Art / Area. [Photo Invitation]
New York: Area, 1985. Original cardstock promotional photo invitation (measures 8" x 10").
Vintage invitation to Area nightclub's May 8, 1985 opening of its "Art" show, featuring a now-iconic group portrait of the exhibiting artists captured by Michael Halsband at Mr. Chow's restaurant. A legendary downtown New York nightclub, Area transformed its interior around a new theme every six weeks, collapsing the distinctions between gallery, nightclub, and celebrity spectacle. For its "Art" show, the club invited dozens of leading contemporary artists to create works and installations throughout the space. A virtual who’s-who of the 1980s art world, the star-studded exhibit featured works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, David Hockney, Robert Mapplethorpe, Francesco Clemente, Alex Katz, Jenny Holzer, and Barbara Kruger, among others. Called to Mr. Chow's at the last minute, Halsband (who also captured the iconic boxing photos of Warhol and Basquiat) arranged the group on a set of steps (he later described the composition as a "forty-headed monster"), giving each artist a distinct place while corralling as many as possible to face the camera. Basquiat’s serving plate was not a staged allusion to race or class, as some assumed, but part of a prank in which he intended to dump its contents over Area co-owner Darius Azari’s head. This is the more rare of two states of the invitation, extending "Complimentary Admission," presumably to art world insiders (most copies listed a $15 cover charge). Small dime-sized stain to upper margin partly affecting image. Faint foxing, light soiling and edgewear. Very good. Rare. Item #13352
$1,500.00