Gearing Up for Miami

So begins my annual series of posts about the art fairs in Miami. I'm starting early to offer a few links and lay out some of the schedule I hope to follow.
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If You're Going to Miami

Let's start with the lineup, The Essential Map and Guide for Art Basel Miami Beach. This two-page document in PDF form comes courtesy of Boyd Level, a curatorial and consulting firm in New York City. Thank you, Franklin Boyd, for a listing of 25 venues, organized by area: 12 in Miami Beach, 13 across the causeway in Wynwood. Added 11.26.11: Artlog has organized the info, too. (I don't need particulars to the Donna Karan Urban Zen Pop Up Store, but someone might.)
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. At Art Miami: Franklin Einspruch and I will offer a free Bloggers' Guide to the Fair on Friday, December 2. Meet us at the VIP desk. We'll depart from there at 11:00 sharp for an hourlong walk-and-talk, stopping to chat with dealers at a few booths. (I will reconnoiter the day before.) Then we'll convene for coffee and a discussion. I'm told the cafe will be set up for us. Reserve your spot at  bloggers@art-miami.com . (Would you cc me so that I know to expect you?) Click here for additional events.

Complimentary passes are making the rounds online. Click on this one to enlarge and print it out; it's good for two. This pass is courtesy Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York City

. Going to Art Basel Miami Beach? Tickets are pricy ($40 for one day; $85 for  the duration), but there are some price breaks: the evening ticket (4:00 pm to 8:00) is $28; just know that Sunday closing is 6:00 pm. If you're 62 or over you get in as a Senior Citizen for $23 (fake ID's, anyone?).  Or organize a group of 10 and get in for $23 apiece. Adult-accompanied kids under 16 get in free.

. Going to Aqua Art? You don't want to miss the gem with the laid-back vibe and lovely courtyard. Print out a pass for yourself. Try printing the one below (click image to enlarge for printing) or download a PDF from the Aqua website.

I'll have work at the Conrad Wilde Gallery, Room 222--image and additional info on sidebar, right (scroll up a tad)--and will be there for the VIP opening on Wednesday, November 30, from 8:00 to 11:00 pm. I'll be making the rounds like everyone else, but Conrad Wilde will be my home base. See you there?

Complimentary pass to Aqua Art. Click to enlarge and print out

. Fairs with FREE entry: Art Now, Fountain, Ink, NADA, Sculpt Miami, Seven, and Zones. Other free events: Art Public, a collection of sculptures in Collins Park, Collins at 21st; and the Rubell Family Collection.

Covering the Fairs

Though I couldn't possibly attend events at all 25 venues (that would be five a day!), I do plan to cover the following venues thoroughly: Aqua Art, Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Miami, Ink, NADA, Pulse, Seven
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. Maybe: If the body allows and these venues are convenient to my route, I'll pop into Art Now (under new management), Scope, Red Dot, Burst (a new emerging-artist event), along with Fountain, Verge and Zones
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. One or two of the private collections: Rubell for sure and possibly one of these others: Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation or Margulies Warehouse

. I'd also like to stop in at the Square Foot show at Projects Gallery in Wynwood, an outpost of the Philadelphia gallery. I'll say Hi my friends Helen Meyerick and Frank Hyder, the dealers, and take some pics of this installation.

. It Ain't Fair:  This year's exhibition, produced by a group called OHWOW, is Materialism, a show about contemporary art made with or about fiber and cloth. I can't wait to see it, because I have just finished co-curating Textility, with Mary Birmingham for her institution, the Visual Art Center of New Jersey, in Summit, which offers a 28-artist look at a very similar slice of contemporary art (It opens January 13; I'll have more info after Miami). I love when the zeitgeist offers up a coincidence like this. 

. Parties? I may be the only person who couldn't care less. At the end of the day all I want is a good meal with friends followed by a couple of hours to download pictures and review what I've seen. 

Reporting

Look for my reportage under the rubric this year of Fair Play. I hope to post a few short takes while I'm in the middle of things, but the real work starts when I return, with venue-by-venue reporting and edited pics (lots of them), along with some thematic posts and everyone's favorite feature, Art or Trash?  I'll start the serious writing on December 5 and continue through the month.

. If you need a fix before my posts start, check out Paddy Johnson's Art Fag City; Hrag Vartanian's Hyperallergic; The Art Newspaper, which publishes daily print editions and PDFs them onto their website; and The Miami Herald, which takes a local view of the international event

. If you'll be blogging about the fairs yourself, let me know (joanne@joannemattera.com) and I'll post your link here

Finally, enormous thank-yous to everyone who has supported my Send Me To Miami campaign. (Not to worry if you haven't donated. I'll be soliciting your support for this blog throughout the year.) And may we have a collective prayer that sciatica comes nowhere near my 12-hour work days.