Except for Ambach & Rice, which this year is part NADA, Seattle galleries will be largely absent this year in Miami.
Each year since 2005, when Seattle artist Jaq Chartier and her husband, Dirk Park, rented a sweet little motel on Ocean Beach and invited 35 galleries to join them, Aqua Art Miami was a real contender among what were known as the hotel fairs, satellites to the main event, Art/Basel/Miami Beach. Not only was Aqua’s lineup strong, the hotel itself was a draw: open, airy and full of light. Wandering through too many of the other hotel fairs felt like being transported to the hallway fire scene in Barton Fink minus John Goodman, tour guide to the life of the mind.
Scott Lawrimore, who hadn’t yet opened his gallery in 2005 but was invited thanks to the quality of his lineup, called Aqua the “single most important event for Seattle artists since Life magazine published The Mystic Painters of the Northwest. “
(Photo, Adam L. Weintraub, 2005: Ben Beres sleeping off a late night of partying on Aqua’s open-air second floor.)
That was then. Lawrimore (who represents Beres) won’t be at Aqua this year and wasn’t in 2008. Thanks to the economy, turnovers in Miami are the rule this year, including at the main fair, with a 24 percent turnover. (Story here.) At Aqua, turnover is 75 percent.
Of the 8 Seattle galleries in the original Aqua lineup, none is returning, although Howard House will have its name on an artist project room featuring Robert Yoder, and Francine Seders has the same relation to a room featuring Juan Alonso.
Chartier said the issue this year was filling the space. She and Park called 40 galleries to reach one that was “even remotely interested.” Attending Aqua for the first time from Seattle is La Familia Gallery. The chances of La Familia being previously accepted into Aqua hover around zero.
In 2007, just in time for the first inklings of the crash-to-come, Aqua split in two to expand, occupying the hotel and opening a warehouse space in Wynwood. While the hotel version of Aqua was inspired, the Wynwood space was easy to lose track of in the overall Miami glut. This year, there is no hotel fair for Aqua, and Wynwood, such as it is, will carry on.
The lease on the Wynwood space runs through this year. Dirk and Chartier had to participate. If they continue next year, they face a steep climb back to hotness.
At Nada, Ambach & Rice will feature Jeffry Mitchell and Karen Sargsyan, with a couple of drawings by Eric Yahnker.
Aqua coverage in the PI from 2005, 2006 and 2007. I didn’t go in 2008 and (alas) won’t be going this year.
What a great gift to NW artists Aqua has been. Let’s hear it for Jaq and Dirk.
What a dilemma. Instead of letting in only the best galleries, they have to take what they can get, which means even after the economy recovers they’ll have damaged their brand. Painful.
It was over last year at Aqua. You’re just noticing it now? Over. Last year is the reason they can’t get good galleries to go this year.
Actually, Aqua in South Beach was pretty happening last year, but I did notice the sign saying “no free drinks to anyone named Max”.
But Aqua Wynwood was kinda dead, and unfortunately, thats the last man standing- due to lease obligations, I guess.
Wynwood is less travelled, less hip, than South Beach, and always got less traffic, even in boom years.
In a perfect world, they would have kept the motel, and cut loose the warehouse down the muddy potholed alley.
Ries. I saw that sign too. No free drinks for anyone named Max. Have you noticed the signs in galleries? No admittance for anyone named Max. Now we know what it means. (For those saying WTF? Ries refers to previous post from somebody named Max: “It was over last year at Aqua. You’re just noticing it now? Over. Last year is the reason they can’t get good galleries this year.”) Hey Max. You don’t need a weatherman to know which way this wind blows. Follow the (lack of) money.