LUSH LIFE GUIDE
Nine New York galleries have based a major exhibit on Lush Life, Richard Price’s bestselling novel, and the true crimes that happened on those streets.

Amy Longenecker-Brown / Courtesy of the Artist, Monya Rowe Gallery

From Chapter 4, “Let It Die,” in which Tristan’s terrible home life in the projects is uncovered by Yolanda, an NYPD detective
Oil on canvas
10 x 8 inches
Amy Longenecker-Brown / Courtesy of the Artist, Monya Rowe Gallery

Also from Chapter 4. Perhaps the camera is reminiscent of all the mugshots snapped in the book.
Metal table frame and wood box
36 x 22 x 55 in.
Tommy Hartung

From Chapter 8, “17 Plus 25 Is 32,” in which, as Gordon’s work title indicates, is the “climax point” of the whole story.
Acrylic on linen
59 x 45 in.
Melissa Gordon

rom Chapter 2, “Liar,” in which the themes of desperation and Cash’s personal longings come roaring into the plot.
C-print
60 by 48 inches
Tim Davis / Courtesy of Greenberg van Doren and On Stellar Rays

From Chapter 1, “Whistle,” where Café Berkman is the hangout for the hip crowd—very much like the real-life Schiller’s Liquor Bar, or El Sombrero.
Cibachrome Print
20 x 24 inches
Alice O'Malley

Also from Chapter 2. Tim Davis’s photographs conjure the Lower East Side as Price’s novel has it, and as it is in real life.
C-print
30 by 38 inches
Tim Davis / Courtesy of Greenberg van Doren and On Stellar Rays

More from Chapter 4. A shot of Lehmann Maupin’s exhibit.
Lush Life
8 July- 13 August, 2010
Kirsten C. Springer / Courtesy of Lehmann Maupin Gallery

From Chapter 2. Ezra Johnson’s bright, hyper-literal painting of “doubt” expresses the challenge that the protagonist, Cash, faces when the police interrogate him.
Oil on canvas
76 by 60 inches
Ezra Johnson / Courtesy of Nicole Klagsburn Gallery and On Stellar Rays

Chapter 4 again. A still from Tommy Hartung’s film, which captures one of the saddest, bleakest portions of Lush Life.
Video (color, sound)
Total running time: 14:34 minutes
Tommy Hartung / Courtesy of the Artist, On Stellar Rays and Lehmann Maupin Gallery, New York

Chapter 1 again. This interpretation of the bar in the book, Café Berkman, is of course where lushes live.
Mixed media
14 x 8 x 7 feet
David Kramer
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