5 Art Basel Miami Highlights

The best of the best from sunny Florida.

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There was a lot to see at the Art Basel art fair in Miami Beach, Florida, last week. A major affair for both fashion and art communities, the bazaar was full of curations, collaborations and products available for purchase — some celebrated, some controversial, and we were there for all of it.

Below we have the cream of the crop of what we saw at the premiere art show. From sculptures and installations to projects and presentations, these are five things not to be missed:

‘Bent Pool’ (2019) by Elmgreen & Dragset

The Scandinavian art duo dreamed up the 20-foot tall curved sculpture that combines elements of minimalism, conceptualism and pop art. Paying homage to the city’s architectural tradition, ‘Bent Pool’ is the last and final in a series of six site-specific public artworks to be permanently installed in and around the Miami Beach Convention Center.

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?‍♂️?‍♀️ ‘Bent Pool’ (2019) by @ElmgreenAndDragsetStudio — ?? Pride Park, in front of @TheMiamiBeachCC — ? ? Unveiled ahead of #ArtBaselMiamiBeach 2019, the duo’s new 20-foot-high, curved swimming pool sculpture was commissioned by the City of Miami Beach (@miamibeachnews) Art in Public Places Program (AiPP). It’s 1 of 6 installations on site, amongst pieces by #FranzAckermann, #EllenHarvey, #JosephKosuth, #JoepVanLieshout & #SarahMorris. — ? ? You can see more of #elmgreenanddragset’s work at the #ArtBasel show via @GaleriePerrotin (booth D24), @massimodecarlogallery (booth D21), @VictoriaMiroGallery (booth H7), and @KukjeGallery (booth F6) — ? ? 1–4, via @JessKlingelfuss, @victoriamirogallery, @elmgreenanddragsetstudio, @massimodecarlogallery, and @NicolaiWallner #MBArtsAndCulture #publicart #sculpture

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‘South Beach Stories’ by Sasha Bikoff

Curated by interior designer Sasha Bikoff, the project connects Versace’s fashion with its home collection. For Art Basel and Design Miami, Bikoff crafted one-of-a-kind furniture pieces inspired by signature Versace looks from the archives.

‘Order of Importance’ by Leandro Erlich

For Miami art week, the Argentinian artist created a temporary installation made up of 66 sand-covered cars and trucks. Meant to draw attention to rising sea levels caused by global warming, the project will be on the show until December 15, with the sand gradually disintegrating during that time.

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⚠️????⚠️ #LeandroErlich’s monumental installation ‘Order of Importance’ comprised of 66 life-size sand cars and trucks on the oceanfront in Miami Beach at Lincoln Road! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Commissioned by @MiamiBeachNews and curated by @xcaminos in collaboration with Brandi Reddick (@brandiredd), the piece recasts the 21st-century traffic jam in the sand and alludes to time, in both a representational and material sense. The forms will be left to slowly degrade throughout the duration of the exhibition, open to the public through December 15th. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ About Leandro Erlich: Throughout his career, the Argentinean conceptual artist has combined elements of sculpture, architecture, and theater to create surreal environments that disrupt the audience’s natural view of the world. He’s exhibited around the world, from representing Argentina at the 49th #VeniceBiennale to being the first non-Chinese artist to occupy the entire CAFAM (Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing), China’s leading museum, earlier this year. #artstasargentinos #argentina #artbaselmiamibeach #southbeach #publicart — ? 1–3: @305ssom, @leandroerlichofficial, @xcaminos

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‘My Feminine Energy” (2019) by Cajsa von Zeipel and ‘Try cry try’ (2019) by Raúl de Nieves

Von Zeipel and de Nieves might have created Art Basel’s most special booth. With elements bubblegum-colored shag carpeting, balloon-shaped lights, a furry pink throne and a plastic gun, the works challenge gender norms and suggest a wild party full of glitz and glamour.

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Raúl de Nieves (@norauls) & Cajsa von Zeipel (@futuristiclesbian) have created what might be #ArtBaselMiamiBeach’s most spectacular booth. Bubblegum-pink shag carpeting coats the floor. Von Zeipel’s figurative sculpture ‘My Feminine Energy’ (2019) hangs from the ceiling amid balloon-shaped lights; the mannequin-like form resembles a punk queen dressed in shiny, punch-colored pants and leopard-print heels. She sits on a furry pink throne, wielding a plastic gun. De Nieves, in keeping with his exuberant, craft-based practice, has created a series of beaded sculptures. One representative work, ‘Try cry try’ (2019), features what the wall label calls “artist worn shoes.” The sculpture is a pair of legs from the knee down, posed in bead-covered high heels that rope around the calves. They stand on a stained glass–esque, turquoise-and-pink lightbox. Altogether, the works undermine gender norms and suggest a glitzy, wild party. — The above is an excerpt from @Artsy’s ‘The 10 Best Booths at Art Basel in Miami Beach’ by @AlinaCohen. — See the installation in the Nova sector, presented by @CompanyGallery (booth N8). #rauldenieves #cajsavonzeipel #contemporaryart #artbasel

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‘Freedom Fries: Still Life’ (2014) by Yoshua Okón

The video work and lightbox triptych seek to show the human body in its political realm. Filmed at one of the franchise’s locations with a loyal McDonald’s customer as a model, the work represents corporate culture and makes references to ‘consumer society.’

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? Yoshua Okón, ‘Freedom Fries: Still Life’ (2014), part of PROYECTOSMONCLOVA’s (@_monclova, booth G26) #ArtBaselMiamiBeach 2019 presentation centered around the human body and its political realm. — The above video work and light box triptych are from @YoshuaOkon.Studio’s comprehensive project ‘Freedom Fries’. For this piece, the gallery explains, the artist convinced a McDonald’s manager to grant him access for an overnight shoot, as well as a loyal McDonald's customer to participate as a model. The resulting work references the way in which the body is tricked and, above all, dehumanized by the corporate environment. In this sense, the site itself acquires a symbolic nature: McDonald's, as a representative of corporate culture, references the way in which ‘consumer society’ alienates the human body. #yoshuaokon #freedomfries #consumerism #humanbody #bodyandpolitics #mcdonalds #installation #video #sculpture #lightbox #contemporaryart

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