Pucci’s Walkway
Walking into Art Basel Miami Beach is fine. Strutting is better. Enter Camille Miceli, the artistic director at Pucci, who created a whirling print for the fair’s outdoor entrance. The sudden crash of swirls and sunshine is jarring in the best possible way. In other words, the perfect aesthetic reset before stepping into the high-profile art fair itself.
Łukasz Stokłosa at Amity Gallery
At once haunting and wistful, this painting of a vintage Balenciaga dress by Polish-born artist Łukasz Stokłosa takes a couture gown and separates its idealized shape and high-key craftsmanship from any human who wants to wear it. (And, for the record, we very much want to wear it.) Can a dress mean even more when it stands in for the woman who once twirled around in it? Stare at it and see.
Cartier’s Trinity 100 Pop-Up
You always knew your vintage Cartier ring was a masterpiece. At Miami Art Week, the French luxury brand confirmed it with a two-story exhibit dedicated to the iconic Trinity range, first launched in 1924 to bridge the gap between Europe’s avant-garde art scene and the rise of understated Parisian chic. Original 1920s rings, iconic 1970s ad campaigns, and a giant film strip sculpture featuring Paul Mescal’s face are all part of the show—he’s a model for the brand, after all—along with the chance to try on Cartier’s new Trinity Wild fine jewelry collection before it debuts in stores this January.
Fendi’s ‘Aenigma’ by Lewis Kemmenoe
“When I visited Fendi’s headquarters in Rome, I’d never seen anything on that scale before—it was massive,” said London-based artist Lewis Kemmenoe, who has collaborated with the brand on a series of wood-and-stone inlaid furniture at Design Miami. (Think Roman marble, mixed with fairytale cabin cabinets.) “It’s the first time I’ve seen that level of creativity and that level of industrial organization in the same place,” explained the 29-year-old, who is one of Fendi’s youngest-ever fine art collaborators. “I really fell in love with Fendi’s way of balancing its productivity and focus with a really true creative spirit…of course, now I’m like, wait, what if I tried to make pants?” For now, Kemmenoe has made wall panels using Roman pine and aluminum, cut into the shape of Fendi’s leather jackets. There’s also a rare Peekaboo bag (pictured here) made with leather and wood.
Gucci’s Corydon Cowansage Murals
“Lot galleries,” which use parking lots to showcase large-scale imagery from emerging artists, have become increasingly popular over the years. Now, Miami’s Design District boasts one on Sweet Bird North Plaza with work by the Philadelphia-born painter Corydon Cowansage. Presented by Gucci, her (absolutely gigantic) mural brings a touch of surreal glamour to an otherwise blank façade.
Nefeli Papadimouli at NADA Miami
At NADA Miami, Greek-born, French-based artist and architect Nefeli Papadimouli skillfully interrogates the space between style, transformation, and belonging—in other words, the themes we confront every time we get dressed.
Bre Andy at the Cierra Britton Gallery
“From the Outside In” is a series of six portraits by Bre Andy; all picture Black women in various states of getting dressed. The images are skillful, luminous, and intimate, and meant to interrogate the slashes between public and private life that these women carefully navigate. (They’re also a friendly reminder that Sandy Liang’s ballet flats are amazing.)
Rachel Feinstein at the Bass Museum
Rachel Feinstein has collaborated with Marc Jacobs, Gucci, and the jewelry brand Ippolita. At Art Basel Miami Beach, the artist (pictured here with her 2018 work, “Ballerina”) returns to her hometown with a 30-year retrospective including sculptures, paintings, and film, along with a new (and massive) mirror wall installation called “Panorama of Miami” that combines Feinstein’s signature churn of Art Deco, Americana, and Saturday morning cartoons.
Andreas Gursky’s ‘Viktor & Rolf II’
Front row seat? No need. The German photographer Andreas Gursky interrogates fashion’s ladders of power through reserved, removed angles that reframe the thrill of a catwalk show as a precise, almost mathematical pulse. This image, now on display at Art Basel Miami Beach, comes from Viktor & Rolf’s 2009 runway in Paris.
Bottega Veneta at Design Miami
Remember when Jacob Elordi, Michelle Yeoh, and Kylie Jenner plopped down in giant animal chairs at Bottega Veneta’s Milan Fashion Week show? The chairs themselves are now a museum-worthy menagerie called The Ark, currently on display at Design Miami. Creative director Matthieu Blazy calls their allure “the power of wow.” You could also call it “the power of sitting in A$AP Rocky’s chair, which happens to look like a very cool bunny.”
Karl Haendel’s ‘Lion With Watch’
Haendel’s illustrations combine the nerdy heritage of Darwin-era science journals with the flashy status of luxury watches, designer handbags, and wait-in-line-or-lose-out streetwear. After all, shoppers know it’s a jungle out there, whether you’re on the prowl for limited-edition Louis Vuitton x Timberland boots, or searching for an equally elusive roar.
Beatriz Milhazes’s ‘Sinfonia Nordestina’
São Paulo artist Beatriz Milhazes mixes European modernism with traditional Brazilian folk motifs, making her a part of Antropofagia, a 1920s art movement that seeks to equate cultural and tribal art with the fine art favored by museums and galleries.
Esther Mahlangu’s ‘Ukuthula Makube Nawe’
Go big or go home? No problem. South African artist Esther Mahlangu has come from Johannesburg to Miami with a giant painted panel called “Ukuthula Makube Nawe,” which translates into “Peace Be With You” in Zulu. Spanning nearly 210 square feet, the piece combines traditional tribal icons with 20th-century colors and pop art silhouettes. Prepare to stare.
Lucy Sparrow’s Market at Scope Art Show
There are 4,000 adorable fruit and vegetable toys waiting to be scooped up at “Blessed Be the Fruit,” the new felt “grocery store” by the British fabric artist Lucy Sparrow. Part Muppet Show skit, part fight against pre-processed food, this exhibit has pieces on sale from $30 to $50 each, and the occasional pop culture cameo. (Record producer and musician Fatboy Slim was reportedly the guy behind the cash register.)
The Great Elephant Migration
In case you missed them in New York, the 100 elephants sculpted from wood that are currently stationed along the Atlantic are part of “The Great Elephant Migration,” a traveling art exhibit by Ruth Ganesh and Shubhra Nayar that encourages animal appreciation, conservation awareness, and many social media posts. Bonus: It’s the rare art exhibit you can visit in your bathing suit.
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