Exhibition
in New York, NY / United States
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- Ellsworth Kelly: Chatham VIII, 1970, oil on canvas, 90 x 80.5 in
In December 1961, Claes Oldenburg opened and operated “The Store” at 107 East 2nd Street in Manhattan. Filled with a series of assemblages in the shape of pastries, hamburgers, articles of clothing, Oldenburg offered a new way to consume the creature comforts of post-war American life. On the exhibition’s poster, his simulacra were partially credited to the “Ray-Gun MFG [Manufacturing] Co.” A fictional weapon that has been a motif in science fiction since the late 19th century, ray guns (or ray-guns, rayguns) recur in Oldenburg’s practice, most notably in the “Ray Gun Wing” from 1977 — a structure in the shape of the gun that displayed over 300 toys and sculptures of the deadly weapon.
“The Ray Gun Store” revisits the transformative movements that emerged in New York in the seminal decade 1961-71 through the private collection of Marc and Livia Straus. This not-for-sale exhibition features major works by some of the greatest artists of the 20th century, including Claes Oldenburg, Dan Flavin, Ellsworth Kelly, Frank Stella, Larry Rivers, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Kenneth Noland, Carl Andre, Jules Olitski, and Charles Hinman. Part benchmark of the Strauses’ early collecting years and part curated survey of the rise of Pop Art, Minimalism, and Color Field painting, the exhibition will be on view in Tribeca from August 11 through September 30, 2025.
Before opening his first gallery on the Lower East Side in 2011, Marc Straus practiced medical oncology for 35 years. He began collecting while still a medical student — focusing particularly on the then – emerging artists featured in this exhibition, many of whom he knew personally.
Of this time, Marc Straus says, “Something really radical was happening in the American vernacular of art, we began to have our own American language with the birth of Pop Art. I was completely taken by the artists who dared to go into a new direction, and started working weekend jobs during medical school to be able to afford works I was passionate about and to live with them.”
Despite limited funds, Marc Straus and his wife Livia began acquiring art guided by three rules: they had to love the work, choose what they believed was the artist’s best piece, and be able to afford it.
Gallery hours Mon-Fri 11 am – 6 pm (Summer hours)
Exhibition Duration 11 August – 30 September 2025
Location:
Marc Straus
57 Walker Street
10013 New York, NY
United States
