitfeld by his sister Julia. “And we were especially interested in working with artists from our generation.” To wit, the pair paid studio visits to several younger artists including Rashid Johnson, Jason Loebs and, Lucien Smith, all of whom created original works for the show.This March, Restoin-Roitfeld will curate a two-man exhibition with his longtime collaborator Nicolas Pol and Ashley Bickerton at Lehmann Maupin Gallery, but the roving dealer has no plans for a permanent gallery anytime soon. “I would like to settle down, but it’s a step-by step-process,” the 27-year-old told Style.com, though he’ll start by holding private salons at his new Upper East Side office. “I think it”s good to do things uptown. Young people should see what’s happening on this side of the city.”
Merci Mercy will run until February 17 at 980 Madison Avenue
Kicks In Space
The latest of Tom Sachs’ forays into space will take him to Mars—or at least as close as you can get with the Park Avenue Armory as your launching pad. Sachs, the fashion-favorite artist/provocateur who’s made space travel a particular fascination (when he’s not erecting giant Hello Kitty idols outside Lever House), brings Space Program: Mars to the cavernous Armory for a month-long installation beginning tomorrow. For the show, he’s created all of the viscera of a beginning-and-after space mission—in the words of the official statement, “exploratory vehicles, mission control, launch platforms, suiting stations, special effects, recreational amenities, and Mars landscape”—and, to dress the part, a new capsule collection in collaboration with Nike, dubbed NIKECraft. Would-be Sachs-tronauts can suit up in a sneaker (the Mars Yard Shoe, above, $385), trench, jacket (printed with the periodic table), and tote, all of which will be available at the exhibition space’s pop-up gift shop as well as at stores like Dover Street Market, Colette, 10 Corso Como, Union in Los Angeles, and at Opening Ceremony online beginning May 18.
Space Program: Mars opens tomorrow at the Park Avenue Armory, 643 Park Ave., NYC, www.armoryonpark.org.
What Would You Use This For?
Our pal Todd Selby is known for photographing the homes of the rich and stylish, but as of late, he’s turned his lens on a fair number of work spaces, too—his newly published series of artist Tom Sachs’ studio, in particular, is worth a look. Sachs is the provocateur famous for erecting Hello Kitty statues in New York and building his own self-styled space station (complete with Tyvek spacesuits) in L.A., so no surprise he’s got all manner of oddity hanging around his lair. There’s the custom, T. Sachs-embroidered NASA outfit he works in, chairs made of police partitions, and a tape measure labeled “Stanley Kubrick,” but most curious of all, we’d have to say, is the enormous jug of “Prada oil.” (For all we know, 2008 was a good vintage.) Have a look, and if you know any potential uses for Prada oil, please do let us know in the comments.
Recessionista: Jenna Lyons Is Sharpie Sighted
What: An art-world version of a beloved real-world staple: the Sharpie marker re-created by brand-subverting artist Tom Sachs.
Why: Because even though it’s more than you’re used to spending on a permanent marker, it’s far less than you’d spend on art. “[It’s] the closest that most of us will get to the art world, with a practical application. And it’s cool,” says J.Crew creative director Jenna Lyons, who is well versed on affordable luxury.
Where: $12, www.tomsachs.org
Indochine: Hot For The Holidays?
Sure, Indochine’s sultry lighting, tropical decor, and impossibly attractive staff had its heyday in the eighties, but there’s clearly still some allure left in the old girl. Spotted dining there last night, at separate tables: Interview editorial director Fabien Baron with Paris Vogue stylist Ludivine Poiblanc; Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld celebrating his birthday with a big group of friends including Stavros Niarchos, Lily Donaldson, and sister Julia; and artist Tom Sachs with an unidentified friend.