When Art Basel announced it would create its first venue in the United States in Miami in 2001, no one could have imagined the excitement that drove the entire art community to collaborate to impress its international visitors, nor could they imagine the devastating effects of 9/11 that would cause the cancellation of the show. Miami persevered and 2001 became the dress rehearsal for events of 2002 and 2003. This year Art Basel 2003 inspired the same extraordinary array of community events-hundreds of artists, exhibitions, street fairs, openings, and parties, independent shows, new venues, private collections, and renewed energy. Miami went into over-drive again, and Art Basel was the catalyst, the icing on the cake. Switzerland may be the place to be, but the sense of enthusiasm that grips Miami in December is unrivalled. Miami Beach was the center of the action, and the Design District, museums, collectors, and art and artists from every direction joined in the fun and welcomed the opportunity to see and be seen. The event was also appropriately celebrated with a circus.

Artist George S?nchez-Calder?n's extraordinary circus was the centerpiece of the midtown Miami Midway installation, and featured a unique homage to South Florida's artistic and philanthropic community and coincided with the December 4th birthday of Santa Barbara (Chango). Its fifty-foot Ferris wheel could be seen for miles and musicians, artists, and poets performed, and fireworks took place beneath giant banners named for local collectors and institutions. It was centrally located in the Design District, whose famous street party, Art Loves Design," was full of beautiful people and design shops and galleries, and a short walk or ride to the burgeoning Wynwood area of alternative spaces and new galleries that are blossoming around the construction site of the Performing Arts Center. All over Miami private collections were opened to the public. The Wynwood/Design District's Rubell Collection showcased a new exhibition entitled "Not Afraid" that was organized by Mark Coetzee, and the Margulies Collection featured an exhibition of videos, photographs, sculptures, and installations at the new Debra and Dennis Scholl exhibition space at World Class Boxing. Competing for the attention of the many visitors shuttling from place to place were galleries such as Locust Projects, Vibe, Placemaker, Marina Kessler, and Rocket Projects, among others.

Glexis Novoa's new work at The Bernice Steinbaum Gallery featured a group of drawings in graphite on marble; Daniel Azoulay Gallery's "Tunnel Vision: A Contemporary Odyssey" included photographers such as Alessandra Sanguinetti, David Levinthal, V?ctor V?zquez, Alfredo de Stefano, Amalia Caputo, Miltos Manetas, Maritza Molina, Ashley Saks, and Daniel Azoulay, a strong group whose work is characterized by subjectivity and a new way of perceiving reality. Wonderful paintings by Daniel Scheimberg were on view in the exhibition "De-focusing" at Kevin Bruk Space; Busface" at Casas Riegner, showcased work by the group Ejecutivo Colectivo (the popular name given to public transportation buses in Colombia) that includes Mar?a Fernanda Cardoso, Rodrigo Facundo, and Ross Rudesch Harley. This gallery also showed the work of Arnaldo Morales in its new Project Room, The Fixer.

The interesting commercial spaces in the Design District, many generously provided by DACRA (real estate developers) are coveted for months. The exhibitions range from showcasing local and emerging artists to those more carefully planned, of more established professionals. The centerpiece was the Moore Building with two projects curated by Silvia Karman Cubi??: Jim Lambie's installation, Paradise Garage, and videos by Yang Fudong. Also worth mention is Juan Carlos Arcila, an interior designer whose influence has encouraged the exhibition of historical and contemporary photography in the Design District scene. He curated an important exhibition of nudes at the Moore Building, featuring the work of personalities such as fashion and entertainment photographer Helmut Newton who passed away this year on January 23. The Buena Vista Building featured a number of projects including one of the most impressive exhibitions, "Art-gentina," of ten young artists who each question universal issues through a variety of media. The Buick Building showcased an exhibition from the Ivelin and Craig Robins Collection, works by Daniela Wicki, sponsored by the Consul General of Switzerland; and one of Miami's newest Art in Public Places projects, a huge drawing by Jos? Bedia on the building's fa?ade. The World Arts Building featured "Juice/Champola: Not a Thematic Exhibition," