Art Basel's 13th edition in Miami Beach closed Sunday, December 7, 2014, amidst strong praise from gallerists, private collectors, museum groups and the media. Highlights of the show included the introduction of the new Survey sector, which brought 13 art-historical projects to the fair, including many rare works never before exhibited in an art fair context; and Art Basel's staging with Performa of Ryan McNamara's ‘ME?M 4 Miami: A Story Ballet About the Internet' at the Miami Grand Theater. Solid sales were reported across all levels of the market and throughout the run of the show. Featuring 267 leading international galleries from 31 countries, the show – whose Lead Partner is UBS – attracted an attendance of 73,000 over five days. Attendees included representatives of over 160 museum and institution groups from across the world – and a surging number of new private collectors from the Americas, Europe and Asia. Following a 100 percent reapplication rate for the Galleries sector and with new galleries coming from across the world, the list of exhibitors was the strongest to date in Miami Beach, firmly solidifying the show's position as the leading international art fair of the Americas. Positions' 16 solo shows presented an opportunity to discover emerging artists from around the world, including Nino Cais (Central Galeria de Arte), Borden Capalino (Ramiken Crucible), Julien Carreyn (Crevecoeur), Constant Dullaart (Carroll / Fletcher), Sam Ekwurtzel (Simone Subal Gallery), Faivovich & Goldberg (SlyZmud), Thomas Julier (RaebervonStenglin), Zak Kitnick (Clifton Benevento), Esther Klas (SpazioA), Maria Laet (Galeria Marilia Razuk), Meleko Mokgosi (Honor Fraser), Florian & Michael Quistrebert (Galerie Juliette Jongma), Ishmael Randall Weeks (Revolver Galeria), Tracey Rose (Dan Gunn), Hrair Sarkissian (Kalfayan Galleries) and Lucie Stahl (Freedman Fitzpatrick).
The Edition sector returned for its second year, featuring prints, works in multiple and editioned objects by Alan Cristea Gallery, Crown Point Press, GDM, Gemini G.E.L. LLC, Sabine Knust, Carolina Nitsch, Pace Prints, Paragon, Polígrafa Obra Gráfica, S.L., Paul Stolper Gallery, STPI and Two Palms. For the full list of galleries, please visit: artbasel.com/miamibeach/edition. The 27 curated exhibitions featured in Kabinett drew acclaim from museum directors and critics. The sector featured work by artists including Etel Adnan, Paulo Bruscky, Joseph Cornell, Guillermo Kuitca, Leon Kelly, Ciprian Mure?an, Fairfield Porter, Liliana Porter, Michael Rakowitz, Antoni Tapies, Mickalene Thomas and James Turell. For the full list of galleries and artists, please visit: artbasel.com/miamibeach/kabinett. Curated by Nicholas Baume, Director and Chief Curator of New York City's Public Art Fund under the theme ‘Fieldwork', Public featured over 26 large-scale sculptures and installations by 24 leading and emerging international artists, including Georg Baselitz, Lynda Benglis, Sam Ekwurtzel, Elmgreen & Dragset, Ryan Gander, Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Alfredo Jaar, Justin Matherly, Ernesto Neto, Ugo Rondinone, Nancy Rubins, Yinka Shonibare MBE and Tatiana Trouve. Over a dozen artworks will continue to be presented in Collins Park through March 2015 as part of the Bass Museum of Art's ‘tc: temporary contemporary'. Produced in partnership with the Bass Museum of Art, Public officially opened last Wednesday with performances by Ryan Gander, Christian Falsnaes, Alix Pearlstein, Liz Glynn and Dawn Kasper. For more information, please visit: artbasel.com/miamibeach/public. The show's daily talks program brought together leading artists, museum directors, collectors and curators from around the world. The morning Conversations program opened with the Premiere Artist Talk with Lynda Benglis, whose innovative and vivid sculptures have been challenging the art establishment for half a century. The afternoon Salon program featured curators Klaus Biesenbach and Hans Ulrich Obrist in a lively conversation about Instagram as an artistic medium with Kevin Systrom, CEO and co-founder of Instagram, as well as a panel on Art Basel's Crowdfunding Initiative featuring several of the international non-profit organizations that had successfully funded projects. Beyond Art Basel's programming, South Florida's cultural institutions again enriched the week. This year was marked by the announcement that the new Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami will move into a permanent home designed by Spanish architects Aranguren & Gallegos located in Miami's Design District. Starting in 2015, the BMW Art Journey will enable emerging artists to go on a journey of creative discovery to a destination of their choice. The show also marked the successful launch of Art Basel's Next tours program for emerging collectors. A total of 80 collectors drawn from 12 young patrons groups of international museums attended bespoke tours of the fair and had intimate sessions with exhibiting galleries. Art Basel's next show in Miami Beach will take place from December 3 to December 6, 2015. Starting after the 2015 edition, the Miami Beach Convention Center will undergo major renovation, phased around the 2016 show, with the aim to finish the renovation before Art Basel returns to Miami Beach in December 2017.
