I work at one of the big arts & crafts supply stores, specifically in the custom framing department. A couple weeks ago, a customer brought in a really interesting print he wanted framed by a young artist from the west coast. He said he picked it up at Art Basel Miami (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Basel), a huge semi-annual international art show that only takes place in Miami and Basel, Switzerland. Having nothing else to do this past weekend, I decided to attend with a couple of friends, excited to see what was going on in the contemporary art world and learn of some new artists to follow.
I don't know how the rest of TBA feels about abstract art and the likes of Jackson Pollack, but I personally don't care for it. I was hoping that the show would have a balanced variety of styles, but I came away feeling 90% of what I saw wasn't worth the ~$40 I paid to be there. Paint thrown haphazardly on canvas with a smiley face carved out of the middle, overused (de)motivational phrases in glaring bold print, boobs spilling out of toilet seats, incredibly unsubtle abstract paintings of menstruating vaginas, penises painted onto just about anything you could imagine...
I (naively?) came seeking expressive figure and landscape paintings, but found very few. Here are a couple of things I thought were noteworthy enough to snap a quick pic with my cellphone:
A (historical?) statue in a tanning bed (http://imgur.com/jSIgK)
A very colorful mixed media painting (http://imgur.com/cBaFP)
An incredible painting of a snake attacking a bird (http://imgur.com/UVO5L)
And this, what might be my personal favorite. Unfortunately before I could take a picture of the tiny nameplate my friends had already wandered off, and I didn't get a chance to learn the artist's name. Is there any chance someone here might recognize this? I scoured the gallery catalog and couldn't find it.
(https://thebackalleys.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FIisNQ.jpg&hash=cfa3e7aa610d4cced54b01aa4bf5edae4991d879)
Here's the catalog if any of you are curious. Maybe I'm just a filthy pleb, but I just don't "get" most of what was there.
Art Basel Miami (http://www.artbaselmiamibeach-online.com/index.php5?viewmode=gallery_simple&path=Home%2FArtworks&Action=showProducts)
Shame you didn't get what you wanted out of the 40$ to get into there. All the photos you provided are actually nice pieces of work. I don't understand abstract art myself, though I believe it is suppose to be up to interpretation by the view (if it's detailed enough to that point?).
your best bet is trying to find out who was showing at the gallery, i don't think anyone here's going to be able to help you with that
and yes, most of that art sucks :wile:
Quote from: ZennyPLUS on December 11, 2012 02:56 AM
Shame you didn't get what you wanted out of the 40$ to get into there. All the photos you provided are actually nice pieces of work. I don't understand abstract art myself, though I believe it is suppose to be up to interpretation by the view (if it's detailed enough to that point?).
Yeah, it's just...when your art is so subjective that it can't be critiqued or compared to any sort of standard, what's the point? Immunity to all criticism is a cop out, in my opinion, since there isn't any room for improvement.
Quote from: rtil on December 11, 2012 03:04 AM
your best bet is trying to find out who was showing at the gallery, i don't think anyone here's going to be able to help you with that
and yes, most of that art sucks :wile:
I scoured the catalog and interactive map to no avail. What's depressing is that since it's a more traditional, "mundane" piece and not the abstract crazy shit that made up 95% of the show, it might not have been worth mentioning in the eyes of the gallery directors. This show was huge.