Art Basel Miami is always an amazing time – but it can also get pretty hectic and exhausting when you’re jumping from place to place for days at a time without a moment to breathe. After all, we don’t want to miss an art-filled moment while we’re there, do we?
Lucky for us, Phillip K. Smith III is fulfilling both of our goals: experience spectacular art as we take a moment to appreciate our surroundings and breathe in the ocean air.
Smith’s installation, “120 Degree Arc East-Southeast,” will take over 500 feet of beach at the Faena Hotel. It consists of 300 geometric reflectors – 10-ft-height steel panels angled at 110 degrees – that are positioned in an arc to reflect the changing environment of the sky, sand and water throughout the day and night. These three elements meet, merge and disperse from each other in ways that are unique to each visitor’s viewpoint, and can never be experienced the same way twice.
On view 24 hours a day and seven days a week between December 4-9, viewers can observe the monumental work as it interacts with its ever-changing surroundings. It casts shadows and highlights in patterns across the sand, and it merges the natural colors, textures and movements of its environment.
The viewers’ perception of the space changes as shadows and light shift, creating a heightened sense of awareness to the environment around them. This immersive experience makes the viewer an active participant as they move through the installation, changing and shifting in tandem with the earth and sky.
The site-specific installation is a new iteration of “The Circle of Land and Sky,” a piece that was on display at Desert X during this year’s Coachella. While his Coachella piece was installed in a full circle, the same concept has been converted for Art Basel, this time an arc that cradles the ocean.
In the hustle and bustle that is Art Basel Miami, make time for a reflective moment (pun intended) to enjoy your beautiful surroundings, and the mesmerizing work of Phillip K. Smith III.
Visit “120 Degree Arc East-Southeast” at Faena Miami Beach’s private beach: 3201 Collins Avenue, Faena District, Miami Beach FL, 33140. The installation will be free and open to the public 24/7 from December 4-9.
Top photo: Phillip K. Smith III’s “Quarter Mile Arc” // photo by Lance Gerber
