Greetings, out-of-towners! Welcome to the beautiful chaos of spring in New York! A decade in, and I am still at the mercy of its warm, blossoming May days. New York is the city of contradictions—of questions and answers, spontaneity and routine, compassion and impatience, possibility and impossibility! Within the lines of these contradictions lives a place that is at the epicenter of culture and creative fusion. Inspiration and discovery are at the tips of everybody’s fingers, but in the meantime, here’s my personal cheat sheet to gear up for Frieze New York 2019.
You’re in town early? Don’t miss Placido Domingo singing in Michael Mayer’s new production of La Traviata at the Met until April 27. You’re hungry? Ippudo for ramen lovers, Shabu-Tatsu for DIY diners, Blue Ribbon Sushi on Sullivan for the low-key. You’re uptown? Pop by Adam McEwen’s installation at Lever House Art Collection, “10, FEELS LIKE 2.” It’s a frozen landscape laced with graphite sculptures (and my most recent project). It’s Saturday, you’ve been to Frieze, are you ready for brunch? Prune or abcV eggs for two, Maialino for family style, Sadelle’s for the real-deal Americana bagel experience. You’re in Brooklyn? Check out the Frida Kahlo retrospective and newcomer Eric N. Mack’s, both exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum. It’s beautiful out and you need a break? Head to Brooklyn Crab in Red Hook to hammer open crabs and eat oysters on the waterfront. It’s late, time for a nightcap? Smalls in the West Village, a hole-in-the-wall live jazz bar that is open every night until 4 a.m. The right kind of cliché? Comedy Cellar followed by martinis at Minetta Tavern. An excuse to overstay? Whitney Biennial, opening on May 17. An excuse to come back? Hito Steyerl unveiling a new commission at Park Avenue Armory on June 20.
On that note, I’ll end with a quote from a woman who knew better, Simone de Beauvoir: “There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless.”
—Roya Sachs
Curator, Lever House Art Collection
@royasachs
