As we were winding down on Thursday, I stuck my head out of the door to get a breath of fresh, spring air and noticed the crowd forming outside of Team Gallery at 83 Grand Street. At first, I thought nothing of it, but in 20 minutes the crowd had grown from 20 or 30 people hanging around to about 200. I then remembered that I had read somewhere that Ryan McGinley was to be having a show this spring, and this must be it.
After we closed the store, I walked over to find the crowd had grown larger and was spilling out everywhere, just about blocking traffic on Grand and Greene. As I was herded inside past the reception desk where I grabbed a beer,(free booze are always a great litmus test for the fiscal strength of a gallery) I was surprised to see the work was almost all studio portraits, a departure from the previous American youth in a hedonistic wild ride across the country. Though the photographs are still of a specific type of youth, the studio lends itself to be much more about a specific personal detail, whether that is a striking beauty, an unusual scar, or just a noticeable comfort with the viewer. In any case, the energy of the crowd and the work created an overwhelming amount of visual stimulation in the room. The atmosphere reached a fervor and was still intensifying with even more people still waiting outside to get in when the fire marshal showed up and shut it down, kicking everyone out.
The mood was one of optimism, looking for beauty again. I don't know if that was owing to the work entirely or the first really warm day of the year, but I enjoyed it. I will be returning to see the show again this week without the crowds. If you have not already seen it, or were at the opening and like me got caught up a little in the spectacle, I would recommend going back and sitting with the work for a little while longer.
For more information on this show and Team Gallery in general visit their website or click here.
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