MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 06: A view of the venue during the Art Basel Miami Beach VIP Preview 2023 at Miami Beach Convention Center on December 06, 2023 in Miami Beach, Florida.
The 2023 iteration of Art Basel held at the Miami Beach Convention Center is expecting thousands of art aficionados to enjoy over 277 galleries split among six curatorial sections: "Galleries," "Positions," "Nova," "Survey," "Meridians," and Kabinett."
Before its 21st return this Friday, Dec. 8, Art Basel Miami Beach already opened its doors to VIP eventgoers whose artistic engines are "roaring" to start, last Wednesday, Dec. 6, with this year's Art Basel expected to run until Dec. 10
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Art Basel Miami 2023 Welcomes Celebrities and Renowned Art Collectors
During the annually celebrated Miami Art Week, art enjoyers of all kinds of "feathers" flock together, and the biggest nest with some of the most popular and significant "early birds"? Art Basel Miami Beach.
The event's VIP opening day saw Hollywood elites like Cindy Crawford, Leonardo DiCaprio, Venus Williams, and Jared Leto roaming the halls of the convention center, but perhaps the most anticipated visitors were the acclaimed art collectors who might just be compelled enough to pick one or two pieces earlier than expected.
One such collector is LA-based Josh Abraham, founder of the Pulse Music Group, who reportedly owns an Ed Ruscha "Mountain" painting depicting the word "DOWNTOWN," according to Artnet. Ed Ruscha's works are typically high-premium pieces with prices ranging between tens of thousands to millions of dollars.
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 06: A view of the venue during the Art Basel Miami Beach VIP Preview 2023 at Miami Beach Convention Center on December 06, 2023 in Miami Beach, Florida.
He told the publication during the VIP day that he feels as if Art Basel 2023 opened up in an "unexpected way," and projected "a lot of energy." Abraham had purportedly picked up a Jo Messer piece from the art gallery Moran Moran and is "eyeing up" Ulala Imai's artworks.
Other notable collectors include Ronald Harrar, Ramez Qamer, and Jeff Magid, the latter of which remains unswayed by the fair's "energies," saying, "Something is broken about the fixed-price fair model. There's tons of great art at this fair, but nothing I want to buy at the prices that are listed."
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