Escape from the WHITE BOX GALLERY

Art collectors, stifle your yawns and

- CAROL KINO

One of New York's buzziest shows in recent memory was an exhibition of new work earlier this year by the conceptual artist Christopher Wool, organized by Wool himself in 18,000 square feet of raw office space in the Financial District. Widely hailed as a return to the gritty, do-it-yourself 1970s moment in which Wool first arrived in the city even though it clearly cost 21st-century megabucks to produce-it drew 12,500 visitors over 19 weeks despite the fact that no dealer was involved and nothing was for sale.

Meanwhile, last month 65 rare works by the Italian master Giorgio Morandi, the largest survey of the artist in New York in nearly 20 years, were on view in an Upper East Side townhouse. The show was set up by the Roman gallerist Mattia De Luca, who chose the venue to suggest Morandi's modest home and studio, and it swiftly became what Marion Maneker of Puck called "the pilgrimage show of the season."