Art Basel returns to Miami with exhibits that leave you reeling!

The Costume of Painter - at the studio-hm in the red m by Joon Sung Bae

With Miami Art Week and Art Basel coming to a close and leaving many of us exhausted beyond our means, I want to reflect on some of the impactful artworks and artists that were featured within the fairs this year. In the year 2020, Art Basel and Miami Art Week were not how it usually is with the bustling of people in the fairs and the streets. Viewers and collectors were mostly enjoying gallery booths and purchasing artworks from their computers. Even though this hurt many galleries and art intuitions, it also granted them the time to expand on what they wanted to present for 2021.

Now a year later, Miami Art Week and Art Basel have returned with their well-known fairs such as Untitled, NADA, Scope, Context, Pinta, Art Basel at the Convention Center, and so much more. We also can’t forget about the local exhibitions held by artists and curators from the Miami Art Society and then some. The amount of representation within the artists and galleries featured this year truly was remarkable. Like most individuals my inbox was exploding with Eventbrite and fair tickets, just hoping I can make it to most of them without overextending myself.

Eight Seated Women, 2021 by Hanagma Amiri

Luckily for me, I was able to attend a majority of the heavy hitter fairs and Miami Art Society exhibitions this year. I kept note of all of the galleries, artists, and artworks that left me with chills and a superb amount of inspiration. Within this article I will showcase some of these artworks that left me reeling alongside offering my critique:

I want to start first with the New Art Dealers Alliance also known as the NADA Art Fair. NADA had to be my favorite fair this year and I say this because it checked so many boxes. One of those boxes is the location, this year NADA was at Ice Palace Studios and this location on the outside is filled with towering palm trees that open up for an almost red carpet-like entrance. The entrance alone to this fair immediately pulled you right in. Another box checked was the unconventional exhibition style-like format that many of the booths in NADA created.

Also, NADA expanded their representation and so many Black and Latino artists and galleries were given front row center. One gallery that I want to discuss in particular that was present within the NADA fair this year is the Calderón Gallery that showcased artist Danielle De Jesus. What first grabbed my attention was her artwork titled, This stoop is now closed.

The stoop is now closed, by Danielle De Jesus

The circle shape of the wood panel offers this peak view into this subtle yet tense moment that we’ve stumbled upon, but what struck me was the lace table cloth that this artwork was wrapped in. I immediately thought of the lace tablecloth at my grandparent's home in Dyckman, New York. I felt encompassed of nostalgia, but also this somber feeling that I could not quite explain yet. It was after speaking with the members of the Calderón Gallery, that I learned that most of De Jesus’s work centers around her experience growing up in Bushwick and slowly watching as gentrification swallowed up these neighborhoods; hence the lock on the door behind the figure in this painting.

Carmelo, by Danielle De Jesus

I was also informed that De Jesus mostly paints male figures while including domestic materials to signify the softness and the bond between men, their mothers, and the community. In another painting by De Jesus titled, Carmelo, we see this notion even further. The figure’s rough exterior, softness in his eyes, and presence in the kitchen further push this narrative. In this painting, De Jesus presents her favorite subject who was also her neighbor that was displaced from his home back when she was growing up.

A fair that will always leave me inspired and wanting more will always be the Untitled Art Fair that takes place right on Miami Beach. Untitled prides itself on being an inclusive platform for discovering contemporary art, all the while taking on unique curatorial approaches. This year Untitled took the cake by being the most inclusive fair in town, with over 145 intersectional owned galleries and artists present. What I always enjoy most about Untitled is that as an Afro-Latina practicing artist and curator, I always feel so represented.

We Got This by Phyllis Stephens

A gallery booth that truly captivated me was the Richard Beavers Gallery from Brooklyn. The Richard Beaver Gallery showcased work that truly encapsulate the expansion and intricate nature of Black Contemporary Art. The artwork that stole my attention away immediately is titled, We Got This by Phyllis Stephens. The intricate use of African textiles alongside the heavy use of greenery gravitates viewers to scan their eyes all over this artwork. Most of all it is the powerful gazes that the figures portray to the viewer in conjunction with the tenderness in the hold that the figures have on each other. The scale of this work puts you directly in the scene, questioning where they are and where they are heading. The power in African Diaspora artists was truly showcased within this gallery and I was so empowered to know that most of their works were sold. 

Art Basel held at the Miami Beach Convention Center is one of if not the largest fair held during Miami Art Week. Before this year, I would tend to avoid this fair being the insanely large crowds that make it difficult to even view art peacefully and the overconsumption of artworks that hold no sociopolitical or intentional weight. Basel at the Convention Center always felt like the fair that was held mostly for collectors to purchase artworks for their clients.

The art that is shown at this fair always felt so disconnected and pretentious, unlike the neighboring fairs that felt more like a carefully curated experience. This year I decided to go back and I have to say it felt different from the many years before. Basel at the Convention Center felt so much more inclusive including galleries and artists of all intersectionalities.

Work of Zanele Muholi

This year it felt as though the curators of Basel took their time to integrate ground-breaking artists and offer them a large platform to sell and showcase their work. What stood out to me the most about Basel this year was seeing artworks by some of my favorites, such as Zanele Muholi and Gerald Lovell.

Chameleon by Gerald Lovell

The highlight of this fair was being introduced to the Roberts Projects Gallery that represents international artists and focuses on presenting diverse exhibitions. Little did I know that Roberts Projects in Los Angeles represents two artists whose work has captivated me for some time now: Amoako Boafo and Kehinde Wiley.

PINK CORSET PINK GLOVES, 2021 by Amoako Boafo

Two artists that I was introduced to within the Roberts Projects booth this year that left me stunned and wanting to discover them, even more, were Otis Kwame Kye Quaicoe and Wangari Mathenge.

The Ascendants by Wangari Mathenge

In particular the featured Mathenge portrait titled, The Ascendants explores the comfort in one’s home and the interpersonal nature of our domestic spaces. This painting resonated with me in many ways, such as that I spend the first and last moments of my days in my bed surrounded by the memoirs that bring me solace. This painting brought me to appreciate these moments a bit more, but the heavy shadow looming over the figure brings to question who may be intruding on this vulnerable moment. Mathenge found a way to bring us into this figure’s comfort space, while also making the viewer feel as if they are not only peeking into this moment but also intruding.

Lastly, I want to discuss a solo exhibition held by the Miami Art Society for artist Ruth Burotte. This was my first time coming into contact with the work of Burotte and I can say it left me enamored. The space was filled with several multimedia depictions of a fictional character that almost replicates Burotte. After speaking with her for a few minutes, I learned that this character is not an expansion of self-portraits, but more so a character she created to depict the importance of inclusion and diversity when concerning illustration and storytelling. I was so captivated by her work because it reminded me of Japanese animations, but in a way that finally showcases Black women in ways that we’ve never been shown before.

Overall Miami Art Week and Art Basel this year have truly left an impact on us all, on top of leaving us exhausted beyond our means. Until next year!