Art and fashion converge at Art Basel Miami Beach

By

Robin Driver

Published
Dec 3, 2019

The 18th edition of Art Basel Miami Beach may not start officially until Thursday, December 5, but the worlds of art and fashion are already descending on the Magic City for a week of exhibitions, installations and fashion shows.

 
Having kicked off proceedings with a dinner in honor of artist Mickalene Thomas’ show at the Bass Museum on Sunday, Dior will host its Pre-Fall menswear runway show at the newly relocated Rubell Museum on Tuesday, December 3.
 
The French luxury house will also be opening a pop-up boutique with German luggage brand Rimowa at 151 NE 41st Street in the Miami Design District. The store will feature a cloud runway visual installation, leading visitors in from the street, and will serve as the U.S. pre-launch of the collaboration between the two brands, which debuted on the runway for Summer 2020.

Other fashion brands joining in with launches of arty collaborations in their Design District stores include Louis Vuitton, Versace, Fendi, Loewe and Baccarat, which has teamed up with the multitalented Virgil Abloh for a limited-edition home collection entitled “Crystal Clear.” The collection takes inspiration from the designer’s “Figures of Speech” exhibition, hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago earlier this year.
 
Miami’s Wynwood district will also play host to pop-ups from brands including Levi’s and Billionaire Boys Club, and will see the opening of a new permanent brick-and-mortar store from LeBron James’ streetwear boutique Unknwn.
 
Eleswhere in town, Swiss jeweler Audemars Piguet will unveil an environmentally conscious sound installation entitled “The Art of Listening: Under Water” by Norway’s Jana Winderen at the Rotunda in Collins Park, while Balmain will take over the Knight Concert Hall on Wednesday, December 4 to present “A Screen Test for an Adaptation of Giselle” by Belgian-American artist Cécile B Evans.
 
Spain’s Desigual will also be showing its 2020 collection as part of a performance conceived by artist Carlota Guerrero on Friday, December 6.
 
Outside of fashion, this December’s Art Basel event in Miami is adding a new sector dedicated to “monumental and immersive artworks.” Dubbed “Meridians,” the new sector features 34 large-scale pieces by artists including Woody de Othello, Portia Munson, Barthélémy Toguo, Chi-Tsung Wu and Arthur Lescher.
 
Running alongside Art Basel, from December 4 through 8, Design Miami will take place adjacent to the Miami Beach Convention Center and will once again bring together some of the world’s most influential designers, collectors and gallerists for a one-of-a-kind design marketplace for modern and contemporary furniture, lighting and objets d’art. The event will also offer visitors panels and lectures.
 
Art Basel Miami Beach’s 18th edition runs Thursday, December 5 through Sunday, December 8, 2019.