by Patrick Ogle

Superfine! The Fair (1001 Ocean Dr., Miami Beach) has moved to Miami Beach for 2018 Don't worry, they are still bringing the same, fun, eclectic mix of artists and events. It is just in a new location.

"Superfine! was created to fill a space in the art market that we felt was not being addressed--a place for working contemporary artists to connect with both emerging and established collectors to sell artwork that's diverse, affordable, and accessible," says Alex Mitow, director of Superfine!. "Over the last four years, we've seen incredible growth which has further confirmed what we always thought - that the art market is larger than just the 1%, and that there's a huge market for making art more accessible to a wider and more diverse audience."

There are currently Superfine! fairs in four cities: Miami Beach, NYC, Los Angeles and Washington D.C.  There will be a fith city in 2019 and a sixth in 2020.   

Among the artist participating this year are Monica Jahan Bose, Abi Salami and Adam Christopher Reed (and many others).

Salami, based in Dallas, was initially trained as an accountant.

"I literally have to turn off the accounting part of my brain to be able to create the whimsical, surrealistic type of art that I like to create. But my accounting background has been vital to running the business component of my art career. I
wanted to go to art school, but growing up in a strict Nigerian household, that was never really a choice. I was strongly encouraged by my parents to major in something more 'practical' such as accounting," she says. "At the time, I didn’t
appreciate my parents making me choose a major that I knew I would not ultimately be happy with, but looking back now, I am so thankful. My experiences working in corporate accounting and finance have been invaluable to me as a self-taught artist trying to navigate the mysterious art world."

Salami's is bringing her latest series, The Unforgiven Sins of Eve’s Apple, to Superfine!. The work springs from a single painting, The Duality of Temptation.

"I decided to create the series after the public spectacle around the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh as Supreme Justice despite the sexual harassment allegations against him. It was horrific watching how Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, a reputable, educated women, was ridiculed for being brave enough to come forward to tell her story," she says. "There is a piece in the series called Whore or Harlot which addresses how negatively women are treated when they make sexual assault allegations against a public figure even if these women conform to society’s expectations of a 'good woman'."

She wanted to create a series depicting how women are perceived in Western society. The series has an intentional sexual component. The "sexual parts" of the women are (in several pieces) depicted while their heads are apples.

"The fact that they have apples instead of heads represents the fact that society doesn’t really want women who think for themselves and the apple itself is a biblical reference to Eve biting into the Forbidden Fruit and committing the very first sin – a sin that has since been used as justification for the countless crimes committed against women even to this very day," says Salami.

She adds that credit is due to masters such as Salvador Dali, Rene Magritte and Frida Kahlo. There is a surreal aspect to her work

"They don’t have arms because arms represent, at least superficially, the ability to be self-sufficient. The lack of arms prevents Eve’s Apples from doing anything for themselves, shaping their own future or creating the change that is necessary  to make their lives easier. Eve’s apples are oversexed, provocative, but completely thoughtless and helpless." she says.

This is the first time the artist has shown her work outside of Texas.

"I am thankful to Superfine! for providing this type of forum for artists like myself to reach a demographic (aka Millennials and Xennials) that I feel is being not being properly catered to. I am so happy to be part of their movement of foster relationships with young art collectors and I look forward to meeting all the other artists and exhibitors." says Salami.

Reed is originally from Atlanta, now lives and works in Morgantown, West Virginia. His work might seem a bit macabre at first, and sometimes second, glance.

"I think my pictures are at their best when two reactions intersect. First, there’s the childish recognition of a familiar scene or character emerging from an unrelated context," he says. "This part is kind of like a joke or a riddle. Then comes a feeling of unease arising from that context: animal skulls, cpr masks, etcetera."

Reed has also created graphic novels but these are a tad different from his paintings.

"The graphic novels that I’ve done have more of a satirical nature than can be found in these paintings, but I will say that the strategy used in putting together these scenes is similar to the abstraction of cartooning in a way," he says. "That may seem like a stretch, but it makes perfect sense to me!"

A few years ago he helped a friend at a solo exhibition in Cologne, Germany and was inspired to work on exhibiting his art.

"The more I looked into Superfine!, the more it seemed like a good fit. Superfine!’s commitment to accessibility was a huge encouragement to me. I’ve been working for quite a while but I am not established by any means, and the opportunity to communicate with an art market that is open-minded and engaged is invaluable to me," says Reed. "And of course, Miami Beach has a famous aesthetic which somehow, maybe subconsciously or maybe second or third-hand, seems to have found its way into my work." 

Jahan Bose's work is generally an intersection of two themes--empowering women and fighting climate change.These two are, in many locales, inextricably linked. Her ongoing work, Storytelling with Saris, uses the traditional garb as a center point for her emphatic calls to action.  This year her performance piece, Rising UP  , takes place from 3 to 5 p.m,  Friday, December 7.

"In Rising UP I’ll be working with a group of Miami women to speak to women’s leadership and resilience in the face of climate change. We will use blue saris, water, coconuts, singing, and writing climate pledges, to create a 90 minute
climate art action that goes from the fair to the rising sea." says Jahan Bose.

Other special events include Can I Collect? Becoming an Astute Art Collector and LGBTQ+ Art Film Series.  Keep in mind these are just two of a NUMBER of special events. Go to the EVENTBRITE SUPERFINE page for more details (and to get tickets).

by Patrick Ogle

Licht Feld (Basel, Switzerland) is part of Miami Art Week every year and are always a highlight. This year they are part of Art Miami (December 4 to 9, 2018).

"This year and like since the beginning in 2007 new works by MARCK videosculpures. He is a discovery of the Licht Feld gallery and so far the most successful artist of the house Licht Feld. Tom Senn with a "funny" broom installation. Works of him I show for 2 years at the fairs and is actually the most difficult artist to understand," says founder, Fredy Hadorn. "Although he always works out very poetic works in his 'found objects.' New in the program is the French Canadian painting series Geneviève Morin with painting. I discovered her works at last year's annual exhibition at the Kunsthalle Basel. Her paintings are enchanting because of their uncanny, beautiful, mystical views."

Licht Feld has been around since 2001. Hadorn said that the idea came when he was in an old factory, replete with dirty windows. One clean window let the light shine in and "licht feld" (light field) was born. Hadorn says his aims have not
changed much since Mapanare first interviewed him in 2011.

"My goals have remained, plus or minus, unchanged. I paraphrase them this way; Stay authentic. Do not to become dependent on the art market. To cultivate and refine one's own style. Combination of positions of young and older artists.Provocation may also be political statements are desired," he says. 

In the past three months Licht Feld has moved. The new home is two floors in Basel, directly on the Rhine in a prime location.

Licht Feld, unlike much you see at art fairs--anywhere, not just in Basel--does not bring work with dollar signs in their eyes. Like any gallery sales matter but it is far from their focus.

"That was never and never will be my goal.Independence is my supreme law, and cooperation between artists and artists can be accepted," says Hadorn. "The autonomy of the different artists and the appropriate selection and combination of the works at the fair stand is actually my work of art. The combination of the different styles creates an exciting overall picture."

Every year Miami becomes Licht Feld's temporary home, even if the opportunity to explore the city and its environs is limited.

"Central to this are the encounters with existing customers, maintaining these contacts and, of course, maintaining new contacts. In this sense, the existing customers are contacted in advance and the art media informed according to the possibilities. However, advertising is relatively difficult because there are so many fairs and exhibitors, he says.  "To discover the city and nature would be nice, is partly possible, but here the business is in the foreground but without losing the human aspect. It's always exciting to see how many people from so many countries gather and meet here in Miami during this  week. It's a kind of parallel world for the wealthy who view art from artists who are struggling to survive. You have to be aware of that. Sometimes you're lucky and can help an artist to succeed by being present at the fair - of course for the gallery as well."


During Art Basel Licht Feld is holding a group show at the gallery that continues until September, 2010. There will then be a solo show of paintings by, Morin. A 2020 solo exhibition of work by the inimitable video artist Marck will take place
in St. Petersburg at Erarta Museum and Collection.