A quick trip down to Miami had us cruising through the art fairs that permeated the town the weekend of Dec. 7th. The big fair itself, Art Basel, had a range from the impressionism through the modern through the contemporary through the now-est of now. The banana under duct tape was referenced by several artists, in a reverential mockery, as well as by Dole bananas which was giving away bananas upstairs by the lecture hall with a gimmick of a lottery number under the peeled labels. The wooden Elephants which had traversed the Meatpacking district now trotted across Miami’s Midbeach. The Scope fair also was enormous showcasing a dizzying array of gorgeous art from all over the world, but mostly the U.S., which was actually pretty great to see. Several hotels in Southbeach were taken over by small art fairs, with each hotel room being a showcase for a smaller gallery, and these galleries were also from all over the world and all over the country. The hotels chosen were of the Miami old school sort which were two stories high and had a long courtyard in the middle. In one it was taken over by people making art, in another, by a DJ playing from the balcony of the second floor down to the revelers below. Booze abounded, people wandered fairs with flutes and cocktails in hand, as did some astounding fashion and a commonality of very brightly colored sneakers, both a fashion statement and a practical choice for all the running around the galleries and fairs and hotels there was, and the sprawling City accommodated gracefully with free trolleys and ferries to move from one to the other..
Belated Basel
