Nov. 16, 2006 

FIRST ART BOOK FAIR FROM PRINTED MATTER
Printed Matter launches the NY Art Book Fair, Nov. 17-19, 2006, the city’s first-ever fair devoted to contemporary art books and artists’ books, with over 70 exhibitors setting up on two floors of space at 548 West 22nd Street in Chelsea (the former Dia Art Foundation space). Participants range from mainstream publishers like D.A.P., the MIT Press and Taschen to far-flung publishers such as GAS Fanzine (Copenhagen), Marcus Campbell Art Books (London), Nature Morte (New Delhi) and Wako Works of Art (Tokyo). The fair also includes a section called "Friendly Fire" devoted to zines, artists and other independent publishers.

The fair boasts a number of special events, including "Replication: The Books of Sol LeWitt," a comprehensive survey of the Minimalist artist’s books organized by artist and Printed Matter director AA Bronson, and a special installation by the Belgian sculptor Jan De Cock that doubles as the booth for exhibitor Thea Westreich and Ethan Wagner. The artist Joshua Smith has made a special installation of hundreds of event posters, and D.A.P. is exhibiting a new poster series by Gerhard Richter.

Creative Time is launching Who Cares, a new book on art and social action, on Nov. 17, 5-7 pm, with performances by Seth Tobocman, Mark Tribe and Michael Rakowitz. RoseLee Goldberg’s Performa organization is presenting Fluxus Score by Benjamin Patterson (2006), performed by Clifford Owens, on Nov. 19 at 4 pm. And artist and White Columns director Matthew Higgs is chairing a panel celebrating the occasion of Printed Matter’s 30th anniversary, titled "Can We Trust an Organization over 30?"

Book signings are scheduled for a number of authors, including Bruce Hainley (Nov. 17 at 2 pm), Walid Raad and Silvia Kolbowski (Nov. 17 at 3 pm), Tom Sachs (Nov. 18 at 2 pm), John Lurie (Nov. 18 at 3 pm), Josephine Meckseper and Sylvere Lotringer (Nov. 19 at 2 pm) and Jen Denike (Nov. 19 at 3 pm). 

Admission to the fair is free. For further details, see www.nyartbookfair.com

POMPIDOU JOINS MIAMI FAIR FEST
The Georges Pompidou Art & Culture Foundation is presenting "French Modern Sources," Dec. 8-10, 2006, an exhibition of more than 45 design objects from the collection of the Centre Pompidou in Paris at the Collins Building in Miami’s Design District. The show -- featuring 20th-century design by Le Corbu, Jean Prouvé, Eileen Gray and Charlotte Perriand, among others, organized by Pompidou architecture and design curator Frederic Migayrou -- is mounted on the occasion of Art Basel Miami Beach in conjunction with Design Miami. The installation of the show is designed by Dean Sakamoto, director of exhibitions at the Yale School of Architecture.

The Pompidou is also bringing some new media to Miami: Artist David Claerbout’s The Bordeaux Piece, a video work showcasing Rem Koolhaas’ Maison à Bordeaux (1998); and "Video: An Art, a History, 1965-2005," a group exhibition from the Pompidou’s collection organized by Christine Van Assche at Miami Art Central, Sept. 20-Dec. 10, 2006.

MOST BEAUTIFUL AVATARS IN "SECOND LIFE"
Italian artists Eva and Franco Mattes have debuted an exhibition of the "13 Most Beautiful Avatars" in the massively popular internet role-playing game Second Life -- in Ars Virtua, a fully-functional "virtual non-profit art gallery" located within the online world, Nov. 15-Dec. 29, 2006. Portraits of the avatars -- cartoonish online characters with names like "Honeywells Lollipop" and "Nubiian Cravan" -- also go on view in the real world at the Italian Academy of Columbia University, Nov. 30-Dec. 19, 2006. According to the Mattes, who also work together as 0100101110101101.ORG (recently seen at Postmasters gallery in Chelsea), they spent over a year participating in Second Life’s alternate day-to-day reality, scoping out their subjects. The Mattes call their project an exercise in "video-game flanerie."

The project is co-sponsored by Rhizome.org. For more info see www.0100101110101101.org

GUGG HOSTS NUTCRACKER BALLET
A special treat for art-lovers with kids age 12 and under -- the Guggenheim Museum is having a special "family holiday benefit" on Monday, Dec. 11, at 7 pm in the museum’s Peter B. Lewis Theater. Dubbed "The Nutcracker Sweet," the show features New York City Ballet dancers performing selections from George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker. Tickets are $75 for adults, $35 for children. For reservations, phone (212) 360-4219.

PARK AVENUE BANK LAUNCHES EXHIBITION PROGRAM
The Park Avenue Bank at 350 Park Avenue at 51st-52nd Street launches its new "Meet a Museum" exhibition program with a preview of "Faith and Fortune: Five Centuries of European Masterworks" from the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Conn., Nov. 9, 2006-Jan. 5, 2007. Organized by Park Avenue Bank curator Martin Mullin, the show pairs paintings by Gianbattista Tiepolo, Ingres, Gerrit Dou and Adan Pynacker with decorative objects from the J. Pierpont Morgan bequest to the museum. The bank, which is headed by Charles J. Antonucci, seeks to contribute to New York’s cultural life as well as enrich the typical banking experience. "Faith and Fortune" appears at the Wadsworth Atheneum next year, Mar. 2-Dec. 9, 2007.

BRICE MARDEN, PAT STEIR, AT STRAND BOOKSTORE
Famed abstract painter Brice Marden is making an appearance at the Strand Bookstore at 828 Broadway at 12th Street on Monday, Nov. 20, at 7 pm, as part of the store’s ongoing series of readings by artists and authors. Marden is slated to discuss his exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art and sign copies of the book published in conjunction with the show, Plane Image: A Brice Marden Retrospective. Artist Pat Steir is on the schedule for the following week, Thursday, Nov. 30, also at 7 pm, in conversation with Doris von Drathen, who authored the key essay for Pat Steir: Installations. For further details, see the events calendar at www.StrandBooks.com

TACITA DEAN TAKES BOSS PRIZE
Lyrical installation and film artist Tacita Dean is the winner of the biennial $50,000 Hugo Boss Prize for contributions to contemporary art. An exhibition of her work goes on view at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Feb. 23-June 6, 2007. A catalogue featuring work by all of the prize’s 2006 finalists -- which, along with Dean, include Jennifer Allora & Guillermo Calzadilla, John Bock, Damián Ortega, Aïda Ruilova and Tino Sehgal -- is available for $24.95.

ANONYMOUS WAS A WOMAN GRANTS
The Anonymous Was a Woman Foundation has announced the ten winners of its 11th annual awards, no-strings-attached grants of $25,000 given to women artists more than 35 years old at critical junctures in their careers. Winners are Xenobia Bailey (New York), Frances Barth (Jersey City), Judy Bernstein (New York), Ellen Bruno (San Francisco), Terry Evans (Chicago), Mary Heilmann (New York), An-My Le (New York), Howardena Pindell (New York), Martha Rosler (Brooklyn) and Marie Watt (Portland, Ore.).

MAUD MORGAN PRIZE TO AMBREEN BUTT
Ambreen Butt has won the 2006 Maud Morgan Prize from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, a $5,000 cash award given out once a year to a Massachusetts-based female artist. Butt’s mixed media paintings, which draw on the traditions of Persian and Indian miniatures, go on view at the museum in a special exhibition, Nov. 22-Dec. 10, 2006.

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