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		Art To Love This Month: A Guide to May's Best Programming

Triptych, Inspired by T.S. Eliot's 'Sweeney Agonistes' (1967), currently on display at "Francis Bacon: A Centenary Retrospective" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (see below for details)

Intro: Spring is in the air…

As the spring art season kicks into high gear this May with a string of blockbuster museum exhibitions, first-rate gallery shows, the Affordable Art Fair, and New York's highly anticipated contemporary art auctions, we here at ArtWeLove are looking forward to… just about everything.

But, since no one can do it all, here's our guide for getting through this month's top art events in style. Our line-up of current reviews, essential show listings, and artists to watch by our featured contributors are all here to help you keep your finger on the pulse, plan your outings, and get your spring art viewing off to a roaring start!

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IN THIS NEWSLETTER

NEWSLETTER INTRO
ARTWELOVE.COM - NEWS TO NOTE
ARTWELOVE.COM - POPULAR REVIEWS
NYC SPRING MUST-SEES
VIP OFFERS FOR OUR MEMBERS
ARTISTS TO DISCOVER THIS MONTH

ARTWELOVE.COM - NEWS TO NOTE

Covered and made readble by our expert team of Featured Contributers.

ARTWELOVE.COM - POPULAR REVIEWS

Our art experts prepare you for the must-see shows.

NYC SPRING MUST-SEES

Must-See Museum Exhibitions

At the head of the list is the Met's "Francis Bacon: A Centenary Retrospective", a sprawling exhibition of work by the rebellious and ever-more-influential British artist. The Whitney, meanwhile, is spotlighting the crowd-pleasing work of Pop sculptors Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen -- Oldenburg best known for his floppy fans and hamburgers -- and the Guggenheim is unveiling "Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward", an epic consideration of the American master that will take over the architect's most famous building.

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Galleries to Visit

May is shaping up to be a great month for painting lovers. Alex Katz will debut a new series of sunset paintings at PaceWildenstein, Francesco Clemente will show at Deitch Projects, Gary Hume's colorful canvases will go on view at Matthew Marks, and Marilyn Minter will unveil seductive new paintings (and videos) at Salon 94 Freemans. For those with a more adventurous palate, the cerebral German artists Sigmar Polke and Albert Oehlen have openings at Michael Werner and Luhring Augustine, respectively, while death-metal-influenced artist Banks Violette will have a suite of drawings (dark and brooding ones, of course) at Team Gallery. And few can take their eyes off Gagosian, who will add a show by the deeply weird Japanese dot artist Yayoi Kusama to join the ongoing late-Picasso survey, which remains the hottest (and best) exhibition in town.

Quick Links - Gallery Shows

Auctions to Bid At ( or Just Crash... Like Us! )

With the economy stuck in the doldrums, who will be bidding on blue-chip contemporary art at Christie's, Sotheby's, and Phillips de Pury & Co? Expect mega-collectors like the Mugrabis and Eli Broad to snatch up the choice works at bargain prices, while much of the rest goes unsold. For more modest collectors, the smart money may be at Sotheby's Latin American Art sale, or--for the most seasoned deal-spotters--the Impressionist and Modern auctions. If you're interested in getting deals on art, however, your best bet might be heading to the Affordable Art Fair ( more details in our VIP offers below ), where more than 60 galleries will sell adventurous contemporary artworks--all for under $10,000.

Quick Links - ArtWeLove Auction Picks

VIP OFFERS FOR OUR MEMBERS

The Affordable Art Fair, NYC

AAF NYC is the place for new and established collectors to discover and buy paintings, drawings, sculptures, video, photography and limited edition prints from distinguished galleries, all priced from $100 - $10,000. This year the Fair will host more than 60 galleries from the US, Europe, Asia, Canada and South America. AAF 2009 will debut at its new home at 7 West 34th Street this May.

ArtWeLove is again hosting two small VIP (free access) tour groups, on THURS. May 7th from 5-6 PM and SAT. May 9th. 12-1 PM. Reservations will be limited to six people per group and taken first come first serve. Click here to RSVP now !

ArtWeLove has also secured a discount pass for those of you who prefer going to the AAF on your own. Just print out this pdf discount voucher and present it when purchasing your entry. Click here for our Discount Coupon !

Fair dates and hours of operation are as follows:

Thursday, May 7th : 12:00PM - 6:00PM
Friday, May 8th : 12:00PM - 8:00PM
Saturday, May 9th : 12:00PM - 8:00PM
Sunday, May 10th : 12:00PM - 5:00PM

ARTISTS TO DISCOVER THIS MONTH

Click on "read" to jump to our educational Artist Profile Pages for more detailed information.

Coojse van Bruggen

Born in Groningen, the Netherlands, Coosje van Bruggen was an artist, a writer, and an art historian. She lived and worked in New York City, Los Angeles, and Beaumont-sur-Deme in the Loire Valley, France…

Albert Oehlen

Born in 1954, Albert Oehlen took up painting in the late 70s, a time when the medium was distinctly out of fashion, having been superseded by new media such as video or performance art. But painting offered Oehlen and his circle the ideal form through which they could question art itself…

Sigmar Polke

Sigmar Polke, born in 1941, is known as one of the most innovative painters of the Post-war era, constantly expanding the boundaries of what "painting" is. In the 1970s, Polke began to experiment with photographic techniques, combining them with painterly ones, as he explored alternatives to canvas. He began using pigments, solvents, toxins, and resins to alter the surfaces of his works, creating screen-like "wraps" over already painted pictures. The pigments in the top layers would react to light and give off a translucent, multi-faceted luminosity…

Francesco Clemente

Francesco Clemente (born in Naples, 23 March 1952) is an Italian painter. His work shows both surrealist and expressionist references. He was self taught and studied architecture in 1970 at the University of Rome. He did some paintings in collaboration with Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat in the 1980s. Since 1982, he has spent his time between Italy, New York City and Madras (now Chennai) in India, where he collaborates with local artists. In 1986, he created the Hanuman Books series with Raymond Foye which is a collection of 48 miniature handmade books featuring American and European poets and philosophers, edited by George Scrivani and printed in Madras. Clemente is a member of American Academy of Arts and Letters…

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