Today’s “Fab 5” / Selected NYCity Events – THURSDAY, NOV. 21, 2013

Holiday Markets
More than 150 vendors are selling their goods in Union Square Park, bordered by Park Avenue South, Broadway and 14th Streets, through Christmas Eve. Hours: weekdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sundays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; urbanspacenyc.com. (through Dec 24)

The Holiday Shops are just part of the seasonal events in Bryant Park, at Avenue of the Americas and 40th Street, through Jan. 5. Hours: weekdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (through Jan. 5)

In Vanderbilt Hall at Grand Central Terminal, the 14th annual Holiday Fair offers 76 stalls of goods through Christmas Eve. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sundays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. These shops have some nice stuff. Try to shop before noon and avoid the lunch time worker bee crowds. (through Dec 24)

While in GrandCentral check out the Holiday Train Show (through Feb. 23) which features a 34-foot-long Lionel model train layout. It’s on display at the New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex and Store near the Station Master’s Office. To be honest, this year’s setup is not as good as previous years and not worth a special trip to GCT. But it is FREE and  can be viewed weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sundays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. see mta.info/mta/museum.

Cello Works by Britten and Ligeti
Fall programming focuses on the versatile and prolific composer, Benjamin Britten, in honor of his 100th birthday. Celebrated favorites and rarely performed works of Britten’s repertory will be presented.
Program:
Benjamin Britten Suite for Cello No. 1 Op.72
György Ligeti Sonata for Solo Cello
Augusta Read Thomas Spring Song
Luciano Berio Sequenza VIb
Jacques Hétu Opus 11b
Jennifer Higdon Suite
With: Matt Haimovitz, cello
Trinity Church, Trinity Pl. bet. Cedar & Rector Sts.
at 1:00 PM / FREE, donations accepted
this is a beautiful setting, and a quality performance of Britten’s work
1-212-602-0800

Richard S. Grossman on “Wrong: Nine Economic Policy Disasters and What We Can Learn From Them”
Lunch and Learn Series
In recent years, the world has been rocked by major economic crises, most notably the devastating collapse of Lehman Brothers. It was the largest bankruptcy in American history, and it triggered the breathtakingly destructive sub-prime disaster. What sparks vast economic calamities? Why do our economic policy makers fail to protect us from such upheavals?

Economist Richard S. Grossman addresses these questions, shining a light on the poor thinking behind nine of the worst economic policy mistakes of the past 200 years. Grossman tells the story behind each misconceived economic move, explaining why the policy was adopted, how it was implemented, and its short and long-term consequences.
Talk will be followed by Q&A and book signing. Feel free to bring your lunch.
MUSEUM OF AMERICAN FINANCE, 48 Wall Street
At 12:30PM / $5
212.908.4110

Nancy Harms
“This Minneapolis-born jazz singer continues to grow as an artist, quixotically, by restricting her emotional and musical range: She concentrates on the tiniest, most intimate space and completely pulls you into it. She doesn’t sound anything like either Blossom Dearie or Julie London, but like those late icons, she engages the listener by seeming to put her whole soul completely forward and yet, somehow, hold something back at the same time.

Her second album, “Dreams In Apartments” is one of my most played this year, especially for her arresting interpretation of “Never Let Me Go,” a classic song that is, rare even among standards, almost impossible to be overdone. On “While We’re Young,” Ms. Harms achieves the near-impossible of making an Alec Wilder song sound optimistic. She’s the kind of singer who, after hearing her just once, you’ll never want to let her go.” (WSJ)
Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.,
6PM / $25
(212) 581-3080

Mark Morris Dance Group (through Nov. 23)
Landmark piece, justly revived.
It’s difficult to describe Morris’s evening-length L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato; it’s ­really more about getting the ecstatic shivers as you watch. In short, it’s the kind of dance piece that offers something new with every viewing, and happily, though Morris made it way back in his wunderkind days, the White Light Festival has brought it back. — (R.M. NY mag)
D. H. K. Theater, 

Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change. ===============================================================================

Chelsea is the heart of the NYCity contemporary art scene. Home to more than 300 art galleries, the Rubin Museum, the Joyce Theater, and The Kitchen performance spaces, there is no place like it anywhere in the world.

Come here to browse free exhibitions by world-renowned artists and those unknowns waiting to be discovered in an art district that is concentrated between West 18th and West 27th Streets, and 10th and 11th Avenues.

Afterwards stop in the Chelsea Market, stroll on the High Line, or rest up at one of the many cafes and bars and discuss the fine art – my fave is Ovest on W 27th St., where the aperitivo is like Happy Hour on steroids.

WHAT’S ON VIEW: Here are 3 Special Exhibitions in Chelsea Galleries that you may want to see:

Raqib Shaw, “Paradise Lost” (until Sat. Dec 21)
East meets West in the work of this London artist, who originally hails from India, and whose sumptuous, jewel-and-enamel inlaid paintings and intricately detailed sculptures combine numerous traditions and canons—including Indian miniatures and textiles, Old Master painting, Orientalism and Surrealism. His works might be best described as visions of paradise being invaded by the forces of hell. It’s a strange mix that plays upon our notions of exoticism while sending them up. For his debut at Pace, the artist fills all three of the gallery’s Chelsea locations.
Pace Gallery 508 W 25th St. btw Tenth and Eleventh Aves
Tue–Sat 10am–6pm
212-255-4044 / thepacegallery.com

Richard Serra, “New Sculpture” (until Sat. Jan 25 2014)
Gagosian’s double dose of Richard Serra presents dueling sides of the sculptor: the popular artist name checked in a Vampire Weekend song, and the confrontational figure familiar from his earlier career.

The gallery’s West 21st Street location presents the former in fine form, with a single massive work. Curling ribbons of steel, set on edge and towering to ceiling height, nestle together to create Serra’s signature bowing and curving of space. They swallow viewers up in a phenomenological ecstasy one usually associates with, say, walking along a narrow canyon. The metal’s russet color only adds to the sensation of experiencing something more natural than man-made.

The tone, if not the scale, of the work shifts on West 24th Street, with a group of sculptures and nary a bend in sight. Hard-edged steel plates, patinated a carceral gray, get in your way like barricades around a government building. A set of enormous blocks serves as a memorial to the recently deceased sculptor Walter De Maria, a friend of Serra’s. Experiential warmth gives way to cold truths as Serra employs his legendary toughness to challenge not only gravity, but death itself.—(Howard Halle/TONY mag)
Gagosian Gallery, 522 W 21st St, btw 10th/11th Aves
Tue–Sat 10am–6pm
212-741-1717 / gagosian.com

For a listing of 25 essential galleries in the Chelsea Art Gallery District, organized by street, which enables you to create your own Chelsea Art Gallery crawl, see the Chelsea Gallery Guide (nycgo.com)

Or check out TONY magazine’s list of the “Best Chelsea Galleries” and click through to see what’s on view.

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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in the right Sidebar: “Selected Events + Special Exhibitions : Manhattan’s WestSide” dated (11/19) and (11/17).