The Armory Show 2024: Buyology 101

I went on the last day of the Armory Show, so it could be that some of the works were already taken off the wall, and, according to the statistics, most of them were sold even before the show opened and on VIP presale day. Considering my experience is somewhat fragmented in the first place, the most prominent elements I noticed were the shiny things, reflective and mirror elements, as well as uncategorized mixed mediums, which in some way could resonate with and remind the audience of who they aspire to be, who they are at the moment, and who they used to be.

Is buying art simply transactional behavior, or does the way an artwork is curated and its content influence us on a psychological level, such that when we have the urge to buy them, we are entering the classroom of Buyology 101?

Buying the shiny things may seem somewhat shallow but direct compared to looking for deeper meanings in gazing at the artworks and trying to understand them. But the shallow things, just as Sigmund Freud suggested, are deeply connected to the subconscious mind. Despite the fact that shiny things sell as they are visually appealing, could it be that shiny things also remind people of being noticed, the desire to be seen? Almine Rech’s largest piece was a red painting of clouds by Tia-Thuy Nguyễn decorated with ​​ “sparkling beads, multicolored yarn, combined with jutes and bamboo fiber.”

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s interactive digital art captures the viewer’s face and “uses facial-recognition to show you the other guests at the fair who have the most- and least-similar faces to your own.” It is an emotional journey for everyone to look at the mirrors—whether it’s narcissistic self-love or self-loathing. It is the easiest way to evoke emotions in the viewer's heart as it reaffirms them of the moment, the now, who they are, and who they used to be (as it is the past that makes us who we are today).

The mixed mediums and innovative approaches to creating artworks, such as incorporating fabrics and weaving techniques, are also seen. Tamara Kostianovsky’s 'Growth' transformed fabrics into “flesh”. Everyone is striving to be undefined and uncategorized, with being as strange as possible becoming the norm, especially in the postmodern art world.

While walking around, looking at and for artworks, I found myself less surprised and more prepared for the unexpected mediums and pieces. In some way, it is often the “normal” things that can be the most disturbing.