The Art of Basel

WEDNESDAY | DECEMBER 1
THE OPENING NIGHT

The main show opens tomorrow, but only VIPs like serious collectors have exclusive access to the galleries in the Convention Center on opening night. Galleries selected from 29 countries will showcase paintings, drawings, sculptures, installations, photography, editions, and videos. Meanwhile, the night before ABMB officially begins is an evening for revelers as the options for schmoozing and boozing are plenty.

The Oceanfront (Collins Park, between 21st and 22nd Streets), a mere 5-minute walk from the Convention Center, pays tribute to the artistic and cultural scenes of four cities—Detroit, Mexico City, Berlin, and Glasgow—with one night devoted to each city.

DON’T MISS
Bass Museum of Art (2121 Collins Ave.), in partnership with PUMA.Creative, presents ISAAC JULIEN / Creative Caribbean Network. At this private opening/cocktail reception, guests will view the U.S. premiere of the filmmaker Julien’s Ten Thousand Waves, a nine-screen video art installation, which forms a dynamic architectural structure through which the viewer navigates the multiple narratives. This exhibition also launches a long-term partnership between the Bass Museum and PUMA.Creative to create an international platform in Miami for artists, performers, writers, and musicians from the Caribbean region. The solo exhibition will open to the public Dec. 2 and run through March 6, 2011.

YOU CAN’T MISS
Miguel Paredes National Gallery if you walk by the National Hotel (1677 Collins Ave.) on South Beach. Pop and multi-media artist, sculptor and urban realist, Miguel Paredes, will showcase his largest exhibition to date as his multi-colored and vibrant works are set to completely cover the hotel’s outdoor façade as well as its indoor walls and pool garden area. A VIP opening reception is scheduled from 8 to 11 p.m. with an after-party to follow.

THE SCENE
Masters’ Mystery Art Show is the annual private cocktail reception at The Ritz Carlton, South Beach, where guests can purchase one of more than 1,500 original 6 x 9 works of art, but are revealed the artist’s name only after the art is sold. For the first time, this year The Ritz-Carlton is partnering with Haute Living to give Master’s Mystery Art Show a fashionable spin by featuring exclusive tote bags by premier designers. Similar to the 6 X 9 mini-masterpieces, the hotel will provide a blank “canvas” in the form of a tote bag to a number of nationally recognized designers, who will use their own unique style to create one-of-a-kind pieces of artwork to be part of an auction during the event. The show opens to the public Dec. 2 from 12 to 7 p.m.

GRAB A BITE
Wolfsonian-FIU (1001 Washington Ave.) hosts a dinner featuring a menu by world-renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Margrit Mondavi and an extensive list of rare wines from the Robert Mondavi Winery. The dinner honors filmmaker and actress Isabella Rossellini, who is collaborating with The Wolfsonian during Art Basel for the site-specific Seduce Me installation, which explores the seduction rituals of animals. An auction follows dinner, with items including Robert Mondavi Winery vintages, a special bag designed by Rossellini for Bulgari, and a Bulgari men’s watch. Only 100 tickets are available.