The first week of December is chock-full of art events, from big-ticket Art Basel to smaller fairs that pack a creative punch. Here’s a handy primer on the ones to watch.
X CONTEMPORARY
Nov. 30-Dec. 3; $20
Where: The new David Rockwell-designed Nobu Hotel at the Eden Roc
Debuted: 2015
Quantity: 35 international galleries
Quality: Works by Agnes Martin and other 20th-century greats will be part of X’s “The Women Who Made Modern Art Modern,” a celebration of pioneering female dealers like Peggy Guggenheim and Betty Parsons.
Don’t miss: Bishop Gallery will be showing early paintings, drawings and collages by Jean-Michel Basquiat that have never before been exhibited.
Dig in: Alexandra Fairweather will have her new line of organic juices and teas, Hottie Tottie, on offer.
ART MIAMI & CONTEXT
Nov. 30-Dec. 4; from $45
Where: Tents in Midtown Miami; for the first time, Context will be in its own tent a block away
Debuted: Art Miami, 1989; Context, 2012
Quantity: 135 galleries at Art Miami; 102 at Context
Quality: Top names include Marc Chagall at Galerie Boulakia, Ed Ruscha at Archeus/Post-Modern and Frank Stella at Leslie Feely, all at Art Miami.
Celeb sightings: Actor Adrien Brody and lyricist Bernie Taupin will have work on display at Art Miami.
Don’t miss: Diamonds Unleashed, a women’s empower-ment initiative: Jewelry designer Kara Ross teamed with CFDA designers and artists to create diamond pieces to be auctioned for women’s causes.
Dig in: Miami’s Spuntino Catering will lay out a farm-to-table spread in Art Miami’s VIP lounge.
ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH
Dec. 1-4; from $50
Where: Miami Beach Convention Center for the main fair, with public sculptures on view in Collins Park and film at SoundScape Park, all in Miami Beach
Debuted: 2002
Quantity: 269 galleries from 29 countries
Quality: The blue-chippiest of blue-chip artists, from the major-est of major big-money galleries, including Gagosian, Hauser & Wirth and Pace
Fashion uniform: Think Marni and Chloé for her, and slim European suits, sockless loafers and open collars for him.
Celeb sightings: Last year’s luminaries included Leo DiCaprio, former Yankee Alex Rodriguez and director Brett Ratner.
Don’t miss: In the fair’s Kabinett section, Sperone Westwater Gallery will be showing off recent sculptures by art-and-design darling Tom Sachs; Francis M. Naumann Fine Art will display Man Ray; and Alan Cristea Gallery will have work by Turner Prize-winning British artist Howard Hodgkin that’s never been seen stateside.
Dig in: An outdoor Garden Café by James Beard award-winning Miami chef Michelle Bernstein is a highlight among the food offerings at the Convention Center.
Fun fact: Even the monumental works curated by the Public Art Fund’s Nicholas Baume, on display in Collins Park — including a group of 10 cast-bronze figures by Magdalena Abakanowicz and a trio of geometric baked-enamel-on-aluminum pieces from Sol LeWitt’s 1974 “Incomplete Open Cubes” series — will be up for purchase.
SUPERFINE! THE FAIREST FAIR
Dec. 1-4; from $7.77
Where: In a CrossFit space in Midtown Miami
Debuted: 2015
Quantity: Upward of 15 galleries, 25 displays by individual artists, and six special installations
Quality: Local talent is out in force, with more than 50 percent of exhibitors from Miami and South Florida, including Jen Clay, voted best emerging artist of 2016 by the New Times Broward-Palm Beach.
Celeb sightings: Organizers hope power couple Jay Z and Beyoncé will stop by — one of Superfine!‘s artists, Mark Reamy, illustrated a limited-edition children’s book for their daughter, Blue Ivy.
Don’t miss: The fantastical mural on the fair’s facade and the for-sale print by Danish-born, LA-based artist Mikael B, whose recent solo show in Copenhagen sold out on its first day. Meanwhile, Miami artist team Nice’n Easy will turn the back garden into a Technicolor picnic installation complete with swing sets, beach-like areas and a Jet Ski.
Dig in: Naomi’s Garden Restaurant & Lounge in Little Haiti is bringing its beloved Caribbean cooking to the fair.
Fun fact: Affordability matters here — 70 percent of the work on offer will be priced between $300 and $5,000, and the rest is still under $10,000 per piece.
PULSE
Dec. 1-4; from $25
Where: A two-pavilion tent in Indian Beach Park, at 46th Street and Collins Avenue
Debuted: 2005
Quantity: 75 exhibitors, both local and international, a quarter of them new Quality: Digital artist Anne Spalter is creating an augmented-reality installation, “Miami Marbles,” consisting of spheres printed with abstracted city images. Use the Marbles app to make them morph and to spot other orbs throughout the fair.
Fashion uniform: Artnet voted fair director Helen Toomer one of the most stylish women in the art world. Think cutting-edge creations and oversize specs.
Don’t miss: Pieces by environmental snapper Edward Burtynsky and artist José Parlá at Bryce Wolkowitz, plus Mickalene Thomas at Yancey Richardson
Dig in: Pulse has looked to Italy (by way of Miami) for its food offerings this year, partnering with local restaurant group Graziano’s.
UNTITLED, MIAMI BEACH
Nov. 30-Dec. 4; $30
Where: On the beach at Ocean Drive and 12th Street, in a tent designed by K/R. One of the architecture firm’s partners, Terence Riley, is the former director of the Miami Art Museum and was once chief curator of architecture and design at MoMA.
Debuted: 2012
Quantity: 129 galleries
Quality: Standouts include commercial enterprises like New York’s Benrubi Gallery and the Hamptons’ Eric Firestone, plus such nonprofits as the photo-focused Aperture Foundation and Miami’s Institute of Contemporary Art.
Don’t miss: Editions by John Baldessari at Cirrus Gallery and, at Eric Firestone, pieces by Miriam Schapiro, a leader of the feminist art movement known for her hard-edge paintings and Pattern and Decoration collages
Dig in: In keeping with the oceanside location, expect a celebration of fresh local seafood, with crab, oyster and sushi bars on offer.
DESIGN MIAMI
Nov. 30-Dec. 4; from $25
Where: A tent on the southwest corner of Meridian Avenue and 19th Street in Miami Beach
Debuted: 2005
Quantity: 31 gallery booths showing a mix of work, plus six more with each focused on an individual designer
Quality: Top names include New York’s R & Company and Cristina Grajales.
Celeb sightings: Elle Macpherson and music star Will.i.am held court last year, along with mogul Aby Rosen and W editor Stefano Tonchi. Maybe Kanye will show up this year — his creative director Virgil Abloh has his own booth.
Don’t miss: New work from the Campana brothers at Friedman Benda and early stainless-steel pieces by Maria Pergay at Jousse Entreprise
Dig in: Dean & DeLuca is on culinary duty, partnering with architect Ole Scheeren to present the grub within his prototype for a new food-retail concept.
Fun fact: NYC’s SHoP Architects has created a 3-D-printed gateway structure for the fair tent, which will later be installed in Miami’s Design District.