Armory Art Fair at Piers 92 & 94 Worth Checking Out at $50 - Kids12 & under Free

The costly, $50 gen. admission for the Armory Art Fair gives you a lot of bang for the buck. (There is a 4 day pass @ $80 but that will now only last through Sunday.)  The Art Fair is spread across 2 large industrial buildings (Piers 92 & 94) which overlook the Hudson.  The show extends uptown to THE Armory on Park Avenue, also - (always a bit confusing.)  For those with children 12 & under, this is a fantastic way to engage your enthusiastic youngsters who have their own unique methods of expressing themselves.  I noticed a large demographic of prepubescent set present looking at the art with adults. The Fair offers the special opportunity to view international artists altogether.  Some of the galleries represented were from Cape Town, Dem. Republic of Congo, Paris, Portugal, Paris, Tokyo Vienna as well as London, LA & NYC.  There were large commissioned artistic projects especially fascinating for young & old alike:  Ai Wei Wei's large rooster sculpture suspended from the rafters and Yayoi Kusama's "Guidepost to the World" featuring large cherry-red morphed figured with big white dots  was a cheery, fantasy land.  The diverse countries represented in the artworld meshed with the motley mix of affluent art collectors & museum members on acquistion committee competing for some pricey treasures.  There were lovely Alma Thomas' oil paintings for those willing to pay well over a $1,00,000 as well as a Wei Wei's wood sculpture.  I find Mel Bochner's colorful, text paintings fun, but once seen - been there done that scene.  On the high end were works by Cy Twombly, Hans Hoffman, Helen Frankenthaler & Robert Rauschenberg.  The crowds seemed manageable today except for traffic jams on the one staircase that connects the piers (guards are on hand to direct traffic flow.)  Another artist worth noting is Melike Kara (b Germany - of Turkish heritage.)  This was her first showing in the US.  Her large oil painting with a gentle color palette of powder blue, white & black juxtoposed strikingly  with the abstract figures donning ominous masks.  In front of this large scale painting is her unglazed sculpture of a figure morphing into a plant; again beautiful but haunting.  There are reduced prices for students & seniors ($25 -$35) but the parking rates are exorbitant.  Still, there is a lot to thrill all ages.  And, they're passing out as you enter, Kind healthy/tasty grain bars - but buttering up the guy handing them out doesn't earn you an extra one.  I urge everyone to go & have fun.