Untitled Art Fair 2015

Julie Schenkelberg’s “Lumerian Shift” installation with Site:Lab of Grand Rapids, Michigan (all photos by the author for Hyperallergic)

MIAMI BEACH — In a cavernous tent right on the sands of Miami Beach, Untitled Art Fair is opening this Wednesday with a sprawling array of international galleries. Site-specific pieces are placed alongside group installations, which favor mixed, sculptural media, and strong visual statements.

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Dancers interacting with a sculpture by Amanda Keeley, part of a series of performances at Untitled (click to enlarge)

Untitled started in 2012 and differentiated itself from the other Art Basel satellite fairs by adding an emphasis on curatorial vision. Artistic director Omar López-Chahoud and curators Christophe Boutin and Melanie Scarciglia have corralled galleries, nonprofits, and artist-run spaces from New York, Buenos Aires, Toronto, Lima, Berlin, San Francisco, Hong Kong, and many other cities for this year’s iteration. This doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a consistent or fluid experience, as they’ve squeezed every inch of space out of the fair’s monumental home. If you go be prepared to wind around a few times to see it all — the rows aren’t neat lines and instead break off and curve into each other. This also leaves things like the frenetic Toiletpaper Lounge, a collaboration between Maurizio Cattelan and Pierpaolo Ferrari, a bit stranded up front and feeling disconnected from the flow of booths, although if you want to sit on a tombstone that reads “THE END” and ponder the aesthetics of a rug decorated with severed fingers while looking out at the beach, seek out the portal to this space.

Many of the highlights of the fair are the installations, which include a towering collision of found chairs, wood, paint, and other objects by Julie Schenkelberg of Site:Lab in Grand Rapids, which reminded me of her recent show at New York’s Asya Geisberg Gallery; a floor-consuming piece by Ryan Wallace with Romer Young Gallery of San Francisco involving canvas, vinyl, rubber, and heavy slathers of roof coating that you can walk over; and a simple sculpture in wood and metal by Amanda Keeley, “Double Arc,” which is activated by dancers during the fair — it’s part of a series of performances taking place around the space. And if you aren’t in the area but want to tune in, there’s also a live radio broadcast through Wynwood Radio, which you can listen to online. Below are some more photographs from the seaside fair, where large-scale art and colorful mixed media command the attention of the crowd.

Outside Untitled Art Fair in Miami Beach

Outside Untitled Art Fair in Miami Beach

The Toiletpaper Lounge, created in collaboration with Maurizio Cattelan and Pierpaolo Ferrari

The Toiletpaper Lounge, a collaboration between Maurizio Cattelan and Pierpaolo Ferrari

Untitled Art Fair 2015

“Chevrons” by Ronald Bladen, presented by Loretta Howard Gallery at the entrance to Untitled

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Robert Stone (at left) and Deborah Butterfield (at right) with Anglim Gilbert Gallery of San Francisco

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Installation by Santiago Taccetti with 10Hanover of London

Untitled Art Fair 2015

“A Respite at Some Point ASAP” chairs by Lawrence Weiner with Sebastien de Ganay, which are installed throughout Untitled

Untitled Art Fair 2015

“Thumbs Up” painting by Austin Lee with Postmasters Gallery of New York City

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Rosana Schoijett with Nora Fisch of Buenos Aires

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Andrés Bedoya with Gonzalez y Gonazalez gallery of Lima, Peru

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Hassan Hajjaj with Taymour Grahne Gallery of New York City

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Howard Kanovitz (at left) and Agathe Snow (at right) with Eric Firestone Gallery of New York City

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Enoc Perez with Koenig & Clinton of New York City

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Adam David Brown with MKG127 of Toronto

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Carolina Gómez with Rincón Projects of Bogotá, Colombia

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Paintings by Hope Gangloff and ceramics on a fur pelt by Beverly Semmes with Susan Inglett Gallery of New York City

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Painting by Allison Schulnik with Zieher Smith & Horton of New York City

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Installation by Ryan Wallace with Romer Young Gallery of San Francisco

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Art by Pablo Cavallo with Pasto of Buenos Aires

Untitled Art Fair 2015

Dominique Pétrin’s installation with Galerie Antoine Ertaskiran of Montreal

Untitled Art Fair takes place December 2 to 6 at Ocean Drive and 12th Street in Miami Beach.

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Allison Meier

Allison C. Meier is a former staff writer for Hyperallergic. Originally from Oklahoma, she has been covering visual culture and overlooked history for print...