Every week, Artnet News brings you Wet Paint, a gossip column from original scoops. If you have any advice, email Annie Armstrong at [email protected].
RING AROUND THE DIRECTOR’S ROLE
If you know me IRL, you’ve probably heard me say it a thousand times: the best kept secret of this column is that it’s not really about gossip, it’s all reported facts, just written… to chatter. And that’s true! I won’t say anything good to you to people I don’t know to be absolutely truehandmade hat.
However, the past few weeks have really got the rumor mill going, as a string of high profile museum directors play musical chairs – and the music hasn’t stopped yet. Imminent changes in the leadership of some of our country’s most revered institutions are underway, and people can’t help but speculate about who’s going where and whether a change of director might be in sight. Although I can’t confirm that all of this is true, I can give you an idea of what is being talked about in town with people who are pretty aware. Let’s dive into pure, unsubstantiated gossip, all caps, okay?
The staff at MoMA PS1 wondering for quite a while who will fill the sacred role of director, Kate Fowle left this month of March to work as Hauser & Wirthcuratorial director. The most important position in the Queens Museum was occupied by Klaus Biesenbach from 1995 to 2018, and a current PS1 employee joked to me that he might be “BiesenBACK”. In other circumstances, such an about-face would be shocking, but Biesenbach gave up his coveted position at MOCA Los Angeles return to their native Germany to direct THE New Nationalgalerie in 2021. Maybe he’s restless once again. Other loudly repeated rumors about the role of the PS1 mentioned Lauren Cornell, Koyo Kough, Paul Ha, Thomas Lax, Connie Butler, Legacy RussellAnd Hamza walker.
Oh, and a new name has also just entered the fray: Eva Respiniwho left her position as chief curator at ICA Boston at the beginning of the week, accompanied by a press release tantalizingly declaring that she “announce its next chapter in the coming weeks. Guesswork about his whereabouts immediately started rolling in, with bets being placed alternately on a move to the PS1 or the Guggenheim Museumwho was looking for a successor to replace the outgoing Robert Armstrong when he go this year after almost 15 years in the role. AAccording to sources close to the Guggenheim, the new director will be announced in the coming weeks, possibly around the time of the museum’s big spring party..
Respini – who was curator and co-curator of the US pavilion last year Venice Biennaleand who will ensure this year’s “Platform” section Armory Show—would be an obvious choice. However, sources familiar with the matter have whispered to me that this is not the case, and that, hey, maybe she will be heading for the New MuseumOr Lisa Phillips is currently at the helm, or, who knows, she might pull off a Kate Fowle and move into the world of mega-galleries.
Fantasy League, anyone? Your guess is as good as mine in this crazy, mixed up world.
PUBLIC ACCESS NO LONGER GRANTED
The scene outside an opening to Public Access. Photo by Annie Armstrong.
Life moves pretty fast – if you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you might miss it.
The famous Ferris Buller-ism also lends itself quite well to the New York gallery scene, where it’s always #GroworGo, with exciting and ambitious new spaces popping up while accomplished ones breathe their last breaths seemingly every month. May is no exception. According to my spies, Public access should close after this summer. I would be quite sad to see this gallery close, it has become one of my favorites over the past few years.
“When I started to St. MarkI didn’t think about how much money I could make, I thought about how much I could afford to lose”, its owner, Leo Fitzpatricktold me last fall while I was reporting on boom in the galleries on Henry Street. He had opened Public Access in the East Village in 2020 and moved to Henry Street in 2021 to get cheaper rent and be closer to the community and the skate park on Monroe And Pike. (“It’s the kids I want to come here, it’s the skateboard kids,” he told me in that interview, as a former skate rat himself – you’ll recall he was chosen by larry clark play TV In Children.)
Fitzpatrick remained silent on the gallery’s closure, but some contextual clues might help. Before launching Public Access, he was an administrator at Malborough, and before This he had opened two galleries, called Alone at home And home alone 2who categorically did not sell art. These were co-founded with Nate Lowman And Hanna Liden.
Likewise, Fitzpatrick never saw Public Access as particularly commercial, once telling me, “We suck at selling art. We don’t sell anything. We are lucky if we break even. That’s not why I do it. I also have a full time job. But hopefully we can open some kids’ eyes to what the idea of art is, how big an umbrella is.
I hope he just has restless legs, and it won’t be the last we see of his imaginative and democratic programming, which at Public Access has notably exhibited photographs of David Schubertpaintings of Steve Keena book of cut-out photographs of Christophe Laine, and several group shows that surely reignited the imaginations – and possibly the careers – of those skateboarders who lined up for their openings, among other things. Their current group show “Joke’s Up!” Features work by Marika Thunder, Daniel Johnson, Noah Trimbleand street artist slut, and apparently they’ll be hosting a few more over the summer before officially closing in September. Go grab it while you can.
WE HEAR
PPOW took over the performance of Mosie Romney Since Nicodim… THE Frick East looking for two new conservative assistants as they plan to return to their original accommodation (not a bad office space if you ask me; I hear that employees can access a bowling alley in part separated from the house)… Maelle Ebellethe director of Ceysson & Benetiere‘s in Luxembourg, decamp to the greenest pastures of the gallery’s New York space… Alteronce Gumby To started crowdfunding a new documentary on a very simple but very complicated subject: color!… Julia Fox seems to redo art, and it it actually looks pretty cool?… According lucie bullIt is perfectly imperfect essay, Obe Fitness classes are the best way for painters to deal with aching bodies after long days in the studio… ArtReview brought Louise Benson as Chief Digital Officer… The Hawthorne has closed meaning there is one less decent dive bar in chelsea…
spotted
Lucas Zwirner, Dorian Grinspan, Thor ShannonAnd Max Levai during a dinner at Eli Bronfmanthe Soho house filled with artwork before they head to the new East Village hotspot Ella Funt for a Met Gala after the party *** Cecile Brown smoke with Joe Messer outside of the Arden Wohl-organized the opening of the collective exhibition in james fuentes *** Sean ThorConroe, Natasha StaggAnd Pierre Vack at the launch party for the new issue of Always Mag *** Public Art FundThe annual gala drew a star-studded crowd, including Paul Rudd, Jacolby Satterwhite, Hugues HaydenAnd Carla Shen *** Gavin Brun, Loic GouzerAnd Jeff Magid To Harold Ancartfirst opening at Gagosian *** Anthropology made a editorial shoot apart from Mac’s Club Deuce In Miamiand seeing it pop up on Instagram gave me a vague feeling of PTSD***
⭐ ? ⭐ CALL FOR CASTING! ⭐ ?️ ?
Last week’s prompt was for a Bourne’s Identity-action thriller style on Inigo Philbrick fleeing New York for the island of Vanuatuwith necessary casting for Philbrick, his wife Victoria Baker Harberand the former mentor he cheated, Jay Jopling. The winner is an advisor and curator Alexis Hydewho chose Ben Barnes like Inigo (“catch that shark look – should dye her hair”), Louis Theroux like Jay, and Jenna Coleman like Victoria. Sounds like a movie I would love to see!
I’ll put the cast on hold while I set aside time to mail them out Wet Paint Caps. See you next week, though!
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