Once again we hit that time of the year that some sectors of Miami seem to be preparing for all year long, Miami Art Week, plainly called “Basel” or “Art Basel” by most locals. The preparations, as usual, make the city blossom; fading murals change into new bright colors all over Wynwood and Allapattah, and everyone is focusing their efforts into new cool events or artwork to get attention, and hopefully, good business.

The quantity of art fairs keeps growing, and there is enough variety for every taste. It doesn’t matter if you are an avid contemporary art collector, want to discover the new up and coming artists, or just want to catch a good background for your selfies. Here we offer a basic guide of the distinctions between some of them.

• Art Basel is the most established, focusing in modern and contemporary art from the most prominent galleries, with the sector Nova for promising newer galleries. This one is the reason that, like we said before, people call Miami Art Week “Basel”. So unless you have good reasons not to, it would be the must see of the week.  $50-$115; artbasel.com.

• NADA is one of the more conceptual fairs, (seems like all Lower East Side NY is there). If you are an art connoisseur, or want to appear like one on Instagram, this is the fair to go. $20-$40; newartdealers.org

• Untitled is one the positioning newer fairs, focusing on emerging galleries and young artists. You will likely find bursts of neon colors in every other booth, along with emerging artists best attempt to dazzle your eyes. $30, $20 for Miami Beach residents; art-untitled.com.

• Pinta is the fair with some of the strongest galleries dealing with Latin American art, also from modern to contemporary. This year the fair includes a group exhibition honoring Argentine writer Borges. And did we mention entrance is free? pintamiami.com

• Design Miami showcases a variety of mediums, from jewelry to furniture and sustainable living. It’s recommended to check out their schedule of talks by interesting guest speakers. $25; designmiami.com.
• Scope features the work of up and coming contemporary artists as well as multi-disciplinary creative programming. Visual impact is one of the main characteristics of this fair. $25 – $150; scope-art.com
• Context fair, part of the Art Miami family, announced that this year will focus on sculpture, sound and immersive mixed reality experiences. $30 – $250; www.contextartmiami.com

• And two new fairs appearing this year: Conception conceptionartfair.com and Art Concept nextlevelfairs.com/concept.    

The week also offers a great opportunity for people watching and trendspotting. Artists and fashionistas congregate in Miami from all around the world, displaying their favorite and most daring pieces and looks. Art Week is, by the way, a long hard day’s worth of walking. Miles of hallways and different art fairs and galleries make it a good idea to wear something sensible on your feet. So bring your sneakers, low boots, and walking shoes; anything that will allow you to walk the long aisles of every art fair and be ready to head to the parties later in the evening. Trust us, this might be one of the best tips you can get.

The amount of things happening during these days can be overwhelming even for the most experienced attendees. Traffic gets crazy and finding parking is close to impossible, so take advantage of ridesharing services such as Uber or Lyft (careful with the price hikes), and the free shuttle service to available to easily between art fairs in Miami Beach and the city. For shuttle details, click here. Unfortunately there’s not an app for teleportation just yet, so there will always be events you will miss. To make the best choices, follow Too Much Love and your favorite local news sources to get updates on events that will be popping up everywhere, recommendations of the best artists works on display this year, and where to find them.

 

– By Daniela Luna