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Mixed Sales at Art Fairs

Mixed Sales at Art Fairs

Bernie Taupin, left, and Mark Borghi shared a moment together in the Borghi booth at Art Southampton during last Thursday night’s “platinum V.I.P. preview.”
Bernie Taupin, left, and Mark Borghi shared a moment together in the Borghi booth at Art Southampton during last Thursday night’s “platinum V.I.P. preview.”
Jennifer Landes
As might be expected, those who reported sales were more willing to speak for the record than the disappointed participants
By
Mark Segal

South Fork art dealers reported mixed results during and after last week’s two art fairs, Art Southampton and Market Art + Design. As might be expected, those who reported sales were more willing to speak for the record than the disappointed participants.

Sara Nightingale had a booth at Market Art + Design, formerly Art Market Hamptons, which relocated this summer to Fairview Farm in Bridgehampton. “Every booth was really well laid out and had good art,” she said. “The tent and architectural layout were beautiful, as was the water view.” She felt the size of the fair was manageable and intimate.

As of press time, she had sold works by Rossa Cole, Glenn Fischer, and Elizabeth Wadsworth, and expected to close on several other sales. “It was definitely worth it for the forging of new relationships and the art world gossip about upcoming fairs, artists, and dealers you need to know about to stay ahead of the curve.”

Scott Bluedorn of Neoteric Fine Art was also pleased about Market. “It was a very good fair this year. I was showing all East Hampton artists. Attendance was decent, despite the really nice weather that I’m sure kept a lot of people away, as well as the new location at Fairview Farm in Mecox. It was nice to be removed from the busy part of town where the fair had previously been, and it made the fair more of a destination. I was lucky to report some sales, as many neighboring galleries were somewhat disappointed. I will probably do the fair next year as well.”

One dealer, who preferred to remain anonymous, sold nothing at Market Art + Design and felt there were not enough people and not enough who wanted to spend money. Others who didn’t sell said they had a lot of “bebacks, folks who said they would be back” and made some good contacts. All agreed it was a beautiful fair.

Beth McNeill of the McNeill Art Group was enthusiastic about Art Southampton, which closed Monday. “The fair has been a great success. We sold work by regional artists Tapp Francke and Jeff Muhs, as well as work by New York-based Neil Powell and Adriana Carvalho from Miami. There was a steady flow of the right people actively seeking art, including art advisers, designers, private collectors, and museum professionals from our region and New York City.” 

Mark Borghi, whose eponymous gallery was also represented at Art Southampton, sold one piece in a booth devoted to Bernie Taupin but said the fair’s relocation to Nova’s Ark Project in Bridgehampton was a very positive move. “It’s the best place to have a fair,” he said.

Karyn Mannix had a booth at ArtHamptons, which ran from July 2 through July 5, and at Market Art + Design. She was more succinct. “I did very well at ArtHamptons,” she said.

Performances Live and On Screen at Guild Hall

Performances Live and On Screen at Guild Hall

Sue Costello
Sue Costello
Sue Costello's show "is the best combination of genuine poignance and rollicking humor since the pioneering stage work of Lily Tomlin and early Whoopi Goldberg.”
By
Mark Segal

Guild Hall will present “I Wasn’t Trying to Be Funny,” a one-woman show by Sue Costello, a comedian and actress, tomorrow at 8 p.m. The performance follows Ms. Costello’s life from her childhood through teenage adventures to a career in stand-up, on television, and in films.

A Boston native, Ms. Costello began her career there, then moved to Manhattan and appeared on such television shows as “N.Y.P.D. Blue” and “Tough Crowd” with Colin Quinn. She then co-created, produced, and starred in her own self-titled series on the Fox network. Her film credits include “The Fighter,” starring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale, and “Southie,” with Donnie Wahlberg.

Art Levine of The Washington Monthly enthused, “Her one-person show is the best combination of genuine poignance and rollicking humor since the pioneering stage work of Lily Tomlin and early Whoopi Goldberg.” Tickets range in price from $22, $20 for members, to $60 and $58.

