The Misadventures of Art Baseling!!! Part 3 "I'm Drowning in Aqua...Art"

As if 3 hours of non-stop art appreciation wasn’t enough, Saturday was quickly upon me! It’s Aqua Art Miami! Now this concept is super cool and oh so practical. AQUA ART is an exhibit created in a classic South Beach hotel, taking hotel rooms and completely transforming them into beautiful galleries and art exhibits; each room with it’s own culture and feel. The rooms are stripped of any and all furniture and make for great, spacious exhibition rooms. (It honestly looked like a real museum. I was trying so hard to picture what the hotel rooms looked like, if all this wasn’t here) All the suites remain with their doors open that lead to an open, breezy, intimate courtyard at the center of the hotel. This particular area of the hotel, has become a favorite gathering spot for collectors, curators and art lovers to discover fresh talent and acquire new works while exchanging cultural ideas and forming meaningful connections. That’s the meca of Art Basel- To Exchange! Culture, ideals, & conversations.

I arrive to Aqua and budget about 2 hours at this stop, considering it’s size. I thought this was going to be a breeze, no way I’ll be here longer than that. ‘It’s as simple as get in, get out, & next gallery right?’ NO Frankie! Wrong again! Art is like food. It looks super good when you look at it, but you still have to digest it. My Aqua Art adventure quickly went from two hypothetical hours to four real hours! Little did I know exactly how much can actually fit inside these little hotel rooms. Art Basel just continued to surprise me. Two-stories of art, a mini cashbar, spanish guitar sounds in the courtyard, and tons of eclectic people from around the globe of different colors, shapes, sizes, and ages hanging out. I met and interviewed artist from all walks of life! (Vlog Maybe?) The best part was how excited they were to be interviewed and asked questions. I mean they do create this stuff so others can inquire right?

I was blown away at the creativity displayed. These artist were going beyond a paint brush and blank canvas. The use of crayons, candle wax, newspapers, and even pen ink were some of most intricate and detailed pieces I witnessed. (But trust, almost everything was amazing. It’s hard to just choose 1) One of my favorite artists was Tai Taeoalii from Michigan, who creates beautiful works of art using only black and blue ball inked pens. The final product was so solid, I’m sure water paint was jealous! His exhibt was definitely where I spent the most time. Sure, I didn’t get to do anything else on this Saturday because I went over my [budgeted] time. But after going through what I went through the day before, there was no way I was going to let this instance rain on my parade. I bargained to hit more events in one night, pero just staying at this one was totally worth it! No debate there.