MIJAMI...

AT LAST..uploading pix from Art Basel Miami. Here are the highlights:

ABMB
A Gentil Carioca, who showed this incredibly inventive and really funny installation by Laura Lima, the Brazilian artist who I have previously mentioned, and whom I had the pleasure of meeting in Rio de Janiero. Also large works by Thiago Rocha Pitta, a young artist who also works in video and was also featured in an off-site exhibition called Feijao com Arroz, curated by Jacopo Crivelli Visconti.

Nara Roesler, who had a stellar booth filled with museum quality work. A stand-out sculpture by Laura Vinci, who made a beautiful installation/chandelier of glass vessels. Vinci made a real impression on me with her installation at Inhotim, so it was really nice to see some of her more accessible work.

Canada Gallery, showed some recent works by Matt Connors, who is also one of my favorite young American painters.

Marilia Razuk also from Brazil, had some really great sculptures by Felipe Cohen, whose work concentrates on the juxtaposition of precious and non-precious materials.

Sommer Gallery from Tel Aviv presented an outstanding new video by Yael Bartana, an ode to Otto Dix called Degenerate Art Lives.

Galeria Millan, Sao Paulo, showed paintings by Rodrigo Andrade, an artist that I had previously seen at the Sao Paulo Bienal, and whose work I am following with great interest.

NADA
In general I thought NADA was very strong. I thought the floor plan was very easy to navigate and some great work was presented by members.

The Journal, gallery and magazine always seems to push the envelope, presented HO BAGS zine of collaborative drawings between Harmony Korine and Bill Saylor. Made exclusively for NADA and were an Edition of 100. Also, Sarah Braman, whose sculptures were also seen at her gallery Museum 52.

Sculptor, Ali Bailey had an impressive large work at Andrew Rafacz, Chicago.

Hillary Crisp showed George Young, an artist I have been looking at for a few years and was excited to see at the fair.

SEVEN art fair was a bold step outside the box for an art fair. I thought that the open floor plan and salon style hang was hard to navigate and made it a challenge for the dealers to anticipate interest. Saying that, it was hard to miss the best things in the room..

Postmasters gallery presented this out-of-this-world installation by Adam Cvijanovic. Having worked with Adam in the past I know his work very well. This recent series of broken walls has been explored by the artist with various scenes revealed; the scenic Alps, the moody seascape, but none have reached the potential of this galaxy nebula that he took on for Miami. Here he has really come into his own and challenges our perception. BRAVO! Also at SEVEN, Sam van Aken and Rico Gatson at Ronald Feldman, and Guy Ben-Ner video also at Postmasters.

ZOOM, the first U.S. art fair to solely focus on contemporary art from the Middle East, concluded its inaugural edition with critical acclaim. Artis, an independent non-profit that supports and promotes the Israeli
contemporary art community throughout the world, presented the most riveting video installations by a young artist I think I saw all week. Orit Ben Shitrit's two-channel video, Men Die And They Are Not Happy, 2010. In addition to the video Artis commissioned the artist to create a site-specific performance around the hotel pool, which was very powerful. I am thrilled that I made it to see Zoom and I hope that people will continue to discover the important work from young artists from the middle east.

Outside the craziness of the fairs, MOCA Miami mounted a solo exhibition of Jonathan Meese that featured many works made during the artist's childhood. The texts that accompanied the exhibition curated by MOCA Executive Director and Chief Curator Bonnie Clearwater, provided the much needed explanation of the artists practice. FINALLY...I understand..and appreciate!