Art Basel, Miami Beach: Meridians
Art Basel’s Meridians section is a dynamic platform dedicated to large-scale projects that push the boundaries of contemporary art. Showcased at Art Basel Miami Beach, Meridians features monumental installations, ambitious sculptures, expansive paintings, and immersive video works that transcend the traditional booth format. Curated to highlight experimental and thought-provoking pieces, the section allows artists to explore complex narratives, cultural dialogues, and innovative techniques. Meridians reinforces Art Basel’s reputation as a leading force in the global art market by offering collectors and visitors a chance to engage with groundbreaking, museum-quality works.
Below is a selection of works displayed at Art Basel’s Miami Beach edition for 2024.
Portia Munson: Bound Angel lands
Portia Munson establishes links between the things we collect and their reflections of identity. The feminist environmental artist, who identifies as such, creates whimsical installations using found materials that draw visitors in with a sense of nostalgia, immersing them in a vibrant array of objects.
Her piece, Bound Angel (2021), showcases a large table draped with a tablecloth crafted from wedding gowns, adorned with a mannequin's trussed torso, and surrounded by several smaller bound assemblages. These elements represent the interplay between the female psyche and external influences. ‘She’s infused with all the information and constraints we unconsciously gather," the artist explains. The tableau contains deliberately bound items that reflect outdated and harmful ideas of femininity, with the Madonna-Whore complex being the most prominent example. These objects not only engage the viewer but also connect them to the subconscious messages they receive and perpetuate through the belongings they choose to cherish.
Sarah Meyohas: Interference #18
Marianne Boesky Gallery showcased conceptual artist Sarah Meyohas’s Interference #18—a striking, multi-panel hologram from her ongoing Interference series. In Interference #18, Meyohas intricately layers enlarged imagery of plant life with depictions of a naked female figure, revealing the interconnectedness of plants and human bodies as living beings. Measuring fourteen feet wide and consisting of over thirty trapezoidal panels, Interference #18 may be Meyohas’s most direct exploration of the intricate interplay of human existence within our advancing technological landscape. This fractured and flickering, abstract yet sensorial depiction of the body serves as a poignant reminder that the natural world itself represents a distinct form of technology.
Anastasia Bay: Maestra Lacrymae Acte V
Anastasia Bay, born in Paris and based in Brussels, unveils Maestra Lacrymae Acte V, a unique installation created for Art Basel. This work expands on Bay’s recent solo exhibition that integrates painting, opera, and historical myths. The installation includes a series of three large paintings on specially shaped panels, alongside a monumental Harlequin puppet, first featured in Maestra Lacrymae. This puppet, almost five meters tall, is inspired by the giant puppets common in Belgian festivals like the Nord Carnival and is depicted in Bay’s artworks as towering over the crowds. For Bay, this character symbolizes transformation and resilience, linking historical myths with modern identity.
