It’s that time of year again! Miami is being swarmed by art connoisseurs and cool hunters from New York (for the week, Miami is New York City’s 6th borough), London, Los Angeles, and beyond. Call it their annual pilgrimage to Art Basel Miami Beach and the many other art fairs (like Nada and Untitled) simultaneously taking place this week.
It’s a week of art, officially. (Just one day into the fair, critics are buzzing about photographer Wolfgang Tillmans’s new works at David Zwirner, gallery 56 Henry’s Basel debut, and a sprawling showcase of Louis Vuitton’s collaboration with Frank Gehry.) But after the art comes the parties and the after-parties. Basel offers a dizzying amount of options for those looking to clink cocktail classes and dance on the beach till the early hours of the night. On the docket for this year? White Cube’s annual rager at Soho House Miami Beach, a Gagosian fete cohosted with Positano hotel Le Sirenuse, and a Mickelane Thomas party with Janelle Monae at the Miami Beach Edition. Fashion-wise, Dior, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Ssense x Marni, and Farfetch x Dolce & Gabbana have also joined in on the fun with parties of their own. It’s a celebratory whirlwind all in the name of art; a roundup of the most fashionable fetes, below.
Friday
Donavan’s Yard Closed Out the Week With a Beach Party at Miami Beach Edition
On a stage built for the occasion, LA-based DJ collective Donavan’s Yard ended a nonstop week of art and after-parties with a dance party on the beach. Dubbed PLAY by American Express Platinum House Party, the event welcomed the likes of Lori Harvey, Chanel Iman, Aly Raisman, Yvonne Orji, Shantell Martin, and more, who were all excited to be ocean-side—with so many events on the docket, few take place at the beach and most who travel in for the art festival might not even get near it. Guests gathered on couches and lounge seating clustered together in the sand, toasting to yet another Basel by the beach.
Chanel ImanDimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images