FAIR NEW YORK
Always a hot spot for art lovers, New York City reaches quantum art mass during Feb. 22-26, 2007. No less than eight international art fairs are setting up their tents on the island of Manhattan. Herewith, a down-and-dirty guide.

The Armory Show
Feb. 23-26, 2007
The 600-pound gorilla of Manhattan art fairs, the Armory Show brings 150 art dealers from 39 cities in 22 countries (not to mention the 50 from New York City) to Pier 94 at 55th Street and the Hudson River. Show director Katelijne De Backer promises a more "intimate" fair on the new site, which features three arms radiating from a central gathering point. Also to watch out for -- a restaurant and cafes overseen by celebrity chef Danny Meyer. General admission is $20.

The Art Show
Feb. 22-26, 2007
The 19th annual Art Show, presented by the Art Dealers Association of America, features 70 galleries, largely modern and contemporary but also specializing in other periods, at the Seventh Regiment Armory on Park Avenue between 66th and 67th Street. This year, many Art Show exhibitors are taking advantage of the intimate booth spaces to present solo exhibitions of artists, who include Jennifer Bartlett (Locks Gallery), Louise Bourgeois (Cheim & Read), Anish Kapoor (Gladstone ), Malcolm Morley (Sperone Westwater), Sigmar Polke (Michael Werner) and Ad Reinhardt (PaceWildenstein), among many others. General admission is $20.

Scope New York
Feb. 22-26, 2007
Newly located in a 25,000-square-foot, custom-built pavilion sited at Damrosch Park at 62nd and Amsterdam in Lincoln Center, Scope is just a cross-town bus ride away from the Art Show. Featuring 65 galleries from 20 countries, the fair boasts that it "hunts down that most endangered of species, the emerging artist." Among them are the provocative British performance artist Mark McGowan, who promises to crawl around town on his hands and knees dressed as George W. Bush and wearing a sign reading, "Kick my ass." Admission is $10.

Pulse New York
Feb. 23-26, 2007
Housed in the 69th Regiment Armory on lower Lexington Avenue at East 26th Street, the Pulse New York Contemporary Art Fair boasts 63 galleries from 15 countries, including Israel, China and Korea. Also featured are installations by six artists: Jason Hackenwerth, Satch Hoyt, Golan Levin, Sarah Mattes, Jade Townsend and Travis Somerville. Entry is $15.

LA/ART
Feb. 23-25, 2007
The second installment of LA Art in New York brings more than 20 top Los Angeles dealers, plus a selection of galleries from Europe and Mexico, to the Altman Building/Metropolitan Pavilion in New York. For 2007, the fair’s JP Morgan Chase LA ART in New York Prize funds the acquisition of artworks at the fair for the Hammer Museum. Admission is $10.

Red Dot Fair
Feb. 23-26, 2007
Ca. 40 galleries promising to showcase independent artists are lined up for this new hotel fair in New York, located at the Park South Hotel at 122 East 28th Street. Entry is $8.

DiVA New York 2007
Feb. 22-25, 2006
Video and digital art from over 30 galleries at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Battery Park City in Manhattan, organized by Frère Independent and curated by New York dealer Elga Wimmer. Admission is $10.

Fountain
Feb. 22-26, 2007
The "guerilla-style" mini-fair returns, with nine galleries -- Capla Kesting, Ch'i Contemporary Fine Art, Front Room, Steven Gagnon, Glowlab, McCaig-Welles, New Improved Art, Outrageous Look and Yum Yum Factory -- at 660 Twelfth Avenue, just few blocks south of the Armory Show. Admission is free.

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