For its 2020 edition, The Armory Show held on 5th to 8th march, at the Manhattan’s Piers 90 and 94. In the opening day (5th march), the organizers announced that the 2021 event was moving to the Javits Center and it was going to hold on 9th to 12th September 2021.
This year there are 183 galleries from 28 countries joined The Armory Show, 33 of them are first-time exhibitors. “Focus”, “Platform” and “Perspectives”, which are the three major sections of the show, newly feature invited curators to curate curatorial programs. Two of them are Jamillah James and Anne Ellegood from the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles and Nora Burnett Abrams from Museum of Contemporary Art Denver. Themes of the above programs are Another time, another place; Past as Present and Brutal Truths respectively.
Domestic and international galleries share in the same room at the “Galleries” section, it maintains the show’s status as an essential selling platform. After few years’ hiatus, The Armory Show are pleased to welcome back Gagosian, Kasmin, Barbara Mathes Gallery, Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, Ben Brown Fine Arts, Richard Saltoun, R & Company, Night Gallery, Bortolami Gallery, Galerie Isabella Bortolozzi, Brooke Alexander, Maccarone and Simon Lee Gallery to join the family. As a steady place in the market, in order to acquire new works to museums and collectors, they give opportunities to young artworks, which within 3 years old and galleries under than 10 years old, a platform to exhibit at the section too.
In fact, except the first edition of The Armory Show was held in Gramercy Park Hotel, the show always holds at the Manhattan’s Piers. The executive director of the Armory Show, Nicole Berry talk about shifting the venue and time, said “The world is changing rapidly. You have to be able to adapt, and we’re in the process of doing that.” She takes Art Basel in Hong Kong was canceled due to the Coronavirus disease and last year’s show was forced the move to another pier just two weeks before the opening because of structural issues and the cancellation of its sister fair, Volta. She said ‘’After last year, we can handle anything. And in the future, I’m planning to make some radical shifts.’’ In order to maintain the sustainability and long-term direction of the show, they decided to leave the piers next year and take place instead at the Javits Center. The center is ongoing a $1.5 billion expansion project to welcome The Armory Show in September next year.
September entails the start of the fall art season for both galleries and art fairs around the US. Currently, there are no other major New York fairs are held in September. Separation from the other major art shows will lead to more attention and visibility and show an inspiration as a new generation of fair with high flexibility.
Due to the spread of coronavirus, the flow and ambiance were quieter than usual. Purell was poured as fast as the champagne and people bumping elbows instead of shaking hands. The attention toward the panic is in earnest more than the show itself.
Figure 1: Pascale Marthine Tayou, photo by Teddy Wolff
Figure 2: Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery, photo by Teddy Wolff
