Previewing PULSE Miami Beach’s PROJECT Artists
Works from Héctor Arce-Espasas, Jeana Klein, and an uncompromising immersive piece by Phoenix Lindsey-Hall
Invitations for December’s Miami Art Week 2017 have already begun, and with such correspondence underway, our anticipation has already started to brew. For the thirteenth edition of the PULSE Art Fair Miami, an annual favorite, there’s a new director Katlijne De Backer and a just-released roster of global exhibitors. In fact, one can expect 70 galleries from five continents. As with previous years, one tent (North) will highlight multi-artist galleries while the other (South) will focus on solo presentations. We are, however, most excited about PROJECTS, which PULSE describes as their “initiative for the presentation and promotion of site specific, large scale sculpture, installation and performance within the fair environment.”
From PROJECT, three artists—and their works previewed here—initially stood out. First, sculptor Héctor Arce-Espasas happens to be a special commission this year. His dynamic piece “Ode to Paradise (Dancers)” (2017) was assembled from porcelain, wood, and various fruits and plants. There are numerous ceramic, sculptural components to this, positioned in a site-specific environment created just for this fair. His sculptural focus: the ass. It’s playful and—with the addition of a cornucopia of vegetation—exotic. According to his statement, the Puerto Rican artist is addressing decadence and the idea of the tropical paradise.
Two politically charged pieces will also captivate on site. First, Jeana Klein’s 2017 piece “Recent Activism” began when Donald Trump signed the first Muslim travel ban. It’s a project on recycled fabric panels that incorporates—or documents—Klein’s responses to other people’s social media status updates. She’s tackling the failure of words. From a more solemn standpoint, artist and queer activist Phoenix Lindsey-Hall will present “Never Stop Dancing” (2016). Composed of slip cast porcelain disco balls and lights, the installation features 49 of the former, each hung at various heights to honor a victim of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting. As diverse as the messaging is behind all three of these projects, there’s an unchecked vibrance—something we’ve come to expect from this fair.
PULSE will run from 7-10 December at its oceanfront home, Indian Beach Park (4601 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach).
Images courtesy of respective artists
