Art Basel Miami first came to my attention when Diddy went down there to hit on barely legals and purchase a painting for $20 million. Coincidentally, this was around the same time I began visiting museums during road trips as an enjoyable, low-cost alternative to bar hopping. But as far as going to Basel, I wasn’t sure if it was worth it for me, a regular ol’ guy whose art collection is made up of whatever my kids tape to the walls. However, my best friend, a budding collector of African American art, asked me to come down to Miami for Art Basel 2018. My first thought was, “I ain’t got no money for no million dollar painting.” (I think in Ebonics, speak Standard American English from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and switch back to my native Ebonics at 5:01 p.m.) Anyway, I was curious and agreed to go. What followed was a weekend of art mania.
In The Belly Of The Beast:Miami Beach Convention Center
Art Basel 2018 was held at the Miami Beach Convention Center, which was huge but also just a small part of the overall Miami Art Week. There were over 1,200 galleries, thousands of artists (or at least people who dress in a way that makes me think they’re artists), and hundreds of parties and events–for both peasants and royalty. Here are some of my favorite “works,” as the cool kids say, from the main stage at the convention center:
