The Worley Gig

While we were sorry to say goodbye to Chef Dave Martin’s woefully short-lived Meatball Factory, which shuttered its doors at the end of April, the space at the corner of 2nd Second Ave and 14th Street didn’t stay empty for long. In an exciting “Contemporary art gallery meets fun summer eatery” venture, the folks at The Hole Gallery have launched a pop up restaurant, cleverly named Hole Foods, which will serve a rotating menu of seafood and featured comfort food dishes in a vibrant, modern art gallery setting.

Creating a completely artist-designed space, Joe Grillo of the collective Dearraindrop has transformed the restaurant into a colorful den of artworks, with a neon drip mural (pictured above) across the ceiling, walls and floor, customized tables and tablecloths, painted furniture, video works, black light bathrooms (Yes!), a ceiling installation and interactive sound sculptures. He even made a customized chef suit and hat for the executive chef, Robert Rubba. Grillo has exhibited internationally and has his first big New York City solo show with The Hole this coming October.

We passed by the restaurant this past Sunday afternoon, feeling parched by the freakish late spring heat, and being excited to perhaps sit at the bar and enjoy a chilled and refreshing artsy cocktail. Alas, it was not be, as the Mother’s Day holiday found the place to be closed up tight. We did peek in the windows, however, and the place is pretty cool. The limited menu looks appealing also, but the big green B on the door makes us want to wait a few weeks to see if they can transform that into a much happier blue A. Hole Foods promises to fill their summer tenure with special art projects and performances, including a Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black night, with hostesses and servers in head to toe Karen Black make up (read: expect partial nudity). So, maybe the food isn’t what’s most important. We’ll see.

Hole Foods, a Three-Month Pop Up Restaurant, is located at 231 2nd Avenue (Northwest corner of 14th Street) in NYC and will be in Operation until August 5th, 2012. Phone 212-260-8015 for more information.

Sculpture By Colin Christian

Bold Hype Gallery’s summer group exhibition, Suggestivism, opened last Thursday in NYC. This fun exhibit of paintings and sculptures, which features 43 of the new contemporary art scene’s most talented and intriguing artists, was curated by uber hot surrealist painter Nathan Spoor, whose fantastic work we first discovered just a year ago at his own Bold Hype solo exhibit, Phantom Passport. The concept of Suggestivism, according to Spoor relates to introducing “a common creative thread amongst several disparate and unique voices within the modern art world.” Thus, you may notice seeming shared influences among the artists – which is very cool and ends up drawing you further into the search for meaning in each piece.

Kathie Olivas

Artists participating in the exhibit include some of our favorites such as Eric Richardson, Jason Limon, Chris Mars, Chet Zar, Kathie Olivias, Colin Christian and Spoor himself, as well as Annie Owens, Bob Dob, Bob Schnider, Brandt Peters, Brendan Monroe, Chandler Wood, Christian Van Minnen, Dan May, Darren Legallo, David Molesk, Francesco Locastro, Heidi Taillefer, Heiko Muller, Jason Maloney, Jeff McMillan, Joe Vaux, Joey Remmers, Julian Callos, Kevin Peterson, Marco Mazzoni, Mia Araujo, Michael Page, Naoto Hattori, Nathan Ota, Nathan, Nc Winters, Rod Luff, Sandow Birk, Scott Schiedly, Skinner, Thomas Doyle, Tom Bagshaw, Winnie Truong and Yevgeniya Mikhailik.

Eric Richardson

I really loved this exhibit and would “suggest” that you check it out before it closes. See more pictures from Thursday’s opening after the jump!

Suggestivism will be on Exhibit Through June 30th, 2012, at Bold Hype Gallery, Located at 547 W. 27th St., 5th Floor New York, NY 10001

Jason Limon

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From LA to London and beyond, so many cities around the world embrace a thriving and vibrant Street Art scene. Leave it to Opera Gallery (with its global presence) to realize that it just makes sense to curate  a group show representing the artists of the world who never stop creating in innovative ways in an effort make sure that you never stop thinking about why things are the way they are. Because when you really get it, you know that Street Art isn’t just about creating a distraction, or making something that’s nice to look at; it’s about conveying a message.

Faile / Fortune (Click on any Image to Enlarge for Detail)

Streets of the World collects the work of 40 global contemporary  artists that have emerged from the Street Art Movement. A number of the participating artists, such as Banksy, Kenny Scharf and Os Gemeos, represent International Household Names of Street Artists. Others, including Ron English, Logan Hicks, and collectives The London Police and Trustocorp, exhibit regularly at Opera, so we were already familiar with, and fans of, their work. But many others were exciting  discoveries. Overwhelming new favorites are selected works by How and Nosm (from Germany), Interesni Kazki (Ukraine) and Spain’s Sixeart. There is so much to see at this exhibit, and Opera has accented every wall — including the stairwell and the entire basement space — with exciting paintings, sculptures and collage.

Ron English

Trustocorp (One of 4 Featured Works by this Collective in the Show)

In fact, we took so many cool pictures at last Thursday’s opening, it was hard to select just a few for this post. Please hit the jump below to see more work from this Do Not Miss Exhibit!

Streets of the World will be on exhibit at the Opera Gallery, Located at 115 Spring Street in New York through May 30th, 2012.

See Tons more Photos, along with a Full list of Participating Artists and their Represented Regions, After the Jump!

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Image Source

This “enhanced” Photo of a Sea King Helicopter by Killergonzo took 34th place in the Think Pink 2 A contest sponsored by Worth1000.com.

In Italian, the word Bufala (if you couldn’t guess) means Buffalo: as in the mighty animal and the delicious mozzarella cheese, but the word can also signify something that is meant to be a joke, or a humorous story. At least that’s what I was told when I visited Fratelli La Bufala, a new European-based chain Pizza restaurant that opened its doors on Broadway and 76th Street on April 27th. One might ask if New York City really needs another pizza restaurant, let alone a chain restaurant just getting its feet wet in America. But early signs point to Fratelli la Bufala having something unique to offer.

The Fratelli La Bufala brand (FLB) was established in Naples, Italy in 2003 by three partners, who created a whimsical back-story for their road to success, recounted as an old-fashioned fairy tale. The story goes that, after the loss of their father, the young and brave Fratelli brothers emigrated to different corners of the world in search of fame and adventure. After many years of hard work, they joined together their respective successful pizza restaurant ventures, which today account for 100 Fratelli La Bufala (literal translation: Brothers of the Buffalo) restaurants in major cities across Europe, and now in the US (the NYC location is only the second in the US after Miami) with plans to expand further.

La Reale Pizza With Prosciutto (Food Photos By Anne Raso)

As soon as you enter the lively and bustling space, you’ll see the impressive black pizza oven attended to by three authentically regional chefs, who came over from Naples to work and train new employees in the ways of pizza making. Once we gazed upon these hot and deliciously fragrant pies travelling from the oven to various tables across the restaurant, we knew we had to taste them. Since we had brought only a modest appetite, we chose to focus on sharing one pie, knowing that future visits were likely so we could sample many other selections. Our choice was the La Reale ($20.50), a white (sauce-less) pie covered with mozzarella, provola and ricotta cheeses, cherry tomatoes, and plentiful portions of salty prosciutto. To us, there is no such thing as too much cheese, and this was one of the most luxuriously cheesey pizzas we’ve tasted. Dare we say it: Best on the Upper West Side! The pizza also has a wonderfully chewy-crisp thin crust, which is what you expect from old fashioned oven-baked pies like these. Add a big green salad and you’ve got a feast that will satisfy any appetite. Of course, we also had to try a dessert, and their rich and creamy Tiramisu ($9) ranks among the best. Mangia!

Tiramisu

With Fratelli La Bufalo open for just under a month, as expected, they still have a few wrinkles to iron out, which we’ll make you aware of now. When we visited, the gas grill was not yet in operation, which meant that none of the menu’s featured meat dishes (including the mashed potato-stuffed meatballs and the rib eye steak) were available. Likewise, several pasta dishes (and even a featured dessert) were unavailable for whatever reason, so it’s advisable to either stick to ordering the pizza, or be sure to ask before you start perusing the menu’s many color photo-studded pages if there are certain dishes which are ‘off menu’ that day.

