ART BASEL and MIAMI ART WEEK 2024

BY DENA STEWART

Miami Art Week has come and gone, along with the throngs of Art professionals, Art enthusiasts, Art historians, Artists, Art students, Art critics, celebrities, influencers, and tourists. Being “Alive on South Beach”, having experienced the Art Basel phenomenon every year it’s been here, we now have time to reflect on the impact Art Basel | Miami Beach has had on our “universe” aside from it being exhilarating and exhausting. Keep in mind, we are more about “a little bit of this and a little bit of that” and mostly about the colorful people who make South Beach . . . SOUTH BEACH!

It began in 2002 when Art Basel|Switzerland branched out to The Americas as Art Basel|Miami Beach. With a worldwide reputation as a high-end Art Fair, Art dealers and Art collectors came to buy and sell museum-quality Contemporary Art.

Now, celebrating its 22^nd year, the number of satellite Art Fairs, Art galleries, pop-up Art shops, Hotel Art exhibits, and giant Art installations, has grown, turning Miami Beach and Miami into the epicenter of the Art World for an entire week.

With so much local, national, and international media covering every possible aspect and angle of the Art, Celebrities, and Parties, before, during, and after, we enjoyed the privilege of being part of some of it.

ART FOR EVERYONE – Most of the Art Fairs had an entrance fee (Art Basel day pass was $85, many of the satellite Art Fairs ranged in price from $25 to $65.) However, there was “free to look at” ART everywhere, such as: No Vacancy, Miami Beach – a juried art competition held in twelve Miami Beach Hotels. Free and open to the public, it gave the Hotels an ideal opportunity to establish a reputation as good corporate citizens who support the Arts and artists. Participating Hotels: Avalon Hotel; The Betsy Hotel; Cadillac Hotel & Beach Club; The Catalina Hotel & Beach Club; Esmé Miami Beach; Faena Hotel; Hotel Croydon; Kimpton Surfcomber; Kimpton Palomar Hotel; Royal Palm South Beach; Sherry Frontenac Hotel.

Some of the Art Fairs participating in Art Week included, but were not limited to:
ART BASEL|Miami Beach; AfriKin Art Fair; Aqua Art Miami; Art Beat Miami; CONTEXT – Art Miami; Design Miami; Fridge Art Fair; INK MIAMI Art Fair; Miami River Art Fair; NADA Miami Art Fair; Pinta Miami; Prizm Art Fair; Red Dot; Miami Satellite Art Fair; SCOPE Miami Beach; Spectrum Miami; UNTITLED Art Miami Beach; No Vacancy Miami Beach.

Then there were the Art Museums and Art Galleries: The Bass Museum; Perez Art Museum Miami (PAMM); Faena Art; World Erotic Art Museum (WEAM), Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA); Rubell Museum Miami; ICA Miami Museum of Contemporary Art; Historic Hampton House; Mindy Solomon Gallery; Nina Johnson Gallery; YoungArts Gallery; The Piero Atchugarry Gallery; The Clark Gallery; Lina Cerrone Gallery; Arlo’s Living Room Gallery; Oolite (Art Center/South Florida); and so many more!

In addition to being in the presence of so much inspirational artwork, running into friends and familiar faces at the Sagamore Brunch, as well as meeting new people, made Miami Art Week even more fabulous and memorable.

So thank you Dana Agency executives, as well as all the Media sources who kept us informed as to where to go and what to see. A special thank you to the free Water Taxi back and forth from Miami to Miami Beach.