Jarrod Spector, a 2014 Tony Award nominee for his portrayal of the songwriter Barry Mann in “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” will take the stage at Guild Hall Sunday evening at 8 with his own show, “A Little Help From My Friends.”

Inspired in part by Frankie Valli, whom Mr. Spector played on Broadway in “Jersey Boys” for five years, the program will draw from the music of such artists as Caruso, the Beach Boys, Wham, Little Richard, Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Bruno Mars, and Queen, in addition to the Four Seasons. A full band and backup singers will accompany Mr. Spector. Tickets are $30, $28 for members; preferred seats are $75 and $70.

The Rock Cinema series will continue next Thursday at 8 p.m. with “Dave Chappelle’s Block Party,” a documentary by Michel Gondry about the block party thrown by the comedian in 2004 in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn. The uncensored film features music from Kanye West, the Roots, the Fugees, Mos Def, Wyclef Jean, John Legend, and many others. Tickets are $12, $10 for members.

The Art Scene: 07.02.15

The Art Scene: 07.02.15

Ralph Carpentier’s “Barn on a Hill” is part of a solo exhibition of his work organized by Pamela Williams at the Amagansett Library.
Ralph Carpentier’s “Barn on a Hill” is part of a solo exhibition of his work organized by Pamela Williams at the Amagansett Library.
Local art news
By
Mark Segal

Ralph Carpentier in Gansett

An exhibition by Ralph Carpentier of Springs is on view at the Amagansett Library and will run through July 30. Mr. Carpentier’s paintings on canvas and works on paper capture Long Island’s native beauty with scenes of farmland, seascapes, fields, and the island’s back bays. On Sunday, Mr. Carpentier will be at the library to greet visitors from 2 to 5 p.m.

“Vice Versa” at Ille Arts

“Vice Versa,” a show of abstract work by Eric Brown, will open tomorrow at Ille Arts in Amagansett. Mr. Brown pushes beyond abstract art criticisms and focuses on defying what art critic Raphael Rubinstein calls “a sensual conundrum of figure ground/confusion.” The exhibition will run through July 21.

There will be an opening reception tomorrow from 5 to 8 p.m.

Mosaics and More at Olko

The Monika Olko Gallery in Sag Harbor opened a three-artist exhibition last Thursday that will run until the end of July. The works on display include photography, mosaic images, and mixed-media compositions by Alain Riviere, Joel Moens de Hase, and Dean Johnson. The gallery will host receptions to formally kick off the show tomorrow and Saturday from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.

The photos by Mr. Riviere, a Franco-American, illustrate the relationship between humanity and the earth, portraying figures in emotive positions, covered by the same clay as their surroundings. The result is intended to display humanity in moments of abandonment and primitiveness.

A Belgian photo-mosaicist, Mr. de Hase’s iconic arrangements of pixeled images are created by combining tiny, fragmented photographs of women’s curves. The gallery is also introducing some of his new, non-mosaic pieces.

Mr. Johnson, known for the interplay of various mediums in his colorful works, is showing effervescent pieces of ink, wax, paint, and resin illuminated by changing LED lights.

Two at Halsey Mckay

The Halsey Mckay Gallery in East Hampton will feature two solo exhibitions through July 13. Elise Ferguson’s “This Way That” is seemingly named for its exploration of perception through the tensions that arise when mixing control and order, illusions and real space, concentric circles and mathematical grids. A Brooklyn resident, Ms. Ferguson examines not just the limitations of various materials but also their trickery on the eye.

Hayal Pozanti’s first exhibition with the gallery, “Scrambler,” is a series of paintings and sculpture, including an animated GIF piece. Ms. Pozanti acts as an intermediary between digital space and traditional media in a show that preserves technology for certain societal impacts.

Artists Alliance

At Ashawagh Hall

The Artists Alliance of East Hampton will present the 21st annual Member Art Exhibit at Ashawagh Hall from Saturday through July 12. There will be a reception on Sunday from 5 to 8 p.m. Artists can take a piece of work tomorrow from 2 to 4 p.m., wired to hang, that does not exceed 25 by 25 inches, including the frame. The hanging fee is $45.

