Breaking Basel

Art Basel remains the most prestigious event taking place during Miami Art Week, running from December 6 through 9 this year. But that hasn't stopped satellite fairs and other cultural happenings from popping up all over town to take advantage of Basel's arts-minded attendees -- and plenty of the events open well before the big show. Untitled Art Fair, opening Wednesday and running through December 9, has taken a cue from the South Beach Wine & Food Festival and set up directly on the sandy shores of South Beach. In its inaugural year, Untitled has invited a carefully curated selection of galleries to participate, sure to result in a unique viewing experience. Just leave your high heels at home. Admission costs $20; visit art-untitled.com. Design Miami gets a jump on its neighbor across the street by opening a day early -- but that's far from its only notable attribute. Visitors to this year's incarnation will enter beneath a giant, inflatable canopy-as-art installation titled Drift and can expect cutting-edge furniture, lighting, and other design-worthy art objects. Tickets cost $25, or $15 for students and seniors. Visit designmiami.com. Also launching Wednesday is Art Miami, which returns to town with an exciting new fair-within-a-fair concept called Context, which will showcase the works of Banksy. Attendees will also have the chance to ride a working roller coaster designed to look like it's made of sugary desserts. It's pretty much the closest you'll ever get to living out a Homer Simpson dream sequence. Tickets cost $10 to $65. Visit art-miami.com.
Dec. 5-9, 2012