THE ANNUAL ART FAIR RETURNED TO MIAMI TO CONCLUDE A YEAR OF EXHIBITIONS.
Art Basel’s 17th edition took place in Miami Beach last month. The fair, which was founded in 1970 by gallerists from Basel, today stages the world’s premier art shows in locations around the globe.
Each show is defined by its host city with Art Basel Miami Beach having a strong influence from The Americas. With the renovation of Miami Beach Convention Center completed for the fair this was a highly anticipated event and it was praised by exhibitors and visitors for its refined and spacious layout and design.
Art Basel Miami Beach attracted 83,000 visitors across five days including visits from influential collectors, directors, curators, trustees and high level patrons from over 200 leading museums from around the world.
The newly designed Grand Ballroom allowed Art Basel to host a large-scale performative installation on site for the first time in the form of “Abraham Cruzvillegas Autorreconstuccion: To Insist, to Insist, to Insist…”
The fair featured 268 premier galleries from 35 countries who presented works ranging from modern masterpieces to contemporary painting, sculpture, photography and film. Many of these works were created specifically for the fair. The main sector of the show feature 198 leading galleries and returning participants were joined by twelve new galleries that have previously only participated in the show’s Nova, Positions or Survey sectors. There were also two completely new galleries to the event.
ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH HIGHLIGHTS
Aside from the international exhibitions brands hosted event and presentations that were interesting and educational. Below are some of our highlights.
LA PRAIRIE EXPLORES THE ORIGIN OF BEAUTY
La Prairie commissioned work from Swiss architect Mario Botta. To mark the occasion of the launch of its latest Platinum Rare collection the luxury skincare brand invited the architect to create a unique Archisculpture inspired by the origin of life. “Art Basel in Miami Beach marks our second year of partnership with Art Basel, which we believe is the ideal fit to express La Prairie’s intrinsic link with the world of art,” said Greg Prodromides, Chief Marketing Officer of La Prairie Group. In order to capture the essence of where life begins Botta designed a sculpture that is created to be experienced from both the outside and inside its core. Sleek vertical wooden slats in soft curves invite the viewer to enter the inside of the sculpture where they will become part of the art. This project continues a series of installations between La Prairie, Art Basel and Swiss artists, which follows on from a film installation that took place at Art Basel Hong Kong earlier in the year.
AUDEMARS PIGUET UNVEILS ALBEDO
Audemars Piguet revealed a sustainable installation to mark the debut of their collaboration with Berlin-based artist Tomás Saraceno and the Aerocene Foundation. The project named “Albedo” consisted of forty reflective, out-turned umbrellas that created a hemispherical sundial on the Miami Bach seafront in order to power daily solar flight performances by the Aerocene Explorer – the iconic flying sculpture that rose up into the air using only heat from the sun, floating without burning any fuel or gases. Albedo has a strong link to Audemars Piguet’s ongoing artistic projects, that raise awareness of environmental, social and mental issues in the world. Olivier Audemars, Vice Chariman of the Audemars Piguet Board of Directors said; “Tomás and the Aerocene Foundation are working to find ways to solve environmental issues and engage the community with Albedo. We as humans need energy to live, so the question becomes how to use nature’s energy without increasing pollution and how to decrease the use of energy that directly impacts global warming”.
LOEWE PRESENTS CHANCE ENCOUNTERS
The Loewe foundation presented the fourth exhibition in its Chance Encounters series. Bringing together artists from various disciplines to prompt unexpected conversations, the works from three artists were presented within a unique space in the Loewe Miami Design District store. From ceramics by British ceramicist Ian Godfrey to hand-woven textiles by artist Anne Low and woodcut printing by German artist Andrea Buttner, the exhibition highlighted how the use of very different traditional techniques can create something unique and contemporary in today’s world.
PRADA MODE DEBUTS
Over the course of the event Prada Mode was a branded, culture-themed event platform that featured talks, parties and conversations around the topics of art and design. Prada Mode took place at Freehand Miami with a complete Prada takeover of the lobby, pool area, herb garden and restaurants to reflect the Prada image. Presentations included a Data & Surveillance; a conversation that centred around the probing limits of human communication. While day two saw artists examine the relationship between ephemerality and durability and in particular how digital media can penetrate a host of barriers-physical, technical, and political to reach some of the world’s most information-restricted and disconnected citizens.
The next Art Basel show will take place in Hong Kong from March 29-31, 2019.
