Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary Event Status is "Leading International Art Fair"

Inaugural Four-Day Fair Sees Celebrities, Dignitaries

& Art World Luminaries 

Flock to Palm Beach, Florida

Celebrating its inaugural year, the 

Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary (PBM+C)

 art fair, presented by Art Miami LLC and sponsored by the City of West Palm Beach, opened its doors on Thursday January 12, 2017 and continued through the 15^th, and was immediately recognized as a leading international contemporary and modern art fair.

Joe Namath, Pamela Cohen, Nick Korniloff
Photo Credit: Annie Watt

More than 17,500 attendees, including Tommy Hilfiger and NFL legend Joe Namath, admired work from nearly one-thousand artists presented by more than fifty international galleries throughout the four days. Six thousand guests attended the fair’s VIP preview, which was sponsored by Christie’s International Real Estateand benefitted The Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society, to which Mr. Korniloff presented with a check for $25,000 at the VIP opening on behalf of the Fair.

Crowds flocked to the tent site to see important works on display from renowned artists such as Josef Albers, John Chamberlain, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and Keith Haring, with many dealers reporting sales within the first hour of the fair, including Cultural Council Spotlight Luncheon speaker artist Bernie Taupin, who placed three major works before 6pm during the VIP Preview through Waterhouse & Dodd. 

Martin and Audrey Gruss
Photo Credit: Annie Watt

Mrs. Audrey Gruss said, “The Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary fair has a wonderful energy and resonates with the excitement of finding young artists. I was drawn to the work of a young Japanese artist, Hidenori Tsumori from the Yufuku Gallery in Tokyo, and feel that it can hold its own among our collection of well-known modern and contemporary artists.”

The fair’s ownership team presented Mrs. Ruth Baum with a portrait of her and her

Ruth Baum, ABH, Nick Korniloff, Pamela Cohen
Photo Credit: Annie Watt

husband Ted Baum by breakout visual and recording artist ABH (Al-Baseer Holly). The portrait was given as a sign of appreciation for their philanthropy to the arts, The Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society, and their continued support of the Art Miami group of fairs run by Mr. Korniloff. The commissioned portrait of the Baums introduced the“Portraits for Perry” project, where ABH will donate 50% of sales from commissioned portraits to the Perry J. Cohen Foundation (PJCF), who will use the proceeds to fund the “Perry J. Cohen Wetlands Laboratory at Jupiter Community High School.”

The special exhibition, ‘Francis Picabia Loan Exhibition Curated by Jeffrey Deitch,’ which featured premiere examples of works by Francis Picabia on loan from the collection of Jeff & Mei Sze Greene, proved to be one of the most popular.

Nicolai Baker, Joe Namath,  Edwin Baker, William Fox Baker
Photo Credit:  Annie Watt

Joe Namath was seen supporting his son-in-law and street artist Edwin Baker’s break out exhibition, "A Baker’s Dozen," that was presented by Worth Avenue gallery Arcature Fine Art and benefited the Perry J. Cohen Foundation.

Notable names seen at the fair across its four days included: Collectors Audrey and Martin Gruss, Joan Genser, Jeff Greene and his wife Mei Sze Greene, Ruth Baum, Stacey and Andrew Kroll,  NHRA Champion and businessman Joe Amato and his wife Nicole Amato, Kara and Stephen Ross, artists Bruce Helander,Sophie Ryder, Bernie Taupin and his wife Heather Taupin, famed photographer Harry Benson and his wife Gigi Benson, and notable residents Dr. Lee Fox, Judge John Kastrenakes and wife Pia Kastrenakes, Bruce Beal, Paula and Paul Wittmann, Doris Browning, Diane Sculley, and Rena Blades - President and CEO of the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, Christine Aylward, Tom Schaeffer and Pamela O’Connor, Linda Benjamin, Cy Caine, Nick Catalano, Cathy and Dan Comerford, Dree Diamond, Barbara Donoff, Annette Friedland, Joyce Fromson, Regina and Rainer Greeven, Mai Hallingby, Candy Hamm, Eileen Judell, Anka Palitz, Rick Rose, Sara Simovich, Ashley Sosner, Sally Soter, Susie Staikos, Jacqueline Weld Drake and Lenny Lauren.

PBM+C BENEFICIARY

Palm Beach Zoo - The Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society is a non-profit zoological organization located at Dreher Park in West Palm Beach. The zoo houses more than 700 animals within 23 acres of lush tropical habitat. @palmbeachzoo #palmbeachzoo

PBM+C SPONSORS AND CULTURAL PARTNERS

City of West Palm Beach, Christie’s International Real Estate, Myers Auto Group, Resorts World, Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens, Art Circuits, Art Hive magazine, artprice.com, Around Town, Blouin Artinfo, Boca Raton magazine, Boca Raton Museum of Art, Bourlet ArtLogistics, CANVAS Outdoor Museum, Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation, Evo Italian, galerie magazine, Gancia,Hilton West Palm Beach, Jupiter magazine, Norton Museum of Art, Perry J. Cohen Foundation, Retrouvé, Russian Standard Vodka, The Art Newspaper, The Greene School, The Palm Beacher, Turon Travel, Venü Magazine and VOSS Water. @pjcfoundation #pjcfoundation 

ABOUT ART MIAMI LLC:

Art Miami LLC is a partnership consisting of art and media industry veterans Nick Korniloff, Mike Tansey and Brian Tyler. In addition to three fairs during Miami Art Week, Art Miami, CONTEXT Art Miami and Aqua Art Miami, the company annually produces the Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary in January; Art Wynwood during Presidents Day weekend in February; Art New York and CONTEXT New York at Pier 94 in New York in May; Art Southampton in July; and Art Silicon Valley/San Francisco in October. @art_miami #art_miami

@nuestromagazine #nuestromagazine