photographer / director / publisher
[slidepress gallery=’voyeur-art-basel-video’]
After the success of the “Soiree au Louvre” Benefit with the American Friends of the Louvre, Christopher Pastor, director of events for AFL, and I wanted to join forces to create an exciting event for XXXX Magazine, “The Untitled Magazine”. After deliberating on various possibilities I proposed in July that we create an exhibit at Art Basel Miami showcasing the latest video productions created for the forthcoming “Voyeur” issue of XXXX Magazine. To elaborate on the concept for the Art Basel audience, I felt it was also a great opportunity to present the works of other contemporary artists that had artwork revolving around this theme. We decided to bring in Anne Huntington, who works in theme sales at Philipps de Pury and launched AMH Industries, to curate the contemporary artists for the exhibit. Next up was bringing in Gary Krimershmoys, my friend and founder of Quintessentially Art, who after a meeting with the 3 of us at Soho House New York, came on board as a sponsor and co-curator for the exhibit. Quintessentially was able to secure the Boulan building for the exhibit, a gorgeous new condominium building on 21st street in South Beach, and also the location for Mr. Brainwash’s exhibit at Art Basel this year. The location was secured with 1 month to go to Art Basel’s opening on December 1st, 2010, giving us a rather short window to produce an exhibit that could fill the massive 8,000 square foot space. Working up to the very last minute with my XXXX Magazine contributing artists and directors I flew down to Miami with co-curator Konstantinos Menelaou on December 1st to begin the installation of the exhibit, and see the Boulan Building for the first time. After over 16 years working as a fashion photographer I was not daunted in the least by the prospect of the production ahead of me, but to be fair once I started dealing with the South Beach program I realized that I had some serious hard work ahead! Not one to lose my temper lightly, I have to say I was tried on several occasions – first with Splashlight Miami literally tripling their quote to me the day before our opening for the background equipment. Literally minutes before the opening I finished personally putting up the backgrounds for the projections with the help of my assistant Diego Corredor and Co-Curator Konstantinos, with all the delays I encountered trying to get the required materials to the site during the madness of Art Basel Miami. I hired projection specialist Brad Baker to oversee the video projections – we had 6 in total – 2 simultaneous screenings on the ground floor of the Gallery space, 2 on the 2nd floor, 1 outside in the garden and lastly a projection onto the outside wall of the Mokai nightclub space for the after-party. That in itself was a feat I personally have not tried before with only 2 days to install the entire ceiling mounted audio / video installation, as well as create the loops of several of the videos which needed to be customized for each projection. Not surprising, considering the Boulan would only let us install in the raw space within their working hours of 9am – 7pm, the projections were a bit delayed, with the last 2 screens being illuminated not at the 5pm opening, but by 7pm. Despite all the hard work and insane pressure to put everything together in a very short time frame I have to say it was an amazing moment to be at the space and greet guests as they arrived. One year after launching XXXX Magazine, I felt that my little idea had finally grown into a big one to be proud of. It was only with the support of some amazing people along the way, like Christopher Pastor from American Friends of the Louvre, that we were able to put together the “Voyeur” exhibit.
On December 3rd, 2010 XXXX Magazine, “The Untitled Magazine” presented the “Voyeur” exhibit at Art Basel Miami. Presented in collaboration with The American Friends of The Louvre, Miami Art Museum Contemporaries and Quintessentially, a group show of over 50 artists was presented to a turnout of over 1000 guests. The latest video art films from XXXX Magazine premiered at the event in a video art installation in the two day exhibit. In celebration of the new issue, AFL and XXXX Magazine commissioned Anne Huntington, Founder of AMH Industries, to conceive of an exhibition of contemporary art around the theme of “voyeur”. Quintessentially Art’s Gary Krimershmoys, served as an curatorial advisor to the exhibition and co-curator. Video art was curated by Indira Cesarine, Creative Director of XXXX Magazine, in collaboration with film-maker/curator Konstantinos Menelaou.
In the 8000 square foot space at the Boulan building on 21st street in South Beach Miami, exhibited artists included: Alexander Melamid, Amir Baradaran, Amit Greenberg, Andrea Tese, Anna Coroneo, Anne Koch, Annika Connor, Ben Olson, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Blindmice, Brian Gonzalez, Chiara Cola, Craig Hansen, David Datuna, David Victor Rose, Diego Corredor, Dimitri Gutov, Dimitri Hyacinthe. Elle Muliarchyk, Gabriel Fortoul, Indira Cesarine, Iris Brosch, Ivan Chuikov, Janine Gordon, Jason Shelowitz, Jessica Mitrani, Jordan Doner, Joseph Grazi, Karine Laval, Komar & Melamid, Konstantinos Menelaou, Louise Erhard, Martynka Wawrzyniak, Matt Kaelin, Meredith Ostrom, Morgan O’Donovan, Murphy & O’Connor, Natalia Nestarova, Patricio Guillamon, Paul Windridge, Peter Luckner, Razumov, Romy Northover, Ronnit Hasson, Ross McDonnell, Sean Capone, Sophia Deininger, Ultra Violet, Vladimir Clavijo-Telepnev, Winston Chmielinski and Zaiba Jabbar.
