Weekly arts agenda: Picasso and the Avant-Garde, William Kentridge

During the week of February 22 a survey exhibition will explore the works of Pablo Picasso and the inspiration the artist drew from the city of Paris. In New York a large-scale exhibition of works by South African artist William Kentridge will take place at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.

Classic Contemporary: Lichtenstein, Warhol and Friends
February 21-March 21
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego La Jolla
La Jolla, California, USA

Major works from the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego's private collection will delve into the genres of Pop, Minimal and Color Field Art. The museum will show a selection of paintings, sculptures and installations created during the 1960s and 1970s by influential artists such as Edward Ruscha, Andy Warhol, Ellsworth Kelly, Claes Oldenburg and Sol LeWitt.
http://www.mcasd.org/exhibitions/exhibition.php?EID=605&Type=future

Picasso and the Avant-Garde in Paris
February 24-April 25
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Picasso and the Avant-Garde in Paris is a survey exhibition of the works of Pablo Picasso during the time he "was at his most ferociously inventive." The exhibition follows him through the most creative period of his art career, documenting and commenting on the works he created between 1905 and 1945. His early experiments with abstraction, his attraction to Cubism and his dialogue with Surrealism are explored in relation to the important role Paris played in his life.
http://www.philamuseum.org/exhibitions/354.html

William Kentridge: Five Themes
February 24-May 17
MoMA Contemporary Galleries
New York, USA

A large-scale exhibition of works by South African artist William Kentridge will fill MoMA's Contemporary Galleries in February before travelling international to museums in Paris, Vienna, Jerusalem, Amsterdam, and Vancouver. The comprehensive exhibition will feature Kentridge's charcoal drawing stop-motion films - political works fused with dark and poetic undertones. These works will be complimented with some of his lesser known prints, collages, sculptures and performance works.
http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/964

Armory Arts Week
March 4-7
Various locations
New York, USA

Armory Arts Week is a celebration of contemporary and modern art that takes place in New York City from March 4 to 7. In 2010 a wealth of satellite fairs will be held concurrently to The Armory Show including the ADAA Art Show, Dutch Art Now, Fountain New York, Independent Korean Art Show, Pool, Pulse, Red Dot, SCOPE New York, Verge New York and Volta NY. In addition, many New York-based galleries and local arts organisations will host special exhibitions and reduce entrance fees to coincide with the event.
http://www.armoryartsweek.com/

The Armory Show
March 4-7
Piers 92 & 94 Twelfth Avenue at 55 Street
New York, USA

In 2009, 52,000 visitors attended New York's leading annual contemporary art fair, The Armory Show. In 2010 The Armory Show plans to be bigger and better with the introduction of Armory Focus and the second edition of The Armory Show - Modern: Art of the 20th Century. Berlin has been chosen as the first Armory Focus city and 21 of the capital's leading galleries will be present at the New York show.
http://www.thearmoryshow.com/

Lucian Freud
March 10-July 19
Center Pompidou
Paris, France

Lucian Freud's first exhibition in France since 1987 will revolve around the theme of the artist's studio. The flesh-like qualities of Freud's paintings are evident amongst the recurrent themes of the portrait and the nude and have made the artist, now 88, one of the most important living artists in the world. Around 50 of his large-scale paintings have been selected for the Parisian exhibition including his main full-size compositions, variations on former masters, his series of self portraits and the more recently completed portraits of Leigh Bowery and Big Sue. These works will be supported by a selection of graphic works and photographs of the artist's London studio.
http://www.centrepompidou.fr/Pompidou/Manifs.nsf/AllExpositions/19EB4F23AA7B3387C125768000300424?OpenDocument&sessionM=2.2.2&L=2

ART COLOGNE
April 21 - 25
Cologne Trade Fair Centre (Koelnmesse)
Cologne, Germany

Almost 200 leading local and international galleries will showcase classical 20th century art, post-war art and contemporary art at the 44th edition of ART COLOGNE. A selection of special projects under the banner of Open Space and New Contemporaries will feature works by young and cutting-edge artists. In 2009, 56,500 people attended ART COLOGNE.
http://www.artcologne.com/

CONTACT 2010 Toronto Photography Festival
May
Various locations
Toronto, Canada

CONTACT is the world's largest annual photography festival with more than 1,000,000 visitors each year. The month-long festival is organized in collaboration with galleries throughout Toronto and is comprised of exhibitions, public installations, lectures, films and events. In 2010 CONTACT will explore the ways in which photography "informs and transforms human behaviour."
http://www.contactphoto.com