Three things. We love Blip. And we have a great new episode of Art Seen for you. And a surprise!
First: Blip is a New York-based internet company that streams original web series. Started in 2005, Blip just launched a new look that’s beautiful, clean, and simple. And, because they focus on shows, you see higher quality stuff at Blip. We’re huge fans.
Second: We have a special edition of Art Seen today. The Bare Square has been sifting through all the footage and photos from Jen’s Art Basel Miami trip. We gave you a sneak preview of some of the art last week. Well now we have a whirlwind grand tour of amazing art exclusively from Art Seen!
Third: Now for something to knock your socks off. Not only do you get a special edition of Art Seen with Jen Wallace today. Now the big announcement: (drum roll, please…) Art Seen is now available at our very own, all-new Blip TV channel!
Working with Blip, you’ll be able to access Art Seen here at The Bare Square through our brand-new snazzy player, but also at Blip, on YouTube, and even on iTunes as a podcast!
(Watch closely and see if you can catch Stephanie Lempert’s art, the models on the beach, the pink bunny, and the artsy palm trees.)
This year, The Bare Square brought you art news and comment on a globe-spanning range of topics. From Ai Wei Wei, to New York gallery openings, from the depths of the sea to deep space, you’ve come to The Bare Square and nibbled on our bite-sized art news. Thank you for making the Bare Square part of your art experience!
Because we’re rapidly approaching 200 articles, picking a Top Ten wasn’t easy–so we picked eleven. That didn’t make it much easier, but it did give you a bonus article!
Without further ado, here are the Top 11 ARTicles of 2011 from The Bare Square! See what you missed, revisit what you liked, and PLEASE share with your friends and “Like”. Thanks again!
Jen Wallace, host of our web video show Art Seen, also contributes to The Bare Square. We published her story about actor James Franco’s art project in mid-July.
On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, The Bare Square focused on Charles Wilbert White and David Hammons, African-American artists who paved the way for others.
Frederick Douglass Lives Again by Charles Wilbert White
Kulsoom contributed to this profile of nAscent artist Jack Laroux. The article holds the honor of having the most “Likes” of any article this year–way to go Kulsoom! (And thanks to Jack for all his fans and supporters!)
The Bare Square felt a deep sense of shock, loss, and despair over the earthquake in Japan. The article at #3 discussed the role of art in the wake of tragedy.
Being based in New York City, we at The Bare Square appreciated the work of street artist “Moustache,” having seen his handiwork ourselves many times. Sadly, the NYPD put an end to his vandalism, failing to see the humor in his clever “improvement” on public ads. People responded well to our remembrance…and we still miss him.
By far the most popular article in terms of ratio of “Likes” as compared to page views, and a just plain cool and romantic story, The Bare Square interviewed the creator of the best proposal story we’ve ever heard. Do yourself a favor–click the link, re-read the article, and watch the video (even if you’ve watched it before). With New Year’s Eve coming, let this story inspire even more romance!
This past week/weekend art industry professionals, art collectors, artists and art enthusiasts alike swarmed to Miami for Art Basel Miami and what can only be described as — art overload! I had to join in the fun! Excited to conduct a 5-day-long all-out assault on art fairs, events, special exhibitions, exclusive parties, street art, public art, meetings, and art commerce, I devised my plan of attack.
Once I wrapped my head around the myriad number of choices, I settled on seeing as much as possible…not everything. I packed my bags, my VIP passes, and my schedule and headed south.
Using airbnb.com, I booked a luxury apartment in a perfect South Beach location. Though the apartment was great, I arrived to a broken toilet. Inconvenience! They fixed it, but I missed much of the ABM Vernissage party, which was a drag. Metered parking also posed minor challenge–next time I’m getting a place with valet! (One Miami parking ticket was enough.)
I arrived in Miami Wednesday night and stayed through Sunday. During my whirlwind stay, I visited over a dozen art fairs, checked out a couple of swanky VIP parties, enjoyed tons of great art, and met inspiring people.
Art Basel Miami Beach, Jen Wallace under work by artist Erwin Wurm
Art Basel Miami Beach, Louise Bourgeois, Cell (Twelve Oval Mirrors)
Art Basel Miami Beach, Srnivasa Prasad, No Title, GallerySKE
Art Basel Miami Beach, Yutake Sore, David Zwirner Gallery (Palm Trees in here too?)
Aqua 11 VIP opening party
Verge Art Fair, Camomile Hixon, Diane Birdsall Gallery
Art Miami, Norbert Brunner, You Are Formidable, Claire Oliver Gallery
Scope Art Fair, Emilio Garcia, United Brains of the World
Scope Miami, Andres Basurto, Tree (made of wine bottles!), Red Truck Gallery
SEVEN, Patrick Jacobs, Pierogi Gallery
Fountain Art Fair, Coby Kennedy, Supply and Demand #1, Mighty Tanaka
30min of beach time squeezed in at end of the day on the last day
Walking all of the art fairs and viewing all of the artwork in one place is thrilling. At the parties, after getting through the guest list, the drinks flowed and the beautiful people came out in force.
I really enjoyed the VIP opening party atAqua 11 on Wed. night. With an electric energy in the air, Aqua 11′s band was kickin’, and they offered cocktails and hors d’oeurves a-plenty. Aqua 11′s open air design, courtyard palm trees, and art deco vibe created the fun Miami vibe I hoped for. As I wandered into each hotel room/exhibit, I discovered another great new “gallery” to see.
ThePulse Miami VIP preview brunch on Thursday morning rocked! After seeing amazing art and chatting with great gallery owners I retired to the courtyard for brunch. I enjoyed bacon, eggs, a muffin and a mimosa while swaying on a hammock and soaking up the sun.
Another amazing and impressive fair, Art Miami, hosted some of my favorite works of the weekend.
Cease and desist! Pool Art Fair for independent artists got ousted from their hotel host because of fire code issues! They relocated to a disappointing scene. If you witnessed this exhibition tragedy, give Pool another chance. I’ve been to their New York edition, and (when they comply with fire codes) they always please.
The little SEVEN art fair (with only seven galleries showing) surprised and impressed. They left a fair-goer wanting more than just seven!
Art Basel Miami weekend provides a high-energy, exciting, party-filled collection of galleries and artists where you can explore art, and sunny Miami in December is a sweet place to do it! If you go next year, The Bare Square will see you there!
If you’re in Miami or into art (or reading The Bare Square lately), you know about Art Basel Miami. In fact, if you’re reading this article at the 10th installment of this massive fair tonight, you may be at the Official Opening Night At The W Hotel. I certainly wish I was there!
Art Basel Miami Beach (Photo credit: Guest of a Guest)
Well tomorrow afternoon I hop a flight and land in Miami just in time to check-in, change from travel to cocktail attire, and head to some great Art Basel Miami parties. It’s a weekend-long, all-out marathon of art and fun, and it’s going to be a blast!
With almost 20 fairs, dozens of events, scores of parties, thousands of artists, try keeping track of everything to do!
To better navigate the choppy waters, we’ve put together these friendly, at-a-glance, fair hour tables! Now you can pick which fairs you want to check out also also see which ones open early and which fairs you can visit late. If you’re at Art Basel Miami, don’t forget to share it with friends!
Whether you’ll be in Miami or tuning in remotely, make sure to check in this week & weekend on ourfacebook page andtwitter page for real-time updates from Miami!
For more information about the Art Basel Miami Fair scene, click the links below!
