We'll never forget!

Aqua Day Two

Good day at Aqua Art Fair yesterday and decent crowds all day long... also a steady stream of DMV artists stopping by to say hello.

 

Super talented and hard working gallery intern Audrey Wilson (one of the bennies of being our gallery intern is that you get to bring artwork to the fairs) sold her biggest glass piece - Yay! It went to a New York art collector.

 

Also sold a Dulce Pinzon photo - the very last proof piece of her fabulous iconic image from her Superheros series, my largest video piece (remember "Artist Worshiping at the Altar of Modern Art"?), a Cory Oberndorfer donut painting and several of my regular drawings.

 

It's interesting to me that three of my personal sales have gone to other gallery owners; more on that later.

As I've discussed before, there are other perks of doing an art fair - what I call the "wake effect" -- on opening night I connected a major university's museum director with the owner of the vintage Korda photographs of the psychopath Che Guevara - they will be exhibited at the museum in the near future and also become part of a new history course on the Argentinean adventurer.

Also met a NYC art center director who connected me with an unlikely art collector couple (unlikely in the sense that they are known to collect Asian art), who are refocusing their attention on collecting Cuban art and plan to open a museum space in the Big Apple focused on Cuban art; more on that later.

A well-known art collector who owns my work (and who is on the "Top 100 Art Collectors in the World" list, and who bought another one of my pieces on VIP night) also connected me with a young guy who is building a new boutique hotel in the Miami area. Apparently the art collector is the money behind the scheme, as the hotel development young guy was directed to work with me to ensure that the project had real artwork instead of "hotel art"; we traded business cards and chatted about "hotelism" and "real art for hotels."

Opportunity for Artists

BlackRock Center for the Arts Call to Artists 2014
BlackRock Center For the Arts is accepting entries for exhibits January - December 2014. You can download the prospectus by clicking the link to the right or go to www.blackrockcenter.org Deadline:  Friday, December 21, 2012 Entry Fee: $35 check or money order made payable to BlackRock Center for the Arts Eligibility: Open to all artists 18 years and over residing in  Maryland, Virginia, and Washington DC.  Special Consideration: Artists who are willing to conduct a lecture or workshop for a BlackRock standard fee will receive special consideration during the selection process.     About the Gallery BlackRock Center for the Arts gallery is 1500 square feet of gallery space.  Its high white walls and beautiful windows allows in just the right amount of natural light. We take pride in the outstanding artists we have exhibited over the years, which have been reviewed by Claudia Rousseau, Lenny Campello, and other art critics in the area. Eligibility The Call to Artists is open to all artists residing in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC over the age of 18 for original artwork only. All work must be ready for sale and to be presented in a professional manner to the public at the time of delivery. (See Terms for Exhibit for details.) Pedestals are available for three-dimensional work. Selection Process This call will cover exhibits in the Gallery from January to December 2014. An exhibit may include one applicant or a combination of applicants, based on the judgment of jurors (i.e., 1 or 2 wall artists may be combined with a pedestal artist). A jury will select the artists and create eight exhibits to be included in the exhibit year. This season, the jury panel is comprised of Lenny Campello (artist, writer, blogger), Marsha Staiger (artist, Torpedo Factory), and Tim Tate (artist, Washington Glass School). In addition, the panel will have an alternate juror, Krista Bradley (Executive Director of BlackRock).	CLICK HERE FOR PROSPECTUS Send to: BlackRock Center for the Arts Call to Artist 12901 Town Commons Drive Germantown, MD 20874 Questions? Contact: Kim Marshall Gallery Manager kmarshall@blackrockcenter.org All correspondance by e-mail, no phone calls please.

Celebrity Sighting at Aqua

Neocon Talk Show Host Rachel Maddow at Aqua

Aqua Day One

And the VIP opening at the Aqua Art Fair Miami Beach was last night, and amidst much booze, tropical heat and impossibly slim/tall women in 8 inch heels and tanned muscly guys, some art sales managed to take place.

