Miami is already bursting with art shows and installations in preparation for Miami Art Week Dec. 1-7 and Art Basel Miami Beach. With hundreds of artists’ works on display, more than 20 satellite art fairs and 1,200 galleries, there’s no shortage of exhibits to explore.
At the Miami Beach Convention Center, Art Basel is divided into four main exhibition sectors: Galleries (modern, postwar and contemporary art dealers), Nova (works created in the last three years by one to three artists), Positions (solo presentations by emerging artists) and Survey (galleries exploring artistic practices and history).
Other sectors include Meridians, which showcases large-scale projects curated by Yasmil Raymond; Kabinett, featuring curated exhibitions within booths; and Conversations, with live debates. In all, there are more than 250 galleries from 35 countries and more than 4,000 works on view.
The Art Basel fair was founded in 1970 in Switzerland, and Art Basel Miami Beach launched in 2002. Today, the Miami art event attracts more than 80,000 visitors annually.
There are also several Miami Art Week fairs, including Art Miami, CONTEXT Art Miami, Design Miami, Untitled Art, NADA, SCOPE Miami Beach and Prizm Art Fair.
Art Basel introduced its first‑ever Art Basel Awards in 2024 to acknowledge artists, curators, institutions and behind‑the‑scenes contributors. This year, 36 medalists were announced, and 12 Gold Medalists will be revealed on Dec. 4.
Art Basel opens with private, invite-only viewings Dec. 3-4, then opens to the public Dec. 5-7, running from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. While children under 12 get free admission, tickets start at $88 for a Day Ticket (or $68 for students, seniors, veterans and Miami Beach residents) to Premium passes ranging from $850-$4,500.
The Miami Beach Convention Center is located at 1901 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach. For more information, visit artbasel.com.
Art Miami & CONTEXT Art Miami
The city’s original and longest-running contemporary and modern art fair, Art Miami features paintings, drawings, design, sculpture, video art, photography and prints from more than 160 galleries. Running Dec. 2-7, the fair highlights the contemporary art scene with tickets for Art Miami and CONTEXT Art Miami ranging from $45-$315.
Its sister fair, CONTEXT Art Miami features 75 galleries from emerging and mid-career artists. The program includes gallery showcases, solo artist exhibitions and curated projects that emphasize cultural diversity and fresh perspectives on contemporary art.
Public Art on Lincoln Road
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In Miami Beach’s Cultural District, several large art installations will be free to view along the open-air pedestrian promenade, cultural hub, public art park and sculpture garden. Among the 14 installations are French artist Philippe Katerine’s “Mr. Pink Takes Flight” (“Monsieur Rose s'envole”). Six cartoon-like, bubblegum-pink pieces tower between 12 and 20 feet tall and include five inflatables perched on buildings and one sculpture at street level.
Also featured are the winning sculpture from Lincoln Road’s inaugural Call to Artists — Oscar Esteban Martinez’s “La Herencia Viva” — and Rubem Robierb’s “Dream Machine” and “Empower Flower.” “La Herencia Viva,” or “The Living Heritage,” by the Miami-based Colombian artist shows a fragmented human face crafted from puzzle-like segments and mirrored panels, exploring themes of identity, coexistence and belonging. Robierb’s “Dream Machine” sculpture features a set of large butterfly wings, while “Empower Flower” complements the work with sweeping lines inspired by a white lotus.
Museum of Graffiti
Celebrating its sixth anniversary, the Museum of Graffiti offers several exhibitions for a $25 day pass, including “Origins” and “El Tiguere,” as well as “Las Bandidas” in its Private Gallery.
“Origins” traces the evolution of the graffiti movement. After entering through an immersive vintage hardware store, visitors can view paintings not seen since their initial debut in 1973. “El Tiguere,” by Harlem-born, Paris-based artist JonOne, features not only a solo exhibition running alongside “Origins,” but also a working in-house studio where he creates in real time.
The curatorial arm of the Museum of Graffiti, Private Gallery is showcasing Gabriela Noelle’s “Las Bandidas,” which combines art, design and play. Part of the artist’s “Imaginary Friends,” the installation includes sculptures in lucite and hand-dyed textiles in saturated colors.
Wynwood Walls Museum
The outdoor street art museum Wynwood Walls, curated by Jessica Goldman Srebnick, features six artists for its “ONLY HUAMN” exhibition with general admission less than $15. The theme explores what makes art expressly human during this phase of technological growth and celebrates lived experiences and global perspectives. The murals and productions come from SETH, Miss Birdy, Cryptik, Sickid, Joe Iurato and Pursue.
The Betsy Hotel
Across nine property-wide galleries, The Betsy features photography as part of the City of Miami Beach’s No Vacancy project. This free-to-visit collection encompasses the practices and purposes beyond simply clicking a camera shutter. It includes Wolfgang Volz’s exclusive images of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s works, from the Biscayne Bay installation in Miami (1983) and Reichstag in Berlin (1995) to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris (2021).
The galleries also feature photographs of legends and icons, as well as some new mixed-media work and more. There will also be live jazz performances and artist talks throughout the week.
photoMIAMI
At the Miami Art Week Gallery in Wynwood, photoMIAMI presents a curated program of exhibitions and presentations for contemporary photography. It features gallery showcases, artist talks, seminars and special programming that highlights both established and emerging voices in the field. This fair is dedicated solely to fine-art photography and visual storytelling.
Single day tickets are $15, or $45 for all six days.
The Goodtime Hotel
In collaboration with Queue Gallery, Supermarket Gallery and Miami Art Society, The Goodtime Hotel showcases a collaborative exhibition featuring 11 South Florida artists exploring the intersections of painting, photography, sculpture and ceramics. “Borderline” is an immersive exhibit that transforms several interiors into a series of vignettes. The installations invite guests to slow down and linger in these “in-between” spaces between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m.
VISU Contemporary
Photographer David LaChapelle’s free to view “Vanishing Act” includes more than 30 works and nine world premieres. The presentation at VISU Contemporary features landmark pieces and new works that merge theatricality, spirituality and social critique while exploring paradoxes between beauty and decay, and artifice and authenticity.
The Gates Hotel
Along with an immersive perfume-making experience and Art Deco Fashion Show, The Gates Hotel, in partnership with One Love Art DAO Digital Gallery, presents “Chromasthesia: A Multi-Sensory Art Journey.” Art and technology combine during the week-long activation with live painting influenced by guests, curated culinary experiences, immersive installations that blend sculpture with AR, performance art, meditation with music and more.
This is a free exhibit for the art with ticketed events and a VIP package.
The Margulies Collection at the Warehouse
Three exhibitions spanning postwar, contemporary and sculptural works will be available with free admission during Art Week. The expansive private collection includes “Pop Art,” “Records of the Past” and “Abstract Expressionism,” featuring works from artists like Andy Warhol and George Segal, Lewis Hine Child Labor Photographs and Italian artwork from 1970-2024.