Our most-talked-about stories in Art, Design & Fashion, and Performing Arts, April 30-May 4, 2012:
ART
— The first Frieze New York art fair opened Thursday on Randall's Island. Shane Ferro and Julia Halperin reported strong sales during the VIP preview, Ben Davis called it "well designed and pleasantly appointed," while Benjamin Genocchio predicted that "this fair isn’t going to last here." Frieze co-director Matthew Slotover told Tom Chen that the fair "is actually very easy to get to," as Benjamin Sutton found while exploring various transportation options for reaching it. Meanwhile sculptor John Ahearn told Kyle Chayka about the challenges of making casts of collectors during the fair, and MoMA PS1 hosted a raucous Frieze kick-off party where Martha Wainwright sang and Kim Cattrall danced. Plenty more parties and events were planned for the weekend.
— Satellite fairs timed to coincide with Frieze opened this week, including PULSE — which featured a dynamic mix of proven names, and emerging artists and galleries; the scrappy, artist-driven Verge Art Fair; and the rewarding off-the-beaten track mini-fair seven @ SEVEN.
— The last version of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" still in private hands sold at Sotheby's on Wednesday for a whopping $120 million, setting a new record for an artwork sold at auction.
— We looked at the art collecting habits of the rich and famous, from power couples like Brangelina and Victoria and David Beckham, to surprisingly discerning celebrity collectors like Harrison Ford and Madonna.
— Julia Halperin looked at the ripple effect that the sprawling Pacific Standard Time exhibition program has had on the market for California minimalist artists like John McCracken, Fred Sandback, and Larry Bell.
DESIGN & FASHION
— Coline Milliard spoke to legendary shoe designer Christian Louboutin on the occasion of his just-opened retrospective at London’s Design Museum.
— Nate Freeman looked at HBO costume designer Jenn Rogein's stylings for "Girls," Lena Dunham's finger-on-the-pulse new show.
— Dutch artist-designer Joris Laarman explained how he incorporates cutting-edge science and complex mathematics to create his distinctive and unpredictable objects.
— A year after taking a job as the fashion director at New York luxury department store Barneys, Amanda Brooks stepped down, moved to England, and revived her beloved blog I Love Your Style.
— A proposed zoning change in Washington, D.C. could mean a dramatic spike in the capital's skyline, paving the way for high-rise construction.
PERFORMING ARTS
— The first new poster for “Lovelace,” the biopic of "Deep Throat" star Linda Lovelace with Amanda Seyfried in the lead, was worrisome and thoroughly underwhelming.
— The futuristic dystopian blockbuster "Children of Men" was re-cut to play like a surreal arthouse sitcom.
— Philip Glass's revered modernist opera "Einstein on the Beach" was poised to finally make its U.K. debut at the Barbican Theatre some 36 years after its first performance.
— Author Rick Elice discussed bringing the "Peter Pan" prequel "Peter and the Starcatcher" to Broadway, where it was nominated for nine Tony Awards.
— TV on the Radio's Dave Sitek remixed Norah Jones's touching new single "She's 22," heightening its emotional power.
VIDEO
— Tom Chen perused some of Frieze New York's highlights during Thursday's preview: