The Must-See Art Shows Opening In NYC This Week

This week is (almost) all about Bushwick. The ninth annual, multi-venue blow-out known as Bushwick Open Studios kicks off with a big launch party and group exhibition called "Seeking Space" on Friday, June 5th, 8 p.m., at Be Electric Studios (1298 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn). Works by over 100 artists will be on view there through Sunday, plus the opening features music from David Kiss, NSR, Max August, Housing Corp and dgro. The neighborhood's many galleries, studios and random pop-up venues will be up-and-running all weekend -- with several parties and openings starting earlier in the week. Check out DARKCLOUDS' latest works in a show called "Substance Abuse" at Wise Man's Garage (107 Forrest Street, Bushwick), opening on Friday, noon until late; and a group show called "Auto-Chemistry" at Hollows Artspace (708 Bushwick Avenue) opening on the 3rd, 6 to 10 p.m. The complete mega-list of what's happening is HERE. The "official" closing party starts late on Sunday at Bushwick Community Darkroom (110 Troutman Street, Brooklyn).

And let's not forget Ridgewood, Queens: Yulia Topchiy curated a group show called "Made in Ridgewood" that also opens on Friday, June 5th, from 6 to 9 p.m., with a live video/modular synthesizer performance by Balloon Monument and Adam Sipe at 8:30 p.m. All the works in the exhibition were created by artists that live and work in Ridgewood including Joy Curtis, Riitta Ikonen, Yasue Maetake, Christian Sampson, Adam Sipe and Josef Zutelgte. On view all month at 1902 Palmetto Street.

Multimedia artist Richard Garet is doing a month-long, 3-minute takeover of several electronic billboards in Times Square. Running through June from 11:57 p.m. to midnight daily, "Perceptual: Sonic Landscape/ Midnight Blink" uses street sounds to create "chromatic, visual landscapes." The work is presented by Times Square Arts and the Times Square Advertising Coalition. You can meet the NYC-based artist and learn about his recording techniques on June 5th at 11:15 p.m. at the red steps in Duffy Square, but you need to pre-register HERE.

Toronto artist Cybele Young has her first NYC solo show opening on June 4th at Forum Gallery (730 Fifth Avenue, 2nd floor). She's know for her intricate, paper sculptures and for this show, "Some Changes Were Made," she juxtaposes "lost" everyday objects to "create a sense of dialogue between them." On view until July 17th.

High Line Art celebrates the conclusion of their commission called "A Hudson Yard"-- a wheat-paste poster campaign of the letter "A" by LA-artist Shannon Ebner with David Reinfurt -- in the tunnel on the High Line at West 14th Street, Thursday, June 4th, 6 to 8 p.m. The event is also the launch of a booklet for the year-long project. It's open to everybody and admission is free. At 6:30 p.m. sharp, there's a performance of a new composition by Alex Waterman called "Clouds and Crowds" for 12 singers

Mitchell-Innes & Nash (534 West 26th Street) presents their third solo show, "Art School," by the UK artist Paul Winstanley, opening on June 4th, 6 to 8 p.m. The ten new works depict empty art student's studios in a style the "wavers between photorealism and painterly softness." Up until July 19th.

Blum & Poe (19 East 66th Street) opens the first US survey of sculpture by Swiss-born artist Francoise Grossen on Thursday, June 4th, 6 to 8 p.m. and up until August 14th. The "knotted and plaited rope" works are from 1967 to 1991.

On June 7th, 7 to 9 p.m., Off Vendome (254 West 23rd Street #2) opens a group show called "The Longest Bridge" with works by William Gedney, Kayla Guthrie, Dustin Hodges, Kaspar Muller and Silke Otto-Knapp. Up until July 18th.

Every Tuesday until the end of June, NYC-based artist Nelson Saiers unveils a new work at The Hole Shop (http://theholenyc.com/) (312 Bowery). This weeks installation, "Shortening: Making Irrational Rational" incorporates football jerseys, the mathematical concept of Pi and the number "3" drawn in charcoal to address the absurd prison sentences given to people for drug offenses. Check it out during the shop's regular hours, Tuesday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. -- and then go back next Tuesday.

The FLAG Art Foundation (545 West 25th Street, 9th and 10th floors) has a group show called "Space Between" curated by Louis Grachos and Stephanie Roach that investigates the "seams, tears and edges between two and three dimensions." The artists include Doug Coupland, Thomas Demand, Olafur Eliasson, Roni Horn and many more. On view through August 14th.

If you're heading north for the weekend, stop by the Dia:Beacon (3 Beekman Street, Beacon, NY) and see Robert Irwin's "Excursus: Homage to the Square (cubed)" (1998-99). It's been seventeen years since the work was originally shown at Dia, when they were here in town.

Santiago Calatrava-- he's the Spanish architect that designed the transportation hub at the new World Trade Center -- has installed seven red, black and silver aluminum sculptures on the Park Avenue median between 52nd and 55th Streets. They'll be there until mid-November.

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