Can receiving the stigmata be a sex act? It is surely intimate and sensual, not to mention penetrative. This is a question that I’ve been musing on ever since fixating on Giovanni di Paolo’s shimmering, submissive 15th-century panel painting, Saint Catherine of Siena Receiving the Stigmata, on view in the Met Cloister’s heroically horny and … Continue reading
What else is there to do during yet another violent forever war in the Middle East caused by the United States and Israel, other than dissociate while staring blankly at beautiful flowers? Pretty, pretty! Even better if those flowers are shaped into a romanticized, sweetly scented New York City, courtesy of Queens-born floral artist Mr. … Continue reading
The press invite to Martha Clarke’s Bughouse at Vineyard caught our attention in a way that publicist emails rarely do. An Off-Broadway show about Henry Darger, the prototypical outsider artist whose extensive 15,000-ish page novel, In The Realms of the Unreal, and hundreds of illustrations were discovered by his landlord after he left for a … Continue reading
We’ve survived a year without David Lynch. Just barely. Though some magic is gone with no longer sharing the planet with Lynch, his influence remains–some good, some bad–as does the joy of digging deep into the work he left behind. In fact, doesn’t it feel like almost everything is being described as Lynchian these days?! … Continue reading
Good job, Art World! Friday, January 30, 2026, will go down in history as the moment when the Trump administration changed! No more ICE! No more Border Patrol! No more raids! (Unless it’s the ones the galleries contemplated calling on the street vendors.) No more public executions! No more Stephen Miller! Why? Because the galleries … Continue reading
I wish I hadn’t purposefully visited Christopher Gambino’s window installation, The Christmas Show at Below Grand. Not because I wish I could erase it from my mind, but I dream of stumbling upon this festive furniture crime scene by happenstance. A momentary look to my right while walking down Orchard Street. A glance at a … Continue reading
A dour-looking, ruddy-faced Quaker, who, after a heavenly bout of what was likely typhus in the same year that our founding daddies signed the Declaration of Independence, was resurrected as “a genderless servant of God.” A swivel-eyed polyamorous duo who bred unicorns (or really, did questionable surgeries on goats), one of which, named Lancelot, hit … Continue reading
There’s a danger in building a career on being a “provocative” artist. Eventually, you may find yourself hitting up the most notorious sex trafficker and pedo in recent history and, I’d argue, maybe the most influential figure of the 21st century to rant about the election. At least that’s what happened with Andres Serrano, whose … Continue reading
Have you noticed—a—few—too—many—thoroughly misplaced—em-dashes in exhibition press releases lately? A few extra oddball, “not…but…” styled phrases? A hefty dash of strung-together artspeak descriptors that are even more incomprehensible than normal? A splash of vapid genericisms that are closer to completely unintelligible than a poor gallery assistant grabbing at straws to get this press release finished … Continue reading
Can ball gags be wholesome? Can an object stuffed into your gaping mouth, eyes watering as you struggle to slurp back a swallow, be family-friendly? Can that same ball gag, yanked into place by a leather harness with straps cutting sharp diagonals across your face, be a suitable accessory for a lovely, casual dinner with … Continue reading