So it's finally here. The week many have been waiting since this time last year for. Art Basel! And not just the fair in Miami Beach... pish! Art Basel is so much more than that. It's parties, performances, food, music, film, and everything in between. So what's the plan? You gotta have a plan. Here's mine...I'll be making up for my absence last year by heading over to Miami three days straight (with a possible fourth on Sunday). I'll be posting updates on my tumblr and twitter throughout.
Wednesday - this is the kick-off and doesn't really start until the night so I'll be heading after work. There's not much to do (besides what's below) unless you're a celebrity, a Miami-art-world insider, or a millionaire.
- Art Basel Vernissage from 6 to 10. This is the big one and I scored opening night passes for it. I'll be dedicating all night to the Convention Center. Will I be returning here? My heart says 'yes' but my pocketbook says 'no'.
- I'm down here so I might as well check out this year's Art Loves Music featuring (M.I.A.-esque) UK act Ebony Bones with American rapper Amanda Blank (?) opening. They featured French pop it-girl Yelle last year, what's next, Santigold? M.I.A. herself? Would be nice.
- ink is one of the more promising of the free fairs. It exclusively presents works on paper. Sure it's in a hotel (so how good can it be, right?) but it's right around the corner from the convention center and should be good for a quick looksy. Opens bright and early at 10 am, so this might be my first stop.
- NADA opens at 2 pm. And with video screenings at 3 pm daily, I'll be there as soon as it opens. This is my personal favorite from years past (and not only because it's free). It moves this year to a hotel, which saddens me but might not be entirely bad news.
- Still wondering what will fill this time gap in the late morning between NADA (South Beach) and Wynwood. Any suggestions? The Rubell Family Collection maybe?
- Little Sister 09 sounds like something I might actually purchase art at. Touted as the "smallest art fair in town" and hosted by Spinello Gallery, it features small scale works from 50 artists. As with most of the galleries open during Basel, this is free. Once I make it over the bridge I think I'll be heading here first.
- I forgot about the opening of the de la Cruz's new space (thank you for the reminder Angelica). This is the personal collection of Rosa and Carlos de la Cruz, one of the most important couples of the Miami art world. As this is their inaugural exhibition I'm sure it won't fail to impress. Not to mention, it's free. I'll be stopping by here sometime around lunch.
- This year, Pulse is where NADA was last year, The Ice Palace in North Miami. Good for Pulse, bad for NADA. At Pulse I'm looking forward to (amongst other things) David Abir's impressive sounding installation and Maria Jose Arjona's ongoing performance series /Affirmation/ cycle. I'll be heading here late; checking out the art sometime before Brooklyn's very own indie darlings the Vivian Girls hit the stage around 7 pm as part of this year's Pulse Performance series.
- Depending on when the Vivian Girls finish, I'm hoping to make it to Thursday night's Oceanfront Nights (formerly known as Art Basel's Art Positions). Thursday features a collection of video and performance art including a series of video's by Marc Horowitz, a performance by Kelly Nipper, and (a rather interesting choice to close the night) Flemish artist Kris Martin (no relation to the Coldplay front man, I'm sure) with a monologue about why he became an artist... I might be leaving early.
- Scope will be my first stop. As is the case with NADA, Scope never dissapoints. The fair moves to where Pulse was last year and is featuring a daily film showing this year. Plus you get complimentary admission to the hit-and-miss Art Asia. Well worth the $20 or $10 (with a valid or seemingly valid student ID) it takes to get in. Opens at 11 am. I'm there.
- I've never been to Art Miami but after receiving several recommendations from a couple of friends I won't be missing it this go around. By the looks of their website, this seems to be a no frills art fair. Besides a program of videos, no film showings are scheduled. There are no musical acts at night. No genre-crossing mish-mashing. Just visual art... You'd think after 20 years of doing this, they'd get something right. Hope so.
- I went to Aqua two years ago when it was housed in the meager 45-room boutique hotel by the same name. That was the best hotel fair I can remember. This year the hotel is out and Wynwood is in. Tickets are $15. My wallet's hurting already.
- Lets see if I can make it over to Fountain in North Miami. However annoyingly designed, their website makes this look promising.
- An intriguing new addition this year is FoCi. Featuring the work of Fred Liang and Kiki Smith, among others, it looks small, concise, and ready to surprise. Will it be worth my $10? I hope so. My only question left is, what exactly does FoCi stand for? Lets see if I can make a pass through here before heading over the bridge.
- Pool is a smaller hotel fair I've heard mentioned a few time in the past. Taking place at the Carlton Hotel in South Beach, I might make a stop here sometime before...
- Oceanfront Nights continues with an "exclusive work-in-progress sneak preview" of the documentary Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child at 8:30 pm. Again, this will be at Collins Park and it's free.
- Would go if I could afford it: French electronic duo Justice perform Friday night at Mansion night club. Worth the $40? Probably not.
Jeeze! Aside from the fairs are you attending any of the local happenings? Like the opening of the De La Cruz Collection?
ReplyDeleteI'm too poor & often I get turned down by the "art crowd" aka "party people" so I'm sure where and when I'm heading down there.
NADA perhaps and Art Miami (only because I have passes to that)
The opening of the de la Cruz's new space! How could I forget. Duly noted.
ReplyDeleteI'll looking into more of the local stuff but the more national and international fairs take precedence in my book. It's all probably too much as is but that's how I intend to roll this year. We'll see.
If you're down there any of the next three days, let me know.
By the way, where'd you get Art Miami passes?!