Art fatigue is real, and the army of collectors, art journalists, and scenesters who have spent this week at the invasion of fairs currently occupying New York City have it. If you've cleared your Friday through Sunday to get in on the Armory Week action, you're going to have a throbbing conceptual hangover on Monday morning—unless you swiftly take our prescription of the most invigorating booths in the city this week.
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The booths we've selected tightrope walk the delicate balance of instantly gratifying the brain and holding up to deeper intellectual scrutiny. They look belong equally in an art selfie and an Art Forum essay. In some cases they explode the notion of a booth as just a place to put art, but making it a part of the art itself. This is cool not just because it blurs the lines between canvas and wall, but because you can only look at so many white cubes before they all start to blend together.The selections below are the light at the end of the tunnel vision you'll develop as the international art world's conflicting taste and trend spotting plays out in real time before your eyes. If you only have an hour at each fair, make sure these are the booths you visit. Now take a deep breath and dive in:New York's weirdest art fair emphasizes bold artistic gestures and creates a safe space for exhibitors to try something different without necessarily putting the bottom line first. Anyone who's met founders Andrew Gori and Ambre Kelly will tell you that they're wonderful, and one especially zealous fan described them as "saints." The gates to this art fair heaven are open to a variety of free thinkers, some of which you may "get" and some which could leave you scratching your head. Here are a few sure things to help you navigate the bizarre art paradise currently shacked up at the old Condé Nast building in Times Square:
SPRING/BREAK Art Show, 4 Times Square, New York, NY
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Jason Peters, Extrospection; Curated by Che Morales
Valery Jung Estabrook, Thinly Worn; Curated by Til Will and Debbi Kenote
The Armory Show, 711 12th Ave, New York, NY
Yayoi Kusama, Guidepost to a New World; Curated by Victoria Miro
Jeffery Deitch's Florine Stettheimer Collapsed Time Salon; featuring Chloe Wise, Tschabalala Self, Grace Weaver, Elizabeth Peyton, and more.
Sadaharu Horio, Art Vending Machine; Curated by Axel Vervoordt
Independent Art Fair
Andy Edelstein's Porcelain Polymer Pop Culture Sculptures; Curated by KARMA
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David Shrigley's Musical Instruments, Curated by Anton Kern Gallery
New Art Dealers Alliance, 572 Washington Street
Stay tuned for more booths to be at this weekend. This article will be updated as our small-yet-strong team visits more fairs.Related:Think Giant Concrete Blocks Can't Fly? Think AgainModern vs. Contemporary Art at the Armory14 Weird and Wonderful Works at the 2016 Armory Show