On the upside, the NYC location is lovely and comfortable with an engaging ambiance. The interiors were designed by Lelia Castellano and include colorful murals and pop art paintings by Antonio Montariello. It’s simple, but chic, modern and unpretentious. And the pizza really is delicious.

Fratelli La Bufala is Located at 2161 Broadway at the Northwest Corner of 76th Street, New York, NY 10024 ( just blocks from the 1, 2 and 3 trains at 72nd Street). Phone 212-496-5303 or visit their website at This Link for more information. The Restaurant does not accept reservations at this time.

Nice job, right?

Thanks to Joe Flavin for the Image!

Available at This Link — you know, for Mother’s Day!

The Left Banke, Photo By Melissa Davis

It can be said that a decades-dormant “classic” band reuniting on the strength its potential appeal as a nostalgia act is only as good as the material it reunites to resurrect. In the case of a legendary sixties-era group such as The Zombies – a band whose debut album still ranks among the greatest pop albums ever released – the inclusion of just two original members bolstered by several additional seasoned musicians makes for a live show that’s every bit as amazing as it was when the band played out in its original incarnation. Another band whose popularity piqued in the late sixties is New York’s The Left Banke. Even if you don’t know their name, it would be almost impossible to have any kind of musical consciousness and not know the group’s two most famous songs, “Walk Away Renee” (their first release and a #2 chart topper) and “Pretty Ballerina.” As stellar examples of the power of the minor chord in pop music, both songs are indelible classics, covered endlessly and still lauded for their compositional perfection.

That these two songs have attained “Satisfaction” or “I Want to Hold Your Hand” status is not to insinuate that The Left Banke were One (or two) Hit Wonders, but rather to emphasize the out of control songwriting talents in a band that basically coined the phrase “Baroque Pop” for its inclusion of string arrangements and multi-part harmonies. The Left Banke is unarguably an important entry in the history of American Rock that provided inspiration for innumerable pop bands that arrived in its wake. A few years ago, The Left Banke reunited with two of its original members and is now performing live again with a band comprised of some of the most versatile and experienced musicians on the east coast. If you happen to live in the tri-state area, where the group seems to be booking most of its shows, I suggest you would in for quite a treat if you were able to check them out live. I had the chance to see The Left Banke recently when they played at BB King’s in Times Square and everyone in the packed house experienced a magical evening.

The reunited Left Banke includes original band members George Cameron (originally the group’s drummer) providing vocals and hand percussion, and Tom Finn on guitars, vocals and bass. They are joined in this new – and expanded –line up by gifted vocalist and frontman Mike Fornatale, guitarist Paul Alves (formerly of Drill), bassist Charly Cazalet, Keyboard player Mickey Finn (Boss Hog), Drummer Rick Reil (guitarist for The Grip Weeds and Wyld Olde Souls) and a three piece string section. Cameron and Finn can still play and sing well, and their passion for music and performing for fans has not cooled at all in the intervening years. The band maintains a lush and rocking sound with Mike Fornatale’s mellifluous voice providing spot on renditions of classic songs from the band’s first two albums.

The guys promised the crowd that the evening would hold some “Surprises” and a highlight of the evening came very early in the set, when original Left Banke keyboardist and songwriter Michael Brown joined the band on stage to play piano for a faithful rendition of his composition, “Pretty Ballerina.” This was certainly something that no one in BB King’s expected to see, and Brown, who is visibly frail and had to be helped on and off the stage, played beautifully, receiving a standing ovation from the enthusiastic crowd. Rick Brand, guitarist with the band from 1966-67 was also in attendance but did not perform with the band.

The evening’s lively performance featured a comprehensive 22-song set list including favorites like “She May Call You Up Tonight,” “Desiree” and “Goodbye Holly,” and also showcased a new song called “City Life,” sung by Tom Finn, which rocked hard but still captured the essence of the classic band’s sound. Visit The Left Banke’s Official Website for upcoming show listings and to purchase the band’s music.

