Arts

Some mid-winter fair: Art Wynwood returns for second year

Jesse Geller and VIP lounge of Art Wynwood.

There have been grumblings since December about the proliferation of fairs during Art Basel. Some feel that the amount of art and fairs is overkill, and blurring the lines between quality art and junk. Not to mention that fact that it got close to impossible to even get to some of the fairs because of traffic and parking problems.

But the second Art Wynwood fair might avoid some of these pitfalls. Last year, the fair felt exciting and fresh, as everyone had time to cool down from the December insanity. Whether or not it can keep that feel, we will see; it’s beginning Thursday night and running through Monday, at the specially created Art Miami Pavilion in Midtown. A sister of Art Miami that takes place during Basel, this fair too is heavy on Miami galleries, complemented by representatives from other U.S. cities, South America and some from Europe.

Julie Blackmon&squot;s "Stock Tank" at  Catherine Edelman Gallery

Julie Blackmon’s “Stock Tank” at Catherine Edelman Gallery.

Featured this year is a tribute to the late Tony Goldman, the developer who had been crucial to the creation of the Wynwood Arts District, and the man behind one its signature landmarks, the mural-covered Wynwood Walls. This means that work from graf and street artists will be sprinkled throughout the huge tent set up for the fair. For instance Jesse Geller flew in last week to paint a wraparound, site-specific installation that is suspended above the VIP lounge. Other artists (many of whom have covered the Wynwood Walls) have created works that will hang on the pass through areas of the fair, including from the hands of Aiko, Ron English, Futura and Kenny Scharf.

In the booths themselves, work represented by local galleries including Ascaso, Cernuda Arte, Now Contemporary Art, Pan American Art Projects, Robert Fontaine and Zadok – some of them showing one artist only, others group samplings – will be hanging around. And while the timing of this fair is distinct, intentionally, from the December ones, some things in Miami remain the same: there will be parties. There’s a VIP opening on Thursday, an afterparty on Friday at the Wynwood Walls, and another one on Saturday at the Bakehouse Art Complex.

Art Wynwood is open to the public from Friday through Monday, noon to 6-9 p.m. depending on the night, at the Art Pavilion, 3101 NE 1st Ave., Midtown; $15. There will be shuttle services as well. Go to www.art-wynwood.com for all the details.