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The New Dealers

Mod Art: From left, Christian Holstad, Delia R. Gonzalez and Gavin R. Russom, Karen Heagle, Daniel Reich, Paul P., Hernan Bas, Shelby Hughes, and Nick Mauss.

(Photo: Emily Shur)

Daniel Reich Gallery
537A West 23rd Street

Two years ago, Daniel Reich, who got his start with Pat Hearn, made a pretty laughable move: He opened a “gallery” in his 200-square-foot 21st Street apartment. “I wanted to prove that you could show stuff in an absolutely minuscule space,” says Reich, who with his sleepy-child’s voice brings to mind a cuddlier Warhol. With titles like “Karaoke Death Machine,” Reich’s shows were a hit—so much so that this past weekend, he moved the gallery out of his bedroom and into a white cube on 23rd Street. His inaugural show features “medieval hippie” tents by Nick Mauss and Shelby Hughes, and a new project from perhaps his greatest find, the unabashedly sentimental Christian Holstad, a Whitney pick whose breakout show was an homage to the boy in the bubble. His “Fear Gives Courage Wings” brings together roller skates, funeral wreaths, disco, homemade leather panties, and 25-foot pom-poms. But will Reich’s proximity to the blue-chips change his approach? “In these bigger galleries, the art seems frozen,” he says. “I’m going to keep things intimate.”

The Be List: From left, Mirabelle Marden, Sahra Moralebi, Marc Hundley, Ian Hundley, Melissa Bent, Mathew Cerletty, Annabel Megran.

(Photo: Emily Shur)

Rivington Arms
102 Rivington Street

Easily the youngest of this new wave, Melissa Bent, 26, and Mirabelle Marden (daughter of Brice), 25, founded this tiny storefront straight out of Sarah Lawrence. Since signing their lease on September 10, 2001, they’ve put the Lower East Side on the gallery map, with a stable of equally fresh-faced “un-ironic” artists like Keegan McHargue—whose paintings feature the cosmic wanderings of a fictional tribe. Now at Rivington Arms is a “Be In” involving seventeen artists who will make daily changes to their work through the end of the month. “People keep dropping by and adding things,” says Bent. “It’s just loose.” And who knows who else may visit? “Elton John came in once,” exclaims Bent. “And he’s like my favorite singer of all time!”

Pop Art: Back row: Chtistian Jankowski, Olav Westpalen, Angela Kotinkaduwa, Michele Maccarone, Corey McCorkle. Front row: Matthew Antezzo, Mike Bouchet, and Chivas Clem.

(Photo: Emily Shur)

Maccarone, Inc.
45 Canal Street

“I know this building is funky as hell,” says Michele Maccarone—the ex-director of Chelsea powerhouse Luhring AugustineÂ—of her dilapidated four-story Chinatown gallery, “but collectors love the fact that the door’s half-broken. I used to wear Jil Sander suits, and now I’m wearing $10 hausfrau dresses. But there’s room in this town for a different model.” Her first exhibit, by Swiss artist Christoph Büchel, took more than two months to install, with Büchel building a maze that tore through the floors. “People were like, ‘That’s totally nuts!’ It set the tone for the gallery.” On view through December 14 are Phil Collins’s photographs, including shots of defaced Britney Spears posters, to be followed by Chivas Clem’s video and photos. “Chivas did this series in which he collaged Gwyneth Paltrow with a de Kooning, Jennifer Aniston with an Ellsworth Kelly . . . You get the idea.”