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Every year as summer approaches, art galleries in Chelsea, the Lower East Side and elsewhere change up their exhibition programs by shifting from solo shows to group exhibits curated around themes. This year is no different as galleries turn over their spaces to curators mounting multi-artist round-ups that not only give you a chance to see more artists at one time, but also offer provocative food for thought. Here is a even dozen group shows you don't want to miss.
“Cliche”
As the title suggests, this show features 44 emerging and established artists working across various disciplines to explore the concept of artistic clichés. Almine Rech Gallery , June 20–July 18.
“Evidence”
Though its title seems to affirm empiricism and a reliance on facts, this show is actually about the opposite: Works by seven artists contemplate Trump’s “post-truth” America and the ways in which social inequality is facilitated by the media’s distorting effect on reality and political norms. Metro Pictures,
through July 27.
“The Mechanics of Fluids”
Taking its name from a book by the French feminist and cultural theorist Luce Irigaray, “The Mechanics of Fluids” brings together 10 women artists whose work deals with abstraction in some form. Challenging the art-historical bias that favors male abstract artists, the show takes a look at the genre through a female lens. Marianne Boesky Gallery, June 21-Aug 3.
"SEED"
Art has always made metaphorical connections between sex, fecundity and nature while marking their relationship to spirituality, mysticism and the cosmos. Here, 29 artists weigh in on these themes, with contributions in a wide range of styles and mediums. Paul Kasmin Gallery, June 21–Aug 10.
“This Is Not a Prop”
Interacting with stuff—sitting in a chair, for example—may seem like an overly prosaic matter for a show, but the 13 artists in this exhibit remind us that the elemental interplay between body and object is fundamental to shaping our spatial and social experiences. David Zwirner, June 27–Aug 3.
“Dead Eden”
Paradise lost is the theme of this round up of 13 artists whose works delve into sex, death, violence and the prospect that human nature is inherently corrupt. Lyles & King, through Aug 3.
“Dime-Store Alchemy”
Known for his exquisite shadow boxes that mix found objects with collage, Joseph Cornell is the guiding spirit behind this lineup of 24 artists who collect everyday items, displaying them in cabinets, shelves and other containers to create works that address topics such as time, memory and personal obsession. FLAG Art Foundation, through Aug 17.
“Stereo Love Seats, Hot Wheels”
Works by ten sculptors focus on the image of the seated figure and how it has come to symbolize authority and status. Marc Straus Gallery, through Aug 17.
“Painting: Now & Forever, Part III”
This show, which takes up Greene Naftali gallery and both Matthew Marks space, features an international roster of more that 40 contemporary painters working in different styles. Meant to reaffirm the medium’s continued relevance, this exhibition is the third in a series that has been mounted every ten years since 1998. Greene Naftali + Matthew Marks Gallery, New York June 28–Aug 17.