Michael Workman

Flying back from Miami as I write this, it's difficult to separate the feelings of buzzing anxiety from the euphoria of expectation. It could just be that I'm at 22,000 feet or, more likely, that this visit has reinvigorated my sense of the possibilities. Miami's market convergence comprises a center of the art world around Art Basel Miami, the main event, an export to the U.S. from Switzerland. It's impressive how much of Chicago ended up transplanted there for the weekend, whether dealers at the Basel show or the five "satellite" shows: NADA, -scope, Frisbee or the newly formed Pulse and Aqua. My traveling companion James Gustin and I bumped into Carl Hammer at -scope, for instance, huffing a huge box down the front steps to a collector's waiting SUV. Pilsen's Kasia Kay Gallery had a room at the same fair, and Kay seemed hardly able to beat back the tide of questions about her artists. We ran into the West Loop's Susan Gescheidle on the street, out to celebrate her birthday after the Frisbee fair had closed for the night. We stuck our heads into numerous other gallery spaces--Lisa Boyle at Aqua was a notable pleasure--again, too busy fending off collectors to interrupt.

Major turnout too on behalf of Chicago's artist population: we glimpsed ex-pat Siebren Versteeg at the party for the Italian art magazine, Flash Art, Saya Woolfalk returned to the States from her Fulbright in Brazil to turn up at -scope. We encountered a virtual parade of others too, including Jaye Rhee and Marc LeBlanc. We were swallowed whole by the crowds during the Design District block party on Saturday, which centered around the Deitch Projects gallery, though my personal favorite was the temporary Pierogi gallery, which included a series of new Tony Fitzpatrick collages including one with a portrait of White Sox star Joe Crede as its centerpiece. But it was much too crowded to stay. Packed in amongst the thousands, we squeezed ten people, including sculptor Richard Hull and the Bucket Rider boys into our rented Ford Excursion, escaping the throngs only after scraping the length of the passenger side door across a concrete post (insured, luckily).

And so what was the verdict on the fairs? I actually skipped Basel itself, preferring to focus instead on the smaller shows. Many people thought Aqua was the best, with its open-air O-shaped veranda, more of a motel than the rest, and because of that offering a much more inviting atmosphere after the clinically sterile sales floors at the competing shows. -scope was excellent, a very professional show. People were divided on NADA; some hated it, some enjoyed a few galleries. Most felt it had devolved somewhat into a buyer's fair. Artists whose dealers were showing at the fair expressed disappointment that they were turned away from an opening-night party that let in everybody with income to spare.

Art, culture, money, it was all there. Flash, trash, class and let's not forget all those near-naked bodies strolling around in the eighty-degree heat. It's amazing to see the difference art has made to this city, which used to be a hidden haven for photographers who flocked here, attracted to the great light, who then drew the modeling agencies that were the city's signature population throughout the early nineties. The hard truth about the Miami experience in terms of Chicago art fairs is that we just can't compete with this. It's too much of a good thing, an impossible groundswell with too much going for it. If Chicago hopes to steal any of Miami's thunder, it'll have to find a way to claim a piece of the glamour, the diversity and the sheer volume that comprises the Basel experience. It was greatly satisfying on this accord to find so many staples of the Midwest art world strolling the aisles, people-watching the parade of g-stringed models on the streets, or crowding around the many outdoor projects, such as Vanessa Beecroft's performance installation on Collins Avenue.

It's impossible to beat such nice weather.

(2005-12-06)

Also by Michael Workman

Eye Exam
Walking into Tropicalia, the Museum of Contemporary Art's showcase exhibit of the Brazilian art and cultural movement that ran from approximately 1967-1972, it's nice to see that the curators didn't stick everything into glass cases
(2005-11-15)

Eye Exam
If you've been involved with the art scene in the city for any length of time, you know that beyond the museums, galleries and art schools exists a healthy swath of the culture made up of little atelier spaces run out of people's apartments, garages and storefronts
(2005-11-08)

Eye Exam
In the second of a two-part assessment of the Bridgeport neighborhood during the Select Media Festival, this week we interview Jesse Batesole of the Texas Ballroom and Gallery
(2005-11-01)

Chicago Artist
Mia Capodilupo draws from varied sources for her art, from feminism and urban environments to the sensitivity of our human bodies to touch
(2005-10-25)

Eye Exam
(2005-10-25)

The Collectors
(2005-10-18)

Eye Exam
(2005-10-18)

Chicago Artist
(2005-10-11)

Eye Exam
(2005-10-04)

Chicago Artist
(2005-10-04)

Chicago Artist
(2005-09-27)

Eye Exam
(2005-09-20)

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