Miami Art Week 2015: UNTITLED Art Fair Recap

Gonzalo Lebrija

One of the first fairs to open during Miami Art Week was UNTITLED. Now in its fourth year, the fair showcases big and small scale works from over 130 galleries in its white beachfront tent- a place where you could find some of the most experimental and surprising uses of media this week. Among the booths we bee-lined for was Eric Firestone Gallery’s, which featured a large and psychedelic new piece from artist Jen Stark, now recognized by many for the wormhole and animated dripping entrance that she created for Miley Cyrus at the 2015 MTV VMAs. We first featured her paper vortex-like works in Hi-Fructose Vol. 20, but these days, Stark is looking to experiment with new materials.

Jen Stark, with her work at Eric Firestone Gallery’s booth at UNTITLED Miami art fair.

Other artists whose works played with material, dimension and scale were German artist Wolfram Ullrich, whose paintings of brightly colored three-dimensional planks are shockingly flat upon closer inspection, Ben Stone’s sculpture of a baby elephant made of different colored rope, and a figure by Daniel Arsham, pigmented with volcanic ash and rock, that seemed to dissipate into the wall. In Halley Zien’s work on display, she used a combination of collage, magazine clippings and heavily textured paint to create spaces packed with a frenzy of figures.

Sculpture by Daniel Arsham, best known for his unusual use of materials like volcanic ash.

Many other highlights of the fair included its site-specific pieces and sculptures which were prevalent throughout, and perhaps there was no stronger visual statement than Julie Schenkelberg’s “Lumerian Shift”. Curated by Site:Lab of Grand Rapids, Michigan, the piece is a massive cascading installation measuring from ceiling to floor, made of found objects like pieces of wood, chairs, and dishes. UNTITLED art fair closed yesterday, December 6th, but if you missed it, take a look at some photo highlights from UNTITLED below- and stay tuned for more of our Miami Art Week coverage.

Jen Stark