Art Basel a boon for South Florida art scene
As Miami Beach prepares to play host to Art Basel, one of the world's most important art fairs, gallery owners from across the globe are trying to strike the right mix of art and commerce that will not only telegraph their artistic vision but allow them to survive amid one of the steepest downturns in decades.
"It's hard for small booths to attract attention,'' said James Danziger, whose gallery in the Chelsea district of New York City will be making its first trip to the Miami fair. So he's counting on unique images and compelling stories -- such as a historical Ali photograph -- to help him stand out in the crowd. "If you want people to walk into the booth you have to have something eye-catching.''
With all of its glitzy parties, wild sculptures and deep-pocketed collectors, it's easy to forget that Art Basel Miami Beach is really a trade fair. And its participants -- about 250 gallery owners and dealers -- are investing tens of thousands of dollars in hopes of drumming up business.
After shipping costs, hotel rooms, artists' commissions and the $35,000 booth fee, Danziger estimates he will have to sell about $150,000 to break even.
Now in its eighth year, Art Basel Miami Beach, which runs from Dec 3-6, is expected to draw about 40,000 visitors. In addition to the main event at the convention center, more than a dozen satellite fairs featuring thousands of artists will pop up around the metropolitan area.
Local galleries say anywhere from 20 to 50 percent of their annual sales will take place in the frenzied days around the event.
This year, the fair comes at a pivotal point for the art world. Battered by the global economic crisis, art prices have fallen more than 30 percent this year, according to a closely-watched index. And even though prices are beginning to recover, sales volume is still anemic.
While the Miami area is the home of a burgeoning art scene, it doesn't have the deep, local collector base of New York, London or Los Angeles. That makes the annual event, which brings in corporate clients and museum curators from around the globe, that much more important.
(Via Miami Herald)
"It's hard for small booths to attract attention,'' said James Danziger, whose gallery in the Chelsea district of New York City will be making its first trip to the Miami fair. So he's counting on unique images and compelling stories -- such as a historical Ali photograph -- to help him stand out in the crowd. "If you want people to walk into the booth you have to have something eye-catching.''With all of its glitzy parties, wild sculptures and deep-pocketed collectors, it's easy to forget that Art Basel Miami Beach is really a trade fair. And its participants -- about 250 gallery owners and dealers -- are investing tens of thousands of dollars in hopes of drumming up business.
After shipping costs, hotel rooms, artists' commissions and the $35,000 booth fee, Danziger estimates he will have to sell about $150,000 to break even.
Now in its eighth year, Art Basel Miami Beach, which runs from Dec 3-6, is expected to draw about 40,000 visitors. In addition to the main event at the convention center, more than a dozen satellite fairs featuring thousands of artists will pop up around the metropolitan area.
Local galleries say anywhere from 20 to 50 percent of their annual sales will take place in the frenzied days around the event.
This year, the fair comes at a pivotal point for the art world. Battered by the global economic crisis, art prices have fallen more than 30 percent this year, according to a closely-watched index. And even though prices are beginning to recover, sales volume is still anemic.
While the Miami area is the home of a burgeoning art scene, it doesn't have the deep, local collector base of New York, London or Los Angeles. That makes the annual event, which brings in corporate clients and museum curators from around the globe, that much more important.
(Via Miami Herald)
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