Sculpture Retrospective in a Barn

Eric Firestone Gallery will present an exhibition of 50 years of work by Mia Fonssagrives-Solow at the artist’s barn at Truxel Farm, 124 Route 114, East Hampton. A cocktail reception will be held at the farm tomorrow from 4 to 8 p.m.

A prolific sculptor, Ms. Solow has worked in a wide variety of materials, from traditional wood and metals to innovative opaline Lucite and recycled food containers. Her work ranges in scale from jewelry to monumental statues.

Dinner With Pollock

Robyn Lea, the author of “Dinner with Jackson Pollock: Recipes, Art and Nature,” will be at several events this week for her new book. On Saturday, she stop by the Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill for a talk and book signing. The book features 50 recipes collected from handwritten pages by Pollock, Lee Krasner, and his mother, Stella. Samples of selected items will be offered and books, which cost $50, can be reserved online. A limited number will be available on site. Tickets cost $10 and are free for members and students.

On Tuesday at 5 p.m., Ms. Lea will be a part of a panel discussion at Guild Hall alongside Michael Rozzi, the chef at the 1770 House, who helped create the recipes for the book, and Ruth Appelhof, the executive director at Guild Hall, who lived and cooked with Lee Krasner. The panel will discuss the makings of the book and touch on the relationship between art and food. The event is free.

Found Object Art

Romany Kramoris Gallery in Sag Harbor will open an exhibition today of work by Jorge Silveira, Stephen Palmer, William Skrips, and Jonathan Pearlman, all of whom use found objects in their work. A reception will take place Saturday from 5 to 6:30 p.m., and the show will run through July 23.

Self-taught, Mr. Silveira has incorporated old wooden objects, salt, pieces of rusty metal, and acrylic paint in his paintings on wood. Mr. Palmer uses such materials as wooden crutches, Ping-Pong paddles, crayons, and nails to create eccentric fish sculptures.

“My studio is just an inspiring tumble of raw materials,” according to Mr. Skirps, which he uses to make wooden reliefs, Joseph Cornell-like dioramas, and freestanding pieces. Mr. Pearlman’s fanciful birds, cows, and figures, assembled from wood and other materials, bring to mind the work of Rube Goldberg.

 

Eastville Tintypes, From Floor to Wall

Eastville Tintypes, From Floor to Wall

An exhibition of high-resolution reproductions of tintype and cabinet-card albumen images taken by William G. Howard
By
Jennifer Landes

The Eastville Community Historical Society has a unique and rich story to tell about its background and earliest residents, one it can and will tell visually in the coming days.

On July 11, it will open "Collective Identity: Portraits of Early Eastville Residents, 1882-1915," an exhibition of high-resolution reproductions of tintype and cabinet-card albumen images taken by William G. Howard, a 19th-century photographer who lived in the area and knew his subjects well. The result is a vivid document of a group of individuals whose personalities shine through the surface and who have a dignity and level of comfort unusual for any portraits of the time, but particularly those of minorities.

But just like Eastville’s mix of three ethnicities (African-American, Native American, and European immigrants), the images are also ethnically diverse. The subjects, all working class, range in age from babies to those late in life.

They have a formality and grace one would expect from portraits engraved on currency. Taken in Howard’s Sag Harbor studio, the subjects are mostly seated and in their Sunday-best attire. They are portraits that “show personality, dignity, and respect,” Donnamarie Barnes said recently. She is the photo consultant and conservator for the historical society and has managed the research, which has led to several identifications of sitters who had been previously unknown.

Georgette Grier-Key, the director of the historical society, added, “It’s unusual to see marginalized people of that era look so dignified and in clothing they had pride in wearing.” She said that she and Ms. Barnes feel a duty to them, both in their efforts to identify them and in their preservation. “Their spirits seem to say, ‘Don’t forget about us. Don’t let this history die.’ ” In addition to the exhibition, a book of the photographs with a history of them is in the offing. According to Ms. Grier-Key, it is the largest collection of African-American portraits and historical tintypes on Long Island.

The historical society has had the tintypes in its collection for years, but did not have the resources to address them in a scholarly way, nor display them without risk to their delicate condition. In the past year they had digital images taken and printed by Brian Luckey. Some came to them in photo albums found in a nearby house, but others were donated as a result of an unusual find.

