Last week, Adafruit visited the 2014 Armory show and on our way back to the subway we stopped by the (UN)FAIR, a free guerilla-style art show that was open to the public. We wound up receiving a personalized tour of the space from a team member and learned more about this awesome show, now in its second year running.
Amidst the bustle of Armory Arts Week, THE(UN)FAIR rekindles the guerilla-style art show; a carefully curated exhibit made possible by the cooperation and collaboration of cutting-edge artists, supportive space owners, keen-eyed curators and supportive sponsors.
In contrast to the maze of cookie-cutter, white-booth art fairs, THE(UN)FAIR lets participants take a breather from the fair frenzy to have the most memorable and fun art experience of this art-filled week…
The curatorial theme for 2014 is “Exploring the Divide”. Mindful of the current climate of political and social polarization, THE(UN)FAIR will pull together art and people with disparate views to create an environment to consider what connects and divides us.
The show featured a ton of cool pieces by artists ranging from conceptual artist Aaron Taylor Kuffner, whose Balinese gongs, shown in the back in the above photo, resonated through the space to Marilyn Manson, whose watercolors hung in the “Museum Room”.
There were many works using unusual mediums, like the above by Jason Kronenwald, called Gum Blonde LXXII, a portrait of Justin Bieber which was made from chewed bubblegum. Below is Max Zorn’s incredible work titled It Has Been a While, which was made using brown packing tape on acrylic glass.
There were lots of glowy pieces there as well. We love the sparkly LED frame on the piece below by NYC artist Zezziou who also did the piece at the very top of this post. Fun fact about the artist- he lived on a deserted island for 74 years and was found and brought to live with his grandniece in NYC. ; )
There were lots of little pieces like the one below scattered around the show. This one is called Drift Liquors by artist Tracy Snelling and featured some sweet looking EL wire.
The event was sponsored by Ben & Jerry’s and there was free ice cream, which made the whole experience even sweeter. The team at the show was so welcoming and warm to us and we loved the DIY spirit of the show. We had a great time and will definitely be going back next year! Read more about the show here.