Art Basel, the leading global platform for art world exchanges, kicked off this week in Miami Beach. Featuring dialogues, artist talks, panels and entertainment between prominent members of the international art world. Known as the premier art fair in the Americas, Art Basel features more than 250 galleries from 36 countries showing works from all mediums, from painting and sculpture to photography and digital works. First-time exhibitors include Pequod Co. from Mexico City and Piero Atchugarry Gallery, with spaces in the Uruguayan city of Garzón and Miami, will exhibit for the first time in "Survey."
"This will be the most diverse group of galleries in the Miami fair's history," said Steven Henry, a senior partner at Paula Cooper Gallery who sits on the Art Basel selections committee.
The Gavlak Gallery, based in Los Angeles and Palm Beach, focusing contemporary fine art, has been a fixture at Art Basel since 2008. "We are bringing a cohesive, focused group of artists and pieces with the focus on African diaspora, African-American artists and Latinx," says owner Sarah Gavlak. "Some are artists that are familiar to the area's collectors, such as Jose Alvarez, and works by new artists April Bey and Gisela Colón."
Parabolic Monolith (Obsidian Matter), 2021
Aurora particles, stardust, cosmic radiation, intergalactic matter, ionic waves, organic carbamate, gravity and time
98.5 x 24 x 12 in (250.2 x 61 x 30.5 cm)
Gisela Colón, originally from San Juan Puerto Rico, currently living and working in Los Angeles, California, creates work that is the product of cross-cultural influences. Colón, has exhibited internationally throughout the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. One of few women in the space, her works include fusing characteristics of Minimalism, Light and Space, Finish Fetish movements.
Colón's standout exhibitions include the Land Art Biennial, Desert X AlUla (Saudi Arabia, 2020), Quantum Shift, Frieze Sculpture (London, 2021), and Forever is Now (Egypt, 2021) presenting a site-specific monument at the Pyramids of Giza, a UNESCO landmark dating back 4,500 years. "Forever Is Now," a contemporary art exhibition, brought together the work of ten international artists for the unique opportunity of contemplating the wonder of an ancient civilization through a lens created by the interests, concerns, and passions of present-day artists.
"Cultural heritage is the continuity of humanity. It is not exclusive to the people living in its vicinity; rather, it is the human collective responsibility to protect and represent it. This exhibition showcases contrasting elements, the contemporary artworks and ancient artifacts, creating a dialogue that explores how the same global issues were addressed across different civilizations."
"Eternity Now" by Colón envisions a future of humanistic solidarity, reconciliation, and interconnectedness. Colón cites her childhood influence in Puerto Rico amid tropical rainforests for some of her works, which her futuristic style is rooted. The exhibition sought to question time as a continuum that both separates and unites civilizations.
Art Basel takes place from December 2-4, Miami Beach, for more information go to https://artbasel.com
credits: Jane Moore, Palm Beach Daily
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