Greg Therriault, who owned Ivy Cottage in the Eastville neighborhood until 1991, was renovating his house in 1978 when he came upon some metal tiles nailed to the floor in a back bedroom. When he lifted them up, he discovered 21 images, according to Ms. Grier-Key. She said it was part of the “quirkiness of the area, that such items might be used to keep out a draft,” adding that earlier East End residents were known for recycling timbers from old ships and moving entire houses to new sites with some regularity.

Because it was the back of the tintypes that faced up, the images, while degraded, survived. The backs have some green paint from an earlier attempt to match them to the floor color. Mr. Therriault collected them and gave them to the historical society soon after he discovered them.

What is a tintype? It is a positive image, such as you would get from a Polaroid camera — to give a more modern example — transferred directly to a thin piece of metal that has been lacquered or enameled. The treated surface is then used as the base for the photographic emulsion that allows the image to adhere to the surface.

While addressing the photographs was a priority of Ms. Grier-Key when she took the helm three years ago, her administrative responsibilities took up much of her time. It was the June 2014 retirement of Ms. Barnes, who had been a photo editor at magazines such as People and Life, that served as a catalyst to set the current project in motion.“We feel it was divine timing,” Ms. Grier-Key said of Ms. Barnes’s availability and her experience with photos, archives, and even genealogy, which has been key in identifying some of the unknown sitters. Eastville’s listings in the census records of the time have been very helpful.

Here is what they know about the photographer. Howard operated his Washington Street studio from 1882 to 1914. He was born and raised in Southold, and his father was an early photographer. He settled in Eastville in 1880 after hemarried. In addition to being a local businessman he was also chief of the Sag Harbor Fire Department for many years.

As for his subjects, they include the Green family, Esther J. and Henry Green, married in 1845, and some of their nine children, whose names were Charles, Mary, Sarah, Priscilla, Susan, Ida, Chinea, George, and Christina.

Mrs. Green was the sister of David Hempstead, who was a co-founder of St. David A.M.E. Zion Church. In 1840, the siblings were recorded as working at Sylvester Manor on Shelter Island as servants. She met her husband as a domestic in a New London, Conn., house. Mr. Green was born as a free man of color in New Jersey and was working as a boatman on Nantucket at the time.

They moved to Liberty Street in Sag Harbor after their marriage. They lost their eldest son to illness while he was fighting in the Civil War in 1864. Mr. Green had died the month before his son. Mary and Chinea died in childhood. Ida died after she was married. George, who was born in 1862, could not be found in the census after 1880.

Mrs. Green lived with many of her children in the Eastville house for the rest of her life. Four of the daughters never married and worked as seamstresses and domestics. Priscilla worked for a time in Providence, R.I., but returned to Sag Harbor and lived with her cousin Mary Hempstead in a house on Hempstead Street.

Nathan J. Cuffee, a Native American, was born to Jason James Cuffee, a Montaukett, and Louisa R. Cotton Cuffee, a Naragansett. He grew up on Liberty Street. His father was a whaler and laborer. He married Marie Louisa Payne, who immigrated from Barbados when she was 11. The couple eventually moved to Shelter Island, where he co-wrote a book with Lydia Jocelyn, who was married to a missionary from the Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. The book, “Lord of the Soil: A Romance of Indian Life Among Early English Settlers,” came out in 1905, making him the first published Native American from Long Island. Despite its title, the novel was full of conflicts and rivalries between the settlers and the different tribes of New England. He and his wife eventually moved to Islip, where he died in 1912.

The collection includes some tintypes and cabinet cards of European immigrants as well, but the historical society has not been able to identify them yet. “Our hope is as more people see the images and come to the exhibit someone will recognize them and tell us who they are,” Ms. Barnes said. One woman, whom Howard embellished with hand-painted rose-colored cheeks, fascinates her. “She just looks like she has a story.”

The show will be up through Oct. 10.