The opening ended at 11PM, and I left at 11:30 and then it took me over an hour to navigate the first dozen city blocks of Collins Avenue, such was the humanity and carmanity crowding the streets and sidewalks of this unique place.

A well-known collector who has written 39 bestsellers ended up buying my "Desi, Lucy and Fidel" video piece as well as two gorgeous photos by Cuban photographer Cirenaica Moreira. I also sold four other drawings, including two to art gallery owners from Art Miami, many of whom were present last night reporting good sales at Art Miami and Context.

Breaking news!

From the Aqua front office:

As one of our 2012 exhibitors, we wanted you to be one of the first to know that  Aqua is joining the Art Miami LLC umbrella of fairs. The company, which produces not only Art Miami, but Art Hamptons, Art Wynwood and CONTEXT, will take over operations of Aqua after the current, 8th installment, of our fair.

We are thrilled about the future of Aqua and the tremendous opportunity for all of our exhibitors and artists, who will have a much greater exposure, as well as access to a larger art collector base, by being associated with a major international art fair. We're also expecting this announcement to generate quite a bit of buzz about our current show -- below is a copy of the press release, which is going out to all of our media contacts today. In addition, watch out for an exclusive feature about this exciting new development in today's edition of the Miami Herald.

 Art Miami LLC to Acquire Vibrant Aqua Art Miami in Miami Beach
Company Now Produces Five of America's Premiere Art Fairs

MIAMI, FL - (Dec 4, 2012) - Art Miami LLC, parent company of Florida's longest running premier contemporary and modern art fair Art Miami, announced today that it will add another gem to its crown, the vibrant Aqua Art Miami in Miami Beach, now in its 8th year. Art Miami LLC will take over the operation of the fair at the conclusion of this year's 2012 edition.

"We are extremely excited to have the opportunity to take Aqua Art Miami  to the next level. We look forward to carrying on the great atmosphere and tradition that founders Jaq Chartier and Dirk Park have created for emerging and cutting edge galleries and their artists and collectors over the last eight years. In addition, having a location close to the beach during Miami Art Week will help develop a larger scope of services and programming for all of our participating exhibitors and attendees associated with Art Miami, CONTEXT, and now Aqua Art Miami," said Nick Korniloff, Art Miami, LLC, Fair Director and Partner.

"Dirk and I are thrilled to add our fair to the Art Miami umbrella -- it's great for the future of Aqua," said Jaq Chartier, Aqua's Co-Director. "Exhibitors and their artists will have much greater exposure, as well as access to a larger art collector base, by being associated with a major international art fair."

Over the years, Aqua Art Miami has been recognized for presenting vibrant and noteworthy international art programs with a particular interest in supporting young dealers and galleries with strong emerging and early-mid career artists. This curatorial commitment is complemented by the unique art fair setting of the Aqua Hotel, a classic South Beach establishment with spacious exhibition rooms that open onto a breezy, intimate courtyard. The surroundings have become a favorite gathering spot not only for relaxation during Miami Art Week, but also as a place to exchange and disseminate new contemporary art ideas. And with its close proximity to the main Art Basel fair, Aqua Art Miami has consistently been ranked among the top satellite art events by collectors, artists, curators, critics and the art loving public alike.

This year, Aqua Art Miami's eighth installment will present innovative special programming, which features performance art and installation, plus the collective exchange of ideas by 47 exhibiting galleries from North and South America, as well as Japan. The fair is located at 1530 Collins Avenue in Miami Beach, across from the Loews Hotel.

For additional information on both fairs, please visit: www.aquaartmiami.com or www.art-miami.com.

Almost there...

Up and early this morning as with three and a half galleries to fill, it has been exhausting to hang all the artwork at the Aqua Art Fair. Of course, the small half-gallery was the hardest one, as the walls seemed to be made of some new impenetrable material that required a small nuclear device to make a hole in the walls.

The VIP opening is tonight, starting at 7PM, which is when the music starts, the free booze begins to flow (and hopefully some of the artwork) and immensely tall women in 8-inch heels suddenly are everywhere.

Pics and updates later.