From his New Jersey atelier, the French artist Djivan Schapira is hard at work on his latest suite of glossy furniture. Typically for elevated clients like Louis Vuitton and Bergdorf Goodman, his pieces bridge artistry and futurism, with inspiration gained from an array of touchpoints—from film and architecture to costume design and his family.
Recently, the artist had a collection of works at the inaugural edition of Design Miami.LA, and currently has a selection available at his presenting gallery, Todd Merrill Studio, in New York.
Whitewall caught up with the artist to hear what shows he’s stopping by this spring and where he recommends you grabbing a snack in NYC’s various neighborhoods.
Djivan Schapira, Bar Candy, 2022; Photo by Simon Leung, Courtesy of Todd Merrill Studio.
WHITEWALL: What are you looking forward to in New York in May during NYCxDesign?
DJIVAN SCHAPIRA: I am always looking forward to seeing what pieces each of my favorite galleries are bringing to display. It’s also fun to discuss (and possibly disagree) with my girlfriend and friends regarding what we feel are the most interesting works.
WW: What do you have your eye on at the fairs?
DS: I tend to have my eye looking for other artists who are young and up-and-coming just like myself. It is always exciting to understand and see what the current direction of others is, and to see if/how they have evolved through the style and mediums they decide to focus on.
“I tend to have my eye looking for other artists who are young and up-and-coming just like myself,” — Djivan Schapira
WW: What are the exhibitions on your must-see list?
DS: Exhibitions on my must-see list: Cristopher Wool downtown in FiDi, teamLab at Pace Gallery, Kimsooja at Tanya Bonakdar, and Joe Bradley at David Zwirner.
Go-To Places to Grab a Delicious Bite
WW: Where are your go-to places to grab a bite or drink after the May fairs or gallery openings?
DS: For Frieze at The Shed in Hudson Yards, I love going to Little Spain next door—they have the best tortilla española. For drinks, if I am uptown at TEFAF, I like to stop by my good friend and collector Alberto Ibargüen’s apartment. He always has good wine and incredible stories.
New York Insider Tips from Djivan Schapira:
1. Visit Christoper Wool’s “See Stop Run” in the Financial District
Courtesy of Christopher Wool.
“See Stop Run,” a survey of Christopher Wool’s works of the past decade, opens in March 2024. The exhibition takes place on the entire 19th floor of an unoccupied space in the heart of the financial district. The artist has chosen an independent venue in order to escape the presumed neutrality of the “white cube” as an idealized context. The city permeates the exhibition through windows that wrap around the full 18,000 square foot installation.
Curated with Anne Pontégnie, the exhibition situates Wool’s work within a specific context, where the art and its environment interact. The exhibition emphasizes Wool’s complex image- making process and the interconnectivity between mediums: painting, sculpture, photography, and mosaic. This is the artist’s largest exhibition since 2014 and will run for a minimum of 4 months. — Source
2. Explore teamLab’s “The World of Irreversible Change” at Pace Gallery
Installation view of teamLab’s “The World of Irreversible Change,” 2024, © teamLab, published by Pace Gallery.
On view from May 10 to August 16, the show will spotlight a single interactive digital artwork—titled The World of Irreversible Change—projected on a wall in the gallery. This presentation marks teamLab’s first solo exhibition in New York in ten years.
Founded by Toshiyuki Inoko in Tokyo in 2001, teamLab is an international collective of artists, programmers, engineers, CG animators, mathematicians, and architects. Known for its multisensory, immersive work, teamLab explores the relationships between humans and the world, encouraging new modes of perception through its pioneering, technologically advanced installations. In recent years, teamLab has presented solo exhibitions at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco; Amos Rex in Helsinki; TANK Shanghai; and many other institutions and venues around the world. — Source
3. Immerse Yourself in “Kimsooja: Meta-Painting” at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery
Installation view of “Kimsooja Meta-Painting,” photo by Pierre Le Hors, published by Tanya Bonakdar Gallery.
Tanya Bonakdar Gallery is pleased to present Kimsooja’s first solo exhibition with the gallery on view April 12 through June 14, 2024. This marks Kimsooja’s first solo exhibition in New York in almost 20 years.
Since the early 1980s, Korean conceptual artist Kimsooja has used performance, film, photography, sculpture and site-specific installations to poetically meditate on the notion of painting through the language of cultural traditions in her native land, as well as the human condition via principles of “non-doing” and “non-making.” This exhibition features examples from several major bodies of work including To Breathe (2003-2024); Bottari (1992-2024); Deductive Object (1990-2024); and Meta-Painting (2019-2024). — Source
4. Delve into Mercado Little Spain at Hudson Yards
Published by Mercado Little Spain.
Mercado Little Spain is a veritable love letter to Spain – featuring the delicious diversity of foods and drinks from all corners of one of the richest culinary countries in the world. Whether you have five minutes or five hours, there is something for every taste – from a quick bite to a lively tapas crawl to a leisurely Spanish dinner. — Source
