Greetings from the Miami Beach Convention Center!
The humid air provided remedy by helping me to sweat out all of the toxins from last night’s tour of open bars and nightclubs that still allow smoking indoors.
Supposedly, art is selling steadily, just not at the maniacal pace of years past. Many of the booths look conservative, peddling old reliables: Alex Katz, Warhol, Richter, Richard Prince, lots of pop. The oozy, polychrome Sterling Ruby monument at Pace Wildenstein was memorable, as was a towering Thomas Houseago sculpture. Actually, many other giant figures populated the fair, perhaps sired by Marc Quinn’s 500-kg orchid cast in bronze.
Meanwhile, there’s a revolution of round supports:
And myriad mirrors, stainless steel, and other reflective surfaces:
Do collectors love to see themselves in their art? Is narcissism a component of conspicuous consumption? Let’s ask the pros. Overseeing this empire of objects are Art Basel Co-Directors Marc (with a C) Spiegler and Annette Schönholzer:
My favorite thing so far has been the Wade Guyton wall at Friedrich Petzel. EXCLUSIVE to the SVA blog, Andrea Teschke, Director of Friedrich Petzel Gallery, talks us through it. Thanks, Andrea!
My least favorite thing was the rhinestone-coated deer by Marc Swanson at Richard Gray Gallery. Deer art went extinct in 2004, followed soon by sasquatch art. It’s not better than Liza Lou, and def can’t beat Damien Hirst: you can’t top his diamond skull, which is the ultimate in Bedazzler Art. Shouldn’t I shell out my $60,000 for some real bling?