 

 

 

Bay Street's ‘Five Presidents’ Is a Fun, Savvy Satire

Bay Street's ‘Five Presidents’ Is a Fun, Savvy Satire

Brit Whittle, Mark Jacoby, Steve Sheridan, Martin L’Herault, and John Bolger star in “Five Presidents” at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor.
Brit Whittle, Mark Jacoby, Steve Sheridan, Martin L’Herault, and John Bolger star in “Five Presidents” at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor.
Lenny Stucker
By Kurt Wenzel

In 1994, former Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and incumbent Bill Clinton all convened at Yorba Linda, Calif., for the funeral of Richard Nixon. It was an unprecedented assemblage of American power. But what did they talk about? Were they ever all in a room together alone? What do the erstwhile leaders of the most powerful nation in the world do and say around each other? This is the premise of Rick Cleveland’s “Five Presidents,” a new play currently making its East Coast debut at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor.

Mr. Cleveland’s résumé is an impressive one, including work on television series such as “The West Wing,” “Mad Men,” and “House of Cards.” And his “Five Presidents” is a fun, savvy satire on American politics and the office of the president itself.

There are, however, occasional lapses in taste that compromise what would otherwise be a classy and professionally executed evening of theater.

The play begins in a holding suite where these former presidents arrive one by one waiting to join the ceremony for Mr. Nixon’s funeral. With an 85-minute running time, there is not room for deep character studies of these five complicated men, so Mr. Cleveland boils his presidents down to single motivational tropes: Gerald Ford, the “nothing” president still suffering over his pardon of Nixon; George H.W. Bush, rueful over his failed re-election bid; Jimmy Carter, the gentle peacemaker; Ronald Reagan, haunted by Iran-Contra and encroaching dementia, and Bill Clinton, the brilliant cad. During the hour or so they’re together, they laugh, drink a bit, hash over old wounds and resentments, and re-examine a good deal of the last 40 years of American history.

While “Five Presidents” is not an out-and-out comedy, there are some big laughs to be had, such as when Gerald Ford is longing for a drink but feels he must abstain, explaining, “It’s what happens when your wife has a chain of rehab clinics named after her.” And there’s Bill Clinton’s character alluding to his marriage while speaking of his “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy: “Believe me, I live by those words myself.”

Occasionally, though, Mr. Cleveland is willing to traffic in a less dignified brand of humor. A portrait of Nixon sits in the room where the men are assembled, and one by one these former presidents sling vile insults at the man’s image: “liar,” “third-rate,” “racist,” “bigot,” “ugly” (three times), among many others. Mr. Cleveland peppers these insults in roughly 10-minute intervals — just when the humor in his play begins to run a little thin. They garner a few knee-jerk laughs that rise quickly and die out just as fast, probably because the idea of former presidents insulting one of their own on the day of his funeral is not only unbecoming, but unrealistic. For a talent like Mr. Cleveland, relying on “Tricky Dick” material for laughs feels more than a little uncomfortable; it’s like the political satirist’s version of penis jokes.   

The performances are all impressive, but it can take a few minutes for each character to take hold in the imagination. Superb makeup jobs aside, none of the actors are exactly dead-ringers for the presidents they portray. Nor do any of the performers succumb to mimicry as they deliver their lines. In the era of “Saturday Night Live,” when we are used to seeing presidents mocked with outrageous hyperbole, this can be jolting. Wisely though, the director, Mark Clements, has his actors take a subtler approach — how can you compete with the likes of Dana Carvey, Chevy Chase, and Dan Aykroyd after all? The performances in “Five Presidents” are the kind that evolve more slowly and finally creep up on you into full-blown credibility.

Special notice must go to Steve Sheridan’s portrayal of Reagan, whose character undergoes the greatest trajectory. His Reagan moves from hokey congeniality to angry panic as he begins to repeat jokes over and over again and forget recent events — all signifying the onset of dementia. It’s the most challenging of the roles, and what pathos “Five Presidents” has to offer is tied up in the Reagan character and his struggles with a diminishing mind.

Nearing the end, Mr. Cleveland gains a contemporary footing for his play as the characters discuss the overt ambitions of then-First Lady Hillary Clinton. And there is an interesting moment when the presidents speculate on whether it will be a woman or an African-American who will first be elected to the office (a woman is the presidents’ consensus).

