The eleventh edition of Art Basel Miami Beach has released its line-up of participating galleries for this winter’s mammoth art fair, whittling down over 680 prospective exhibitors to a total of 257.
Approximately 50 per cent of galleries are from both the US and Latin America, with Germany proving to be a European leader with 34 establishments making their way over to Miami (compared to 19 from Great Britain and 18 from France).
Most of the establishments (201) will be showing under Art Galleries, the main hub of the expo, with the thrust of the art on show decidedly modern in scope. Returning to this sector after a short break away includes Jacobson Gallery; Art: Concept; Graça Brandão; Konrad Fischer Galerie; Galerie Bernard; Kewenig Galerie; and Anthony Reynolds Gallery.
Exhibiting for the first time will be Tornabuoni Art; Henrique Faria Fine Art; Galerie Michael Haas; Hirschl & Adler Modern; Galerie Mehdi Chouakri; and Hammer Galleries.
There are a total of 40 institutions in the Art Nova section, which is geared specifically towards promoting and uncovering fresh talent. The galleries here show two to three artists under their wing who have produced interesting works of art in the last three years.
Artists looking to cement themselves as the next big thing at this year’s fair are Yael Bartana, Tal R. and Tom Burr from Sommer Contemporary Art Gallery; John Gerrard, Michelle Lopez and Hans Schabus from Simon Preston Gallery; Julião Sarmento and Leigh Ledare from Pilar Corrias; and Dove Allouche, Jonathan Binet and Jessica Warboys from Gaudel de Stampa.
This year there is a definite newness in the Art Positions quarter, which sees galleries presenting individual artists to the cognoscenti of the industry – critics, investors, museum directors. 12 of the 16 establishments promoting artists were not in attendance last year.
Here we have the Mexican artist Pablo Rasgado (Arratia, Beer); Ivan Seal (RaebervonStenglin), who is once again focusing on painting; the visual artist Latoya Ruby Frazier (Galerie Michel Rein); and Andra Ursuta (Ramiken Crucible), an installation artist who hails from Romania.
Miami’s punch art economy will also be strongly represented this year, with both its private collections and museums delivering a veritably superb ensemble of engaging works of art. Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation, the De la Cruz Collection Contemporary Art Space and the Margulies Collection at the Warehouse are just a handful of some of the private collections exhibiting at the fair.
Complementing the exhibitions will be another round of engaging talks and discussions, where industry leaders will gather to reflect on a year in art, examine the resilience the sector has shown in the face of the continuing global problems and ponder what trends will emerge in 2013.
Based on the resounding success of last year’s groundbreaking show, which attracted over 50,000 visitors, 2012’s incarnation should be another progressive event. Last year, the decade-marking fair was extraordinary for many reasons.
This included observations such as the surfacing of a new generation of art collectors in their thirties demonstrating a level of maturity beyond their years, a positive expansion in the number of women investing in art, and the general growth in the number of people looking to pump money into the market.
Art Basel Miami Beach at the Miami Beach Convention Center runs from December 6th until December 9th.
Cadogan Tate specialises in art transportation, fine art storage and art logistics, helping galleries, museums and collectors manage their collections.