art basel miami

I'm here in Hollywood, Florida, now. I spent two days at the Art Basel Miami extravaganza, rented a car now, (I'm mortified, it's a PT Cruiser) and will go up the coast to visit my stepmom in St. Augustine. It's become a tradition, me staying a few days more after the fair to spend some time visiting friends and family.

But, this is an art blog, so I'll impart a few observations about the fairs. First, the "few observations" are very literal in this sense, as I really spent very little time looking at art. A lot of time was spent on the shuttles, going back and forth between the fairs. Artillery had a booth at NADA, which was on the very north end of Miami Beach, but I was staying at the Hilton in downtown Miami with a friend (free room). Anyway, these are details I'm sure would soon get boring for anyone to read. Suffice to say, very little art was seen by yours truly.

Now, am I disappointed? Immensely. But at the same time, it all looks the same, so I'm trying terribly to convince myself I really didn't miss much. I breezed through the Art Basel Miami Beach fair at the convention center on the last day, Sunday. Surprisingly, I was able to get through the security wearing a NADA booth badge with someone else's name and photo. I pleaded to not have to go to a different building to get a press pass and badge, with only two hours left of the fair. They let me go in.

I gotta say, I was not very impressed with what I saw. These days, the ugliest art gets the most attention. After fours years of this, I've come to realize, the art that stands out is the art that tries the hardest. It's gotta have a gimmick. It has to move, be kinetic. Or it has to be outrageously crude, pornographic or just plain bad. Otherwise, it all just all blends together. Another thing I found interesting, is just how many artists are with multiple galleries. I know this is nothing new, and is becoming more common, but I still find it a little odd. For instance, Kehinde Wiley--his work was at at least three booths. I mean, it starts to look like posters in retail stores--also, his work is starting to look like that anyway--like posters. I can't imagine collectors wanting something, so, well, commonplace. So, I would say, that's something to watch for. If everyone has a Wiley--do you really want one too? I think the answer is yes.

Like I said, it's hardly something new I'm saying or pointing out, but I'm finding it increasingly annoying. It's become my pet peeve sort of. 

And it's not because the artist is particularly prolific, it's just because the artist has a lot of money, and can pay assistants to crank out the art. I mean, that's sort of fucked, isn't it?