[slidepress gallery=’voyuer-art-basel’]
The exhibition took place in the heart of South Beach at Boulan South Beach, a new luxury condominium opening in January 2011. Unik hosted the after-party at the famed Miami Beach nightclub/lounge Mokai after the opening on the 3rd. The exhibition was open to the general public on Saturday, December 4 from 2 to 9pm with a performance by artist Alexander Melamid at 6pm. A percentage of proceeds from the works of art sold will aid AFL’s efforts in supporting contemporary art at the Musée du Louvre. For more information about artists or artworks from the exhibit contact Anne Huntington, Gary Krimershmoys or Indira Cesarine.
‘VOYEUR” Exhibit Invitation
Support for this event was provided for by Boulan South Beach, AMG Worldwide, Quintessentially, Quintessentially Art, XXXX Magazine, AMH Industries, the Miami Art Museum Contemporaries, Young Patrons Circle of American Friends of the Louvre.
The American Friends of the Louvre (AFL) was founded by the Musée du Louvre in 2002 to strengthen ties between the Louvre and its American public, and to formalize the long-standing generosity of American patrons. Since 1793, the Louvre has welcomed new and emerging artists into its halls to follow in the footsteps of their great predecessors. In 2003, the Louvre initiated a new dialogue between the art of today and its permanent collection by inviting artists to present or create works inspired by the museum and its collections. This policy has established a connection and new resonance between the art of the past and contemporary creation. Recent commissions include works by Mike Kelley, Candida Höfer, Joseph Kosuth, Richard Serra, Louise Bourgeois and Willem de Kooning.
Anne Huntington is the founder of AMH Industries, LLC – a full service art advisory and curatorial company. She independently produces exhibitions including ’4 Sale’ a collaboration between Aneta Bartos, Elle Muliarchyk, Yana Toyber, and Martynka Wawrzyniak, which was featured in the November 2010 Art Issue of W Magazine; ‘An Endless Summer’, which debuted new works by the Australian artist, Anna Coroneo; ‘Pretty Young Things,’ a salon-style show of 23 emerging artists, which successfully attracted over 500 collectors, critics, curators and art lovers. She works with artists on solo and group projects. She connected four artists to the Bicycle Film Festival’s installation at the Damon Dash Gallery and has worked closely with Tools for Thought on events such as the Haiti benefit at Sotheby’s and for HomeBase where she curated a group show in a private residence. She worked on the highly lauded 2005 Robert Smithson retrospective at the Whitney Museum and at David Zwirner. She is the New York Communications Manager at Phillips & Company.
Gary Krimershmoys is the Managing Director of Quintessentially Art LLC (quintessentiallyart.com), a global art advisory firm, with offices in NY and London. Within the company, Gary works with a global clientele, which includes private international collectors, as well as corporations like UBS. This year Gary has curated exhibitions including ‘Motion Deconstructed’ in NYC, and 2 projects for Mironova Gallery one a 2 month pop up gallery in Bridgehampton, NY and the gallery’s booth at Art Moscow 2010. He will also be curating a project space within Art Pam Beach in Jan 10, which will showcase emerging Russian and CIS artists, as well as Moderating a talk on the state of Russian Contemporary art and the it’s engagement with the wider world.
Inspired by their mutual passion for high quality service and attention to detail, Ben Elliot, Aaron Simpson and Paul Drummond joined forces in London to create Quintessentially, a private members club with a global concierge service, in December 2000. Quintessentially’s discerning members around the world enjoy an array of benefits carefully selected to make a difference in their lives. Their team of experts are on hand for everything from solving pressing practical problems such as dinner reservations and sourcing a good nanny to advice on the latest fashion collections, travel experiences, lifestyle trends, spur-of-the-moment chartered yachts, theatre and nightlife recommendations plus much more – providing nothing but the best insider and specialist access, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. With 56 offices worldwide, Quintessentially has quickly become a global support system for its members, wherever they may be.
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Photography and video by Indira Cesarine for XXXX Magazine