Every winter art lovers, dealers, collectors and much of the international jet set wing their way to the beach front shores of Miami for the Art Basel Miami Beach which is the most important art show in the United States. This art show which is held at the Miami Convention Center and draws more than 220 dealers and 40,000 collectors also features many parties and crossover events which feature music, film, architecture and design apart from the main art shows and exhibits. This glamorous Art fair is the sister event of the more staid but equally prestigious Switzerland Art Basel. The many events of the Art Basel Miami Beach are largely concentrated in the cities’ historic and beautiful South Beach/ Art Deco district which is a pulsating hub of restaurants and night clubs. The Art Basel Miami Beach is to be held this year from Thursday the 4th of December to Sunday the 7th of December.
Leading art galleries from North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa are to participate in this invigorating and stimulating art extravaganza which will feature contemporary art works of more than 2000 artists. The 220 galleries which are chosen to participate in this event are some of the most well respected dealers in the business who bring their most unique and interesting works to be displayed at this art fair. These works feature the creations of both established and new artists. The Miami Beach Art Basel offers a wonder platform for art lovers to discover new trends in contemporary art as well as to feast their eyes on rare museum caliber art works.
Tickets to the Art Basel Miami Beach cost $35 for a single day. While two day tickets are priced at $55 and a permanent pass is priced at $75. Tickets can be purchased online at the website of Ticketmaster.
The organizers of Art Basel Miami Beach actively encourage school children to visit the fair so that they may develop an appreciation for art at an early age by offering guided tours of the fair which are conducted daily by art critics in Spanish and English. In addition, for this year’s fair they have even set up Art Kids which is a daycare center for children whose parents want to visit the fair. Children who are enrolled in this program will be able to participate in art, crafts, art history and storytelling programs which will be conducted by the Miami Children’s Museum’s staff. Moreover children under 16 who visit the fair accompanied by the adult will get free admission to the fair.
The main sections of the Art Basel Miami Beach
The Art Galleries
The Art Basel Miami Beach will feature the active participation of more than 220 leading art galleries for modern and contemporary art from North America, Latin America, Europe, South Africa and Asia. These galleries will display modern and contemporary art in the form of painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, print, photography, film, performance, video and digital art by more than 2,000 artists who they represent. These works will be displayed at various halls in the Miami Convention center.
Art Nova
The Art Nova section will feature absolute brand-new works of art from artists who are represented by the participating galleries. These too will be displayed in the A and D halls of the Miami Beach Convention Center.
Art Kabinett
In the Art Kabinett section participating galleries will show small curated exhibits within their stalls themselves.
Art Supernova
This section was introduced at Art Basel Miami Beach last year and this year again it will offer twenty galleries the chance to showcase the new works of their emerging artists. The exhibitors at Art Supernova will adopt a new approach to displaying their works as they will use interconnected exhibition spaces, a common storage room and shared presentation facilities for their many diverse works like works on paper, videos, performances, artist files, books and catalogs.
Art Positions
As a part of the Art Positions section 20 new galleries will display their wares in shipping containers which will be converted to public art spaces for the event and placed on the beach.
Art Video Lounge
Comprehensive cutting edge and contemporary video art will be displayed in a specially designed lounge that will be erected in the Botanical Garden on Miami Beach for the event.
Art Project
This section will feature Public art projects which will be proposed by the art galleries of Art Basel Miami Beach. These projects will include the works of nine artists like Ai Weiwei’s one hundred blue shimmering bubbles which will be spread over Watson’s island and Ana Linnemann’s spinning palm tree which will be installed at Lummus Park.
Art Perform
The Art Perform performances will feature a string of daily performances at the Art Positions space by internationally renowned artists.
Parties
An important component of the Art Basel Miami Beach is its many glittering soriées and parties which are really the highlights of the event. Major parties for the Art Basel are North Miami’s Museum of Contemporary Art’s opening party and The Miami Art Museum’s black-tie gala. Of course entrance to these parties is by invitation only and if you wish to attend one of these glamorous affairs you have to have solid connections with the dealers who are participating in the fair as they are usually invited to attend.
However if you are a genuine art lover then you can simply attend the art fair by buying a ticket and enjoying all the various interesting exhibits. If you are visiting Miami specially for the fair you might want to check out the attractive rates being offered by the many hotels located in the vicinity of the fair in the South Beach/Art Deco area like the Albion Hotel, the Clinton Hotel and the Beacon Hotel so that you have easy access to the fair and its many activities.
If you liked this post subscribe to our feed to get regular updates.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 26th, 2008 at 2:20 pm and is filed under Fun, North America. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:08 am
I was there. Wonderful exhibition, especially it was just a walking distance from my work
January 10th, 2009 at 12:17 am
So great that you are pointing out South Beach’s artsy side. That art video lounge is especially cool.
May 20th, 2009 at 9:44 am
Miami is a beautiful city and it’s art culture is so alive. Nice to see you promoting it.
May 21st, 2009 at 8:47 pm
I agree Paul, Miami is indeed fabulous with a lively and vibrant art scene.
June 24th, 2009 at 6:53 am
I was able to participate in this grand event in beautiful South Beach/Art Deco area. I was also lucky enough to get an invitation to the The Miami Art Museum’s black-tie gala. The exhibits where GRAND! The art was so vibrant and remarkable. I look forward to future events of this kind. Great to see someone is making an effort to advertise this great event.
October 29th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Ooh gosh i just typed a huge comment and as soon as i hit post it come up blank! Please tell me it worked properly? I do not want to sumit it again if i do not have to! Either the blog glitced out or i am an idiot, the second option doesnt surprise me lol.
December 1st, 2009 at 2:32 am
Over 2000 artists will have their work displayed? That must be a huge show! I think it’s a great chance for them to exhibit their work for the 40k people in attendance.
December 8th, 2009 at 3:56 am
I think miami is the best place for vacation.
I remember spending whole day on beach over there before getting back to my hostel.
regards,
ASHISH THAKKAR
December 20th, 2009 at 2:07 am
Wish I could visit Miami Beach, looks stunning from the few pictures shown. An artists dream holiday location!
December 22nd, 2009 at 9:11 pm
The organizers of Art Basel Miami Beach are intending to drop the price this year and make it ‘recommended donations’ only in order to attract more people to the events. It is well worth the price.
December 23rd, 2009 at 9:37 pm
Would love to go to Miami and check out nature, the beaches, and such. Find out what the locals do.