But it’s the specter of Nixon that ultimately must be reckoned with. Without giving too much away, the rancor of these former presidents toward Nixon turns mostly to pity, and something like forgiveness sets in. For this viewer, it was too late. The playwright has already set Nixon up as a pinata and had his fun with him, and the 11th-hour mercy rings hollow. In the end, we like his characters — and his otherwise diverting play — a little less for it.

Bernie Taupin at the Borghi Gallery

Bernie Taupin at the Borghi Gallery

“Johnny Cash‚” a mixed-media work by Bernie Taupin, will be shown at the Mark Borghi Gallery in Bridgehampton beginning July 12.
“Johnny Cash‚” a mixed-media work by Bernie Taupin, will be shown at the Mark Borghi Gallery in Bridgehampton beginning July 12.
The English musician is also a visual artist
By
Jennifer Landes

The Mark Borghi Gallery is planning a weekend of art events around the showing of selected works by Bernie Taupin, famously known for his long songwriting collaboration with Elton John.

But the English musician is also a visual artist and will be showing his works beginning next Thursday at the Art Southampton fair on the grounds of Nova’s Ark. They will also be on view at the Borghi Gallery in downtown Bridgehampton beginning July 12, with an opening reception on July 11 from 6 to 9 p.m. Mr. Taupin will be in attendance that night.

Mr. Borghi’s fair booth will feature “Plain Brown Wrapper,” new works in a variety of colors and formats with a long list of materials such as twine, wax, house paint, stencils, wood, and nails. The gallery show is cast as a retrospective, with 16 older works that have more historical references.

The artist became an admirer of the work of Barnett Newman, Mark Rothko, and Clifford Still in the 1970s from his explorations at the Museum of Modern Art. He has been painting in a style that borrows from Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art since the early 1990s in a studio in Santa Barbara County in California.

The Art Southampton fair will be open through July 13, with a V.I.P. preview next Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. Passes can be purchased at the Art Southampton website. The gallery show will remain open through July 26.

 

Rockin’ and Swingin’ Down at Old Guild Hall

Rockin’ and Swingin’ Down at Old Guild Hall

Performances by Reserved for Rondee and 2/3 Goat
By
Kelly M. Stefanick

A busy week kicks off at Guild Hall tomorrow with performances by Reserved for Rondee and 2/3 Goat. Both groups incorporate elements of classic rock in their music: the former blending it with contemporary rock to create an indie rock sound, and the latter fusing it with bluegrass and alternative country. An indie-folk group, Pandafan, will open the show at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 for the show or $70 for the show and a VIP reception afterward, with a $2 discount for members.

The concert will be followed by a selfies workshop on Sunday from 4 to 6 pm. Taught by Phillipe Cheng, a Bridgehampton professional photographer and author, it will cover how to improve self-portrayals for social media. The cost is $40, $38 for members.

That evening at 8 p.m., Billy Collins, a former United States poet laureate and New York State poet laureate, will read some of his work, discuss writing and the life of a writer, and field audience questions. Know for his surprisingly serious yet witty and conversational style, Mr. Collins has been recognized as one of the most popular American poets. Tickets start at $25, $23 for members.

Next up on Tuesday at 8 p.m., the Cole Rumbough and Molly Ryan will be led by the musical director Matt Baker in “Swingin’ in the Hamptons.” Admission to the show ranges from $22 to $45, with $2 off for members. The musical events don’t stop there, though. Next Thursday, “The Last Waltz,” a documentary by Martin Scorcese, will be shown at 8 p.m. The film includes interviews with and accounts of the iconic rock group the Band and presents its final concert in 1976, with musical appearances by Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, and other well known artists of the time. Tickets cost $12, $10 for members.