All Photos Courtesy of Juxtapose Dot Com

Thanks to Geoffrey’s incredible talent for scheduling an evening that includes multiple events located across town from each other, we were able to make an extended pit stop at Pace Prints for the opening night of Shepard’s Fairey’s amazing new exhibit, Harmony & Discord, wedged between attending a Kehinde Wiley opening on 29th Street and a lovely evening seeing Brendon Benson perform at the Bowery Ballroom. Timing!

Shepard Fairey is one of my favorite contemporary artists and this latest exhibit is the most exciting collection of his work that I’ve seen so far. Fairey created the works for Harmony & Discord in the Pace Editions studios in New York, which provided him with the opportunity to scale the work to a larger size, so the exhibit includes the largest screenprints he has done to date. If you are familiar with Shepard Fairey’s work you know that he started out as a street artist, creating the global “Obey” sticker campaign and continued his politically-themed art (Fairy’s best-known work is the iconic and much-copied Obama Hope poster) as he moved from the street into the galleries of New York, Los Angeles and Europe.

On view in Harmony & Discord are a number of silkscreens done with collage and spraypaint, as well as handmade paper (his first works with this medium), embossment and relief prints, and large metal plates with screenprint. Relating to the surfaces of his street work, the hand painted multiple (HPM) works in this series have backgrounds of stenciled pulp, collage, screenprint and embossment, allowing the image to pop off of its vintage, layered surface. The Pace Prints exhibition also marks the first time Fairey is presenting metal relief plates as art pieces, layered with silkscreen, furthering spatial extent within the work. The metal plates are so finely detailed, and these were definitely my favorite pieces in the exhibit. You have to see them up close to appreciate how beautiful they are. I also really liked the pieces that were heavily influenced by the Comic Book Art motif of the late pop artist, Roy Lichtenstein.

Shepard was in attendance at Saturday’s opening and he was so nice and attentive to his fans! He will sign anything you have with you, pose for a photo, give you stickers and even take the time to thoroughly and thoughtfully answer any questions you ask him, even though many people were waiting to have five seconds with him. So nice! Thank you Shepard Fairey for your wonderful art and for being such a cool person!

Photo of Gail & Shepard by Geoffrey Dicker

Harmony & Discord will be on exhibit through June 16th, 2012 at Pace Prints, located at 521 West 26th Street, 3rd & 4th Floors, New York, NY 10001. Gallery Hours are Tuesday -Friday: 10: 00 AM to 6:00 PM and Saturday: 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM

The Rolling Stones Photograped in Soho, UK (1963) By Terry O’Neill

If you think you’ve seen every photo of The Rolling Stones that’s ever been printed – and it’s easy to imagine that you have – you’ll be pleasantly surprised when you get a peak at an exhibit that’s up now at The Morrison Hotel Gallery. Featuring live performance, perfectly posed and delightfully candid photos of every incarnation of The Stones’ line up since the band’s inception, this captivating collection features work by iconic photographers such as Michael Cooper, Henry Diltz, Barry Feinstein, Lynn Goldsmith, Bob Gruen, Michael Joseph, Andee Nathanson, Gered Mankowitz, Terry O’Neill, Neal Preston, Ken Regan, Ethan Russell, Barrie Wentzell and Ian Wright . Wow!

Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, Backstage (U.S. Tour, 1972) by Ethan Russell

I stopped by the Press Preview last night and had lots of fun. My favorite piece in the show is a huge, poster-sized framed print of a shot from the cover sessions for  Their Satanic Majesty’s Request. Did you know that if you look not even too closely you can find the faces of all four Beatles nestled in the foreground? Not Kidding!

 If you love the Rock & Roll and appreciate great photography, head on downtown and have some fun looking at these amazing photos of the Last Great Rock Band on Earth. Yes, I just typed that.

The Rolling Stones exhibit will be on display through May 31st, 2012 at the Morrison Hotel Gallery, located at 119 and 124 Prince Street (Upstairs) in SoHo.

The Band in the Camera 5 Studios Bathroom, Photographed by Ken Regan