Noodles, emerging artists and secret bars

I took it easy yesterday morning (hello, sore back!) and headed into Manhattan in the afternoon. I took some time to wander through the Strand before dinner at Republic. Noodles, yum! It was especially great because it has been unrelentingly cold and rainy these past few days.

I'm still full.

We headed downtown to the New Museum of Contemporary Art for their free late night. The New Museum is an odd wonder. Sometimes you see things that you find brilliant, sometimes you see the most ridiculous crap you can imagine. I maintain it's important to give something consideration, whether you enjoy it or not. If it doesn't engage you, figure out why. At least give a work a minute of your time before you dismiss it. In the case of The Generational: Younger Than Jesus, well, I got a little dismissive. It showcased 50 artists from 23 countries, all under 33. Like the Whitney Biennial, there's so much to see that your discerning eye gets worn out. The hordes of far too involved hipsters didn't help. This is a show to see when it's quiet, when you aren't tired and after a cocktail. We were there with the young and hip (also: loud), belly full of noodles and one sad beer. Basically, the wrong time. That being said, I found a few gems.

Chu Yun's This is XX

Basically, Yun hires young women to sleep in the gallery. With the help of a sleeping aid, one woman at a time sleeps in the middle of the gallery during all museum hours. It is easy to describe, difficult to explain the experience. It is uncomfortable to be the viewer watching someone you don't know obliviously asleep. It is fascinating to be in such a strange environment for sleeping. It is difficult to look away. It is truly one of those works that seems stupid until you see it in person. Just trust me on this one.

Faye Driscoll's Loneliness

Hooray, I found one video work online! Except you'll have to turn your head. Close enough. The screen of this work was small, maybe 5x7. The artist, also a choreographer, had a friend photograph her dancing. She then had a computer randomly pick from the photographs to create a kind of animated flip book. The result was choppy but oddly cohesive. It felt like you were blinking very slowly. Clever, Ms. Driscoll. I loved it.

After that, Elaine and I met up with the lovely Dina for a cocktail. Dina took us to a bar that was upstairs in a random building off of St. Mark's in the East Village. There was a strange, unmarked door you had to find inside a restaurant, which led to a cozy bar with cocktail waiters in bow ties. We were lucky to snag a table and proceeded to giggle for an hour. It was great.