Historic Painting at Fair

Historic Painting at Fair

This more-than-life-size painting by Orlando Bears of Ephraim Byram will be shown at Market Art + Design this weekend.
This more-than-life-size painting by Orlando Bears of Ephraim Byram will be shown at Market Art + Design this weekend.
A life-size portrait of an important figure in Sag Harbor history
By
Jennifer Landes

Orlando Hand Bears’s painting of Ephraim Byram, from 1834, is a life-size portrait of an important figure in Sag Harbor history. Martin Cohen, who once had a gallery on Madison Avenue and shops in Water Mill and Wainscott many years ago, will have it for sale at his booth at Market Art + Design beginning today. The fair will run through Sunday.

The painting was used as the back cover of the Sag Harbor Historical Society’s “History of Sag Harbor.” The subject is seen with a telescope on a backlit clear night. The dimensions of the work are 81 by 41 inches, a size reserved in that time for grand history paintings. Clearly, the artist or his subject wanted to convey the sitter’s importance and intellect.

Bears lived from 1811 to 1851 and painted portraits of the wealthy whaling families of Sag Harbor as well as notable New Englanders.  The few signed and dated portraits he executed were dated from the mid-to-late-1830s, according to a 2008 Christie’s sales catalogue, where a smaller Bears double portrait of a couple sold for $115,000. Mr. Cohen’s price for his painting is $475,000.

Byram, who was an astronomer and clockmaker, lived in a house near Oakland Cemetery called Oakland Cottage. The clocks he made throughout his life ended up in places such as the Sag Harbor Methodist Church, City Hall in Manhattan, and the Old Whalers Church steeple in Sag Harbor, which was knocked down by the 1938 Hurricane. The art fair, which is running simultaneously with Art Southampton, also in Bridgehampton, will be open through Sunday.

Al Madrigal Onstage

Al Madrigal Onstage

At the Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor
By
Star Staff

Al Madrigal, who has been the “senior Latino correspondent” for “The Daily Show” since 2011, will bring his unique and fast-paced storytelling to Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor on Monday at 8 p.m. Mr. Madrigal’s true-life tales have been featured on “The Tonight Show,” “Conan,” “The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson,” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” He was named best stand-up comedian at the HBO U.S. Comedy Festival in Aspen, Colo., and he recently taped an hour special for ABC and Univision that won the 2015 Storyteller Award at the Mixed Remixed Festival in Los Angeles. Tickets are $69 and can be secured at baystreet.org.

Bay Street has also announced that the run of “Five Presidents,” the new play by Rick Cleveland, an Emmy Award-winning writer, has been extended for the second time due to popular demand. The show will run through July 26. Details can be found at the theater’s website.

 

Tara Donovan at the Parrish

Tara Donovan at the Parrish

Tara Donovan’s three-part installation at the Parrish will include this and two other untitled sculptures made of Slinkys.
Tara Donovan’s three-part installation at the Parrish will include this and two other untitled sculptures made of Slinkys.
The show will provide evidence of the artist’s fascination with ordinary objects
By
Mark Segal

The Parrish Art Museum’s “Platform” series, in which artists are invited to create new works that engage the museum’s architecture and collection, will present “Platform: Tara Donovan” from Saturday through Oct. 18.

According to Andrea Grover, curator of special projects and organizer of the exhibition, “Tara Donovan’s approach to material is like no other artist’s. Her vision and sense of play allow her to transform the most mundane objects into breathtaking installations.”

The show will provide evidence of the artist’s fascination with ordinary objects, including three new works made from hundreds of Slinky toys that have been integrated into the spaces of the museum.

One, a freestanding sculpture approximately 7 by 7 by 7 feet, will be installed in the Parrish’s Material World gallery, which is devoted to the work of artists who use found and common materials, among them Donald Lipski, Louise Nevelson, and Alfonso Ossorio.

A second work is a wall piece composed from Slinkys that have been taken apart and reassembled into a 30-foot-wide, two-dimensional “drawing” of curvilinear patterns. The third piece is a monoprint, part of a new series created in conjunction with Ms. Donovan’s investigation of the Slinky, which has a black background and the tonal qualities of a photographic process or an X-ray.

Ms. Donovan, who lives and works in Brooklyn, has won numerous awards, including a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant and the first Calder Prize. Her many exhibitions include solo shows at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark, and the Arp Museum in Germany. Her work is in the collections of important museums throughout the United States.