Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – THURSDAY, JAN. 02, 2014

New York Boat Show (through Jan. 5)
“They say that the two happiest days in a boat owner’s life are the day the craft is bought and the day it’s sold. This annual gathering at the Javits Center gives would-be buyers a chance to extend that initial pleasure, as it presents hundreds of fibreglass wonders, from motor yachts to sailboats. A number of activities are planned, too, including appearances by Captain Dave Carraro, from National Geographic’s series “Wicked Tuna,” and by Jeff Quattrocchi, who calls himself the Swampmaster, who will handle an eight-foot, two-hundred-pound alligator armed with nothing more than his hands and a clip-on microphone.

There will also be an interactive boating simulator, hands-on workshops about engine repair, rope-tying tutorials, fishing seminars, and presentations about financing and insurance.” (NewYorker mag)
Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, 655 West 34th St.
from noon to 9 p.m./ $15; 15 and younger, free with an adult.
(212) 216-2000, javitscenter.com

Holiday Market / Train Show
The Holiday Shops are just part of the seasonal events in Bryant Park, at Avenue of the Americas and 40th Street. 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). While in Bryant Park, strap on a pair of ice skates and give it a whirl on one of Manhattan’s most scenic ice rinks.

In Grand Central Terminal 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, 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. Make the trip worthwhile by stopping at the Grand Central Oyster Bar downstairs for their iconic oyster pan roast.

For Your Consideration: Foreign Oscar Hopefuls (last day)
See the foreign films that are contenders for this year’s Oscar nominations, and somehow I almost missed this series.

In an historic year, a record-high 76 countries submitted films to the Academy for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. For one week only, Film Society offers a sampling of 10 of these prestigious possibilities for your consideration. The five nominees will be announced on January 16.

You won’t see these films at your local multiplex. Today’s screenings:
Wadjda 6:30PM
Haifaa Al Mansour | 2012 | 98 mins
Although she lives in a conservative world, Wadjda is fun loving, entrepreneurial and always pushing the boundaries of what she can get away with. Wadjda sees a beautiful green bicycle for sale. She wants the bicycle desperately so that she can beat her friend Abdullah in a race.

Heli 8:45PM
Amat Escalante | 2013 | 105 mins
New York Premiere!
Twelve-year-old Estela has fallen madly in love with a young police cadet with whom she wants to run away and marry. As she pursues her dream, one deadly mistake leads to another, and she unwittingly drags her family into the horror of devastating drug violence.
The Film Society of Lincoln Center, Broadway at 65th St.
$13 general public; $9 senior

ALVIN AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATRE (through Jan. 5)
The final week of the annual City Center encampment offers a few more chances to see the company dance new works and works new to the company: Aszure Barton’s quirky, neo-primitive romp, “Lift”; Wayne McGregor’s hyperextended ultra-modern ballet, “Chroma”; and Bill T. Jones’s aerobic late-eighties show of resilience, “D-Man in the Waters.” The final night, on the late founder’s birthday, combines the season’s highlights with the run’s last performance of his “Revelations.”
City Center, 131 West 55th St.
at 7:30 p.m. / $25-$135
(212) 581-1212, nycitycenter.org, alvinailey.org

Kenny Werner Quintet* (through Jan. 5)
“A well-seasoned pianist who tempers fearsome technique with abundant wit, Kenny Werner digs in here not only with a fierce rhythm section — Scott Colley on bass, Ari Hoenig on drums — but also with a front line consisting of the trumpeter Randy Brecker and the saxophonist David Sánchez.” (Chinen-NYT)
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th St. and Broadway,
At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.,  / $35 to $45 cover, with a $5 minimum
258-9595, jalc.org

Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and 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:

Bing Wright (through Jan 18)
Over the years, Wright’s photography has been marked by a focus on surface as metaphor for the photograph itself, with his work achieving a poetical stillness as a result. The photos here, for example, include his color series “Broken Mirror/Evening Sky,” in which the setting sun is seen reflected within the cracks of a shattered mirror, scattering the oranges and violets of dusk to an almost stained-glass effect.
Paula Cooper Gallery 521 W 21st St, (between Tenth and Eleventh Aves)
Tue-Sat 10am-6pm
212-255-1105 / paulacoopergallery.com

“Martin Thompson: Positive/Negative” (through Jan 18)
This self-taught artist and mathematician from New Zealand creates mind-bogglingly intricate felt-tip pen drawings on graph paper that resemble the pixelated results of an Amish quilt mating with an old-school video game such as Pac-Man or Space Invaders.

Each piece is made according to a numerical formula that Thompson follows as he precisely fills in each square. When he makes a mistake, which he sometimes does, he excises the offending part of the composition with a scalpel, replacing it with a Scotch-taped piece of corrected paper that exactly fits over the elided area—creating, in the bargain, a textural effect. Suffering from a mental disorder that makes it difficult for him to interact with people, Thompson views making art as a coping mechanism for dealing with the world.
Ricco/Maresca Gallery, 529 W 20th St, third floor, (btw 10th/11th ave)
Tue–Sat 11am–6pm
212-627-4819 / riccomaresca.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 (12/31) and (12/29).