ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH 2010: An Interview with Annette Schönholzer & Marc Spiegler

Art Basel Directors Annette Schönholzer & Marc Spiegler. All photos are courtesy of MCH Swiss Exhibition (Basel) Ltd.

From December 2 - 5, Art Basel Miami Beach will once again return to South Florida. ARTDISTRICTS had the opportunity to speak with its directors, Annette Schönholzer and Marc Spiegler, about their expectations for this, the ninth edition of the fair, and their opinion as to the future of art fairs at this time of worldwide economic crisis.

By Paco Barragán

Paco Barragán- The global economy hasn’t really recovered yet. What are the expectations for this edition of ABMB?

Annette Schönholzer - At Art Basel in June, most galleries did well. And we hear of fantastic works being brought by our galleries to Art Basel Miami Beach, as well as collectors and large museum groups coming from all over the world. So we have reason to be very optimistic.

P.B.- Albeit the crisis, some art fairs like ABMB, Frieze, the Armory Show, and FIAC have enlarged the number of participating galleries, while other more peripheral like ARCO, Art Dubai, Art Shanghai, and especially the smaller art fairs are suffering from the crisis. Are times of crisis times of opportunity for ABMB?

Marc Spiegler - When the crisis galleries really started reevaluating their participation at art fairs, many decided to participate in fewer than before. At the same time, our concept stayed the same: we try to build the best platform for our galleries, which among many things includes bringing interesting collectors to the show, but also adding ambitious content like the Oceanfront Nights program, which is curated by Creative Time, featuring four cities that are at the forefront of today’s artistic experimentation: Berlin, Detroit, Glasgow, and Mexico City. Partnering with an institution from each of those cities - the Museum of Contemporary Art in Detroit, Museo Tamayo in Mexico City, 032c in Berlin, and Tramway in Glasgow - Creative Time put together a lively program of videos, performances, music, and talks.

P.B.- In this sense, the crisis has clearly affected Miami satellite art fairs like NADA, Pulse, Scope, PhotoMiami… The number of art fairs was by all means excessive. Will this bring the control back to ABMB and generate and enhance visitor confidence? And, on the other hand, will the enlargement of ABMB not affect the quality of the fair?

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A.S.- Last year, we increased the space for our galleries, which helps improve visitor flow inside the halls and allows bigger booths and more restaurant and relaxing areas for our visitors. The reapplication rate for Art Galleries was more than 96 percent and the total application numbers went significantly up, by 20 percent, which shows that most galleries want to return to Art Basel Miami Beach. But we didn’t increase the number of participating galleries, so that implies the quality of the show will be even stronger than in 2009.

Art Basel Miami Beach Vernissage, December 2009.

P.B.- If we compare Art Basel Miami Beach with the main fair in Basel, would you agree if we say that Miami is more experimental or cutting-edge in terms of the works exhibited, and Basel more established? And also, in terms of audience, especially collectors, would you say there is a difference?

A.S.- Art Basel Miami Beach never tried to copy Art Basel, but had its own unique profile from the beginning. At Art Basel Miami Beach, we include more contemporary art galleries and more galleries from Latin America, whereas in Basel there is a stronger focus on the Modern Art segment. Having said that, the backbone of both shows is the same: there are many galleries that participate in both shows, and both Art Basel in June and Art Basel Miami Beach in December are fixed dates in the calendars of many collectors from all over the world. Of course, we see many more Latin American collectors at Art Basel Miami Beach, for geographical reasons, but many of them also come to Basel now.

P.B.- Finally, for two years there have been persistent rumours of Art Basel leaving Miami for another venue like Los Angeles. Miami has a very favourable climate: it is the winter residence of many millionaires, especially Latin Americans, that buy art; Miami is very well-connected and easy to move around the city; and last, it has very attractive tax benefits, just like Basel. These are assets that are difficult to find. What can you tell our readers about this?

A.S.- We do not intend to move Art Basel Miami Beach to another place for all the reasons you have just listed in your question. The art community here in Miami Beach has been incredibly supportive in the past eight years of the show, bringing in people, opening their collections to the public, and curating high profile exhibitions throughout the year.

Paco Barragán is an independent curator and associate editor of ARTPULSE.