MIAMI (CBSMiami) — Working on her art, the artist who goes by the name Elidea feels the excitement. It has been a busy time for the Italian born artist who now calls Miami home.
Busy and excited because Art Basel Miami Beach and Miami Art Week, postponed due to the COVID pandemic in 2020, are set to open November 30.
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Local artists like Elidea were impacted by the 2020 Art Basel cancellation because they depend on the crowds that the show attracts to also visit their galleries and independent exhibitions. In addition, local galleries weren’t open due to COVID restrictions and sales for some artists came to a grinding halt.
Now there is hope.
“It was really hard for me and many other artists,” Elidea told CBS4’s Hank Tester. “I am so happy we are going to have it again.”
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Art Basel Miami Beach, prior to the pandemic cancellation, is said to have brought in 81,000 artists, agents, buyers, and arts aficionados and showcased over $2 billion dollars’ worth of art. Estimates claim the event brings over $500 million dollars into the local economy a portion of that flows toward the local artists and along the way who get exposure to a worldwide audience of collectors.
“This year I am so excited. I will have a solo exhibition,” said Elidea as she toured a space her exhibition will occupy beginning November 30.
She hopes, the location at the Glass Box at 79th Street and Biscayne, will draw a crowd to view her new project Elidea calls “Coalace.” Her work is a combination of photography, painting, and collage which is a celebration of the fragility, enhancement, and strength of a woman’s body.
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According to Elidea, the return of the Art Basel Miami Beach show has produced, “The happiness to restart, the connections with people, galleries, you have the feeling of being alive again.”
