Art in Chelsea

What is a classic New York hipster thing to do on a Thursday evening? Why, cruise Chelsea for the art gallery openings, of course. Nowhere else can one walk down the street from building to build drinking cheap wine and taking in every kind of artistic medium imaginable. In the years I've lived here, I've actually never done this before tonight. All of these emerging artists have their work on display for free in these galleries, it's really quite the opportunity.

A friend of mine, whom I met back in the Viennese Opera Ball days is a photographer. He uses incredibly wide-angle lenses to capture panoramic images of New York. As quite the sucker for this city already, I think they're wonderful. He has many on his photography website, Luminous New York, and the corresponding blog, New York Panorama.

I hadn't heard from this friend lately (my fault, sadly), but I saw through Facebook of all things that he is showing some of his images in a gallery in Chelsea. The show is called INCANDESCENT and incorporates the work of three artists who are inspired by architecture and the human interaction with it. From the gallery's website:

All three of these artists deal with architecture and its relationship to anthropomorphism. Buildings may not look like human beings, but they mimic our consciousness in that they project light from within, or have some innate sensory rapport with the immediate natural environment.

When I showed up to the opening reception, I was greeted by a crowd of people already there enjoying the photographs and sculptures. I stopped by the refreshment table to get my obligatory plastic cup of cheap wine. It was wonderful to catch up with my friends (the photographer and his girlfriend both danced with me at the Viennese Ball), and wonderful to see them doing well and finding success.

And hey, if you find yourself in Chelsea, stop by 532 Gallery. It's worth the trip.