Art Basel Miami Beach 2016 has only just begun, but the behemoth event is already beginning to trickle out news about next year. The fair announced today that Philipp Kaiser will curate the 2017 Public sector, its platform for site-specific public sculpture and performance, that has been organized in collaboration with The Bass museum since 2010, and has taken place at Collins Park since 2011.
Kaiser, a Swiss independent curator and art critic currently based in Los Angeles, has previously held posts with the Museum Ludwig in Cologne, Museum of Contemporary Art in LA, and the Kunstmuseum Basel. Next year, he will also curate the Swiss Pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale, with the exhibition “Women of Venice—Carol Bove and Teresa Hubbard / Alexander Birchler.”
He takes over Public from Nicholas Baume, who has curated its past four editions. The most recent opened last night, featuring a performance by iconic drag performer Lady Bunny, Lady Bunny’s Intergalactic Disco, and a musical performance inspired by bodily functions, with sculptures by 20 artists, including Alicja Kwade, Erwin Wurm, Ugo Rondinone, and Camille Henrot.
“I have always found Public to be a fascinating sector of the show in Miami Beach because of the opportunities it presents to artists and galleries,” says Kaiser.
“I look forward to the challenge of curating a thematic outdoor exhibition that transforms and re-envisions Collins Park, and [one that] engages Art Basel’s audiences, as well as the broader Miami Beach community.”