Live Blogging From Art Basel Miami Beach (LIVE BLOG)
Greetings! Your humble arts team, Travis, Andrew and Priscilla, will be blogging live this week from Miami for the Art Basel art fair craziness. Make sure to check in to see the most exciting artworks, silliest outfits and craziest parties.
TV On the Radio played an inspired set on Friday night that was a work of art on its own. The band was in town for a Spotify showcase at the new Ricochet music venue in Midtown, playing an expansive set in an intimate venue.
From their soaring opener "Young Liars" on, the band seemed to be switching costumes like actors in a play. "Red Dress" gained a whole new life as a jazzy riff on relationship. At times the band flipped from country to rock and roll, and the overall effect was like some sort of mid-80s DC band pacing through the limits of punk.
TVOTR's very appropriate closer: a cover of "Waiting Room" by Fugazi. Tunde Adebimpe's Ian MacKaye impression is very convincing.
The band may have been taking a page from video and performance artist Kalup Linzy, who opened the evening by singing a mesmerizing set of songs dressed in a red wig and a chintzy green bathrobe with a plunging neckline. Linzy's work, inspired by soap operas, has been picked up by MoMA's permanent collection and ballyhooed by James Franco -- but on stage he strikes an alluringly approachable presence, albeit a profanity-laced one.
The night was a homecoming of sorts for Linzy, who lives in New York but grew up in nearly gothic circumstances in the small town of Florida -- and upbringing that's left him with a strong Southern accent.
Standing in front of a sort of video collage of city streets at night, Linzy sang confusing, piercing songs about police and men, and sometimes both at once.
"Come and get this motherfucker police, I'm about to catch that case!" he belted out in one.
One line in another seemed like a shot at the world's most honest R&B song: "Fuck youuu, I don't need this abuse."
The night was part art, part music -- and all performance.-Matt Sledge
Nick cave video paired with a house beat that you can only fully hear on the Beats headphones. I feel that there's a metaphor here...
This is serious. Andrew ran off to mr chow with p.diddy while trav and I are on our way to nick cave/dre/party. Forever's gonna start tonight...
- Andrew
Had to floss alligator out of my teeth. Yes I had alligator for dinner. So much alligator... -p.
- Andrew
- Andrew
Headed to the Mondrian hotel for James Franco / Harmony Korine event. Hoping that it's a cross between Gummo and Spiderman. -Travis
Ran into Heinrich from Vernissage.tv at the Ruben Ochoa show at Locust Projects. Such a good guy, but we would have liked him better if his answer to "how do we get to the best Cuban food in town?" hadn't been "know somebody."
- Andrew
Sorry about the downtime. Tech issues. There were so many highlights that it wouldn't make sense to shout 'em out in one post. Geometric highlights, just because i feel like it, included a mirrored Louise Bourgeois space, Carsten Nicolai's strange, funereal cylinder of beads, and an Anish Kapoor that reflected both light and sound. -travis
Just finished day two of basel, got some nice interviews with some of our favorite galleries and artists.-travis
I just turned a crank that said "please don't crank" because I thought it was art. Turns out I wasn't supposed to crank it...-travis
Also a Dan Witz with a kid in a gas mask behind a wire door that somehow manages not to be creepy. Thinking of my @brooklynstreetart homies. - travis
Here with Arrested Motion and a mighty fine room ful of street art. Stay tuned for a massive Ron English and one of the most breathtaking works by Swoon I've ever seen -Travis
As a few wise critics predicted, Brazil was huge this year at Miami Basel. An entire back corner of the fair was transformed by captivating installations that drew large crowds. It was great to see some off my favorite artists, such as Barry McGee, raising their gallery profile. Also, neon is so hot right now.
- Andrew
As patrons rush under the ropes guarding the entrance, the quote of the night: "is *everyone* in here VIP? -travis
We were blown away by showrooms representing Todd Merrill, Gallery Seomi, Frederik Molenschot, Sebastien Brajkovic, Beth Katleman, Vincent Dubourg, Robert Stadler, Tom Price, Wendell Castle, Didier Ltd, and more! Stay tuned for images. -Travis
For a minute we were apprehensive, but as soon as we saw high-rollers sitting on these piano couches we sat down and fell in love.
With the couches.
-Travis
Right now, we're at Design Miami, more updates to come...
Check out Priscilla's swanky nails from Nailed By Dzine!
Peep some of the nail adornments.
- Andrew
About to hit up Design Miami. Will keep you posted. Priscilla is going for an art manicure (?) (!). Art aside, I just wanna see lil wayne's condo. -travis
Early this morning we arrived in Miami. Hiding our post-red-eye red eyes we headed to our first stop, the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens. For Art Basel the swamps were decked out with surrealist oversized sculptures of ants, petals and bees by Will Ryman. The gardens also, it should be noted, smelled like heaven.
Check out this big bee!
First Posted: 11/30/11 02:01 PM ET Updated: 12/01/11 03:42 PM ET