Leonard Riggio's Hamptons Home, Jackson Pollock's Studio, & a Chuck Close Opening

For years, Guild Hall has been an East Hampton landmark, hosting exhibitions in its galleries and performances and talks by luminaries in all fields in its theater fancifully painted in stripes to resemble a circus tent. This month was its summer gala, and famed collector and Barnes & Noble founder Leonard Riggio held a soirée and benefit auction in its honor at his stately Bridgehampton home, generously opening his doors to art lovers curious to see his collection. Among those who gladly accepted the invitation were artists Chuck Close (who has a new show of extraordinary tapestry portraits at Guild Hall), Cindy Sherman, Ross Bleckner, Eric Fischl, April Gornik, Lou Reed, and the actor Alec Baldwin. 

Being in the Hamptons provided an irresistible opportunity to visit Jackson Pollock's legendary home and studio in the Springs, the quietly rustic enclave where the artist, his wife the painter Lee Krasner, and Willem de Kooning created much of their greatest art under the influence of the jewel-like colors and precise light of the waterfront environs. For anyone who hopes to understand the physicality of Pollock's "action painting"—which splattered every corner of his studio—or to see the modest home where he and Krasner lived tumultuously in the grips of his alcoholism, the site is an unmissable destination.

To see photos from the Week in Pictures, click the slide show above.