Art Basel Miami 2022
Every year, The North American art calendar culminates in the south of Florida hosting thousands of artists. With art shows, galleries, pop-up events, and art buskers, the cities of Miami and Miami Beach hosted some of the world’s top talent for a week of discovery (and humidity) at the beginning of December. No greater was the talent more concentrated than at Art Basel Miami. Showing an impressive 282 premier galleries from 38 countries and territories, the convention center the show was held in saw some 76,000 attendees across 5 days.
The Artscene’s own eric beal was able to view the show himself and found highlights among sections showcasing new works from emerging artists as well as massive in scale pieces within the show’s Meridians sector. Here are the key points eric wanted to share from his experience in the hopes that it will encourage you to get yourself down to the show next year!
Meridians - Monumental Works
Richard Deacon - Marian Goodman Gallery - Courtesy of Art Basel
If there was one word I heard more than any other to describe Art Basel this year, it was “massive.” covering the floor of the Miami Beach Convention Center, the maze of galleries and artwork felt sprawling while also well contained within themed sections dedicated to specific types of artwork or galleries.
Meridians was one such division, solely showing extremely large works of art that covered entire walls, consumed rooms, and stretched towards the ceiling. These are simply pieces that you cannot see anywhere else and cannot be given justice through photographs. Their scale only compounds when reading each artists’ description and noticing the materials used as you stroll your way along each piece of art.
I was stunned when I first saw the work by Erin M. Riley hanging on the back wall of Meridians. This textile, questions & answers, 2022 is made of wool and cotton that the artist sourced from closed-down mills across the country. She then hand washed, dyed, and weaved the fabric together to explore “the complex effects of lifelong objectification.” Pairing the scale of the work with this message emphasizes how much we endure without recognizing the massive impact it all has on our self-identity. Being able to view questions & answers in person allowed me to connect the paint-staking process of both the artwork and the artist’s own coming to terms with what was displayed.
Trigger warning: Domestic Violence text in image
Erin M. Riley - PPOW - Courtesy of Art Basel
Nova - New Works
Anat Ebgi - Greg Ito, Faith Wilding - Courtesy of Art Basel
As a first-time visitor, there was a brightness in the air during art week in Miami. Knowing that so many in the art world gather in one location to share what they had been creating with a fairly large general public audience made it all feel possible. And nothing like a fresh out of the studio work put that all in perspective.
The section of Art Basel dedicated exclusively to works created within the past three years, titled Nova, showed amazing and fun artwork that really made me want to get back in the studio myself. This is the part of the show that grabbed my attention before even entering, but maintained my gaze for the majority of my visit. The artwork here really popped with imagination in technique, style, and beauty.
Though my reason for making a bee-line to Nova upon entering was to see Los Angeles artist Greg Ito’s work shown by Anat Ebgi (pictured above), I fell in love with the works curated by Afriart Gallery from Kampala. Pairing 3 artists from Uganda to depict their perspective on living bounced beautifully off of one another. The movements of the body in Mona Taha’s work (right of photo) accentuate the movements of life while the manipulation of mediums burst with Emmie Nume’s pieces (left of photo). Combined with Richard Atugonza’s sculptures (not pictured), this gallery really inspired while capturing humanity across continents.
Afriart Gallery - Emmie Nume, Mona Taha, Richard Atugonza - Courtesy of Art Basel
In Between Sectors
Jessica Silverman - Courtesy Art Basel
While the temporary walls of the convention center floor were filled with artwork, some of my favorite moments occurred while walking the corridors between spaces and sectors. Seeing how others interacted with the art, either enthralled with it or ignoring it, made for interesting people watching.
While walking through the gigantic show, I was able to find a piece that is now a personal favorite, Requiem (lontananza), 2022 by Cuban artist Yoan Capote. A serene vision of sea meets sky is severed upon the realization that the waves are a collection of fishhooks, likely stained with the artist’s own blood from the process. While viewing it myself, I overheard a conversation from two soon to be friends as one of them had slyly snapped a photo of the other observing the work because their dress paired well with the image itself. They then exchanged information so that the picture could be shared. A little further down the walkway, I was drawn to the bright works of Sadie Barnette (pictured above) depicting her father’s bar in San Francisco, the first black-owned gay bar in the city.
The roundabouts with sculptures and walls adorned with art gave way to the feeling that the art world - often far too exclusive - is eager to spill into the public and share its wonder. The desire to show beautiful work is there, and Art Basel Miami distills that sense into a personal viewing experience that is unparalleled.
Rele Gallery - Tonia Nneji - Courtesy of Art Basel
