Art Basel Miami is one of the more important art fairs around and this year it proved itself to be one to remember. It was full of diversity with artist displayed all the way from Cameroon to Cuba. It was difficult to choose a select few but somehow I managed. It featured emerging as well as developed artists with household names such as Julian Schnabel and Susan Rothenberg. An artist that I interviewed years ago, Jeffrey Gibson was on display and you can view our interview here. I'm glad to see him doing well and selling well too. Alas, Raelis Vasquez's Amidst is a beautiful portrayal of a youth standing in the water almost waiting for his portrait to be made. It is rich in colour and shows an innocence captured with every brushstroke. Patrick Martinez, LA Tile and Stone's is a bold painting showing a rich colour field reminiscent of Mark Rothko. It would look good in any home. The show also included one of my favourite artists Elliott Puckette whose Untitled work is full of sinuous lines, the type she is well known for. Davide Balliano is another artist I am quite fond of with his tubular shapes he reminds one why abstract art is so highly prized. Kehinde Wiley's Morpheus 2022, is a wonderfully rendered work of a young black woman set reclining against a backdrop of flowers. We wonder what she is thinking about and the answer remains a mystery. Another great work is Ruth Ige's At the gathering, 2022, whose display of a faceless woman piques our interest. With her delightful dress we can't help but wonder who it is. Dread Scott's B Ball Youth on Rim, 1994 is hopeful take on a group of youth enjoying their daily game in dire surroundings. It's a reminder of social stratification in America which can be curtailed with the right energy and belief in oneself. Please enjoy these and the rest as they all share a high degree of skill and talent. Not all of them can be written about but you get the idea of why they're here.
1. Raelis Vasquez, Amidst, 2022, Dominican
