Each year, Art Basel week brings international travelers, world-class artwork, and traffic straight from your nightmares. For locals and out-of-towners hoping to take in some visuals and parties before the weekend wackiness ensues, several satellite fairs are kicking off the festivities early.
Named Best Art Fair by New Times in 2013, Miami Project is back for its second showing at Art Basel. Produced by Brooklyn-based artMRKT Productions, Miami Project features 65 contemporary and modern galleries in its 2013 fair. Galleries from Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., will be among this year’s selections. It runs Tuesday through December 8 at NE 29th Street and NE First Avenue in midtown Miami. Hours are Tuesday from 4:30 to 10 p.m., Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tickets cost $25 for a one-day pass, $25 for a preview ticket for Tuesday, and $50 for a preview ticket and multiday pass. Visit miami-project.com.
Zones Contemporary Art Fair returns for its seventh Art Week showing, this time with a twist. Zones’ 2013 edition connects several creative disciplines to offer a daily program of live action performances by international artists under the title PERFORMIA1, merging performance art with the visual art-fair setting. Visitors can view sculptures, video screenings, paintings, and performance pieces in Zones’ casual setting. The fair runs Tuesday through December 9 at 3850 N. Miami Ct. in the Design District. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Admission is free. Visit zonesartfair.com.
Red Dot Miami offers a diverse selection of about 60 galleries showing paintings, sculptures, photography, and fine-art objects. In addition to exhibiting talent from around the U.S., Europe, and Asia, Red Dot Miami is striving to give sun-sapped Miamians more shade. The fair’s opening reception Tuesday will benefit Million Trees Miami, a community-wide effort to plant 1 million trees by 2020 to achieve a 30 percent tree canopy cover for Miami-Dade County. The fair runs Tuesday through December 8 at 3011 NE First Ave. in midtown Miami. Hours are Tuesday from 6 to 10 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. A one-day pass costs $15. Visit reddotfair.com.
Dec. 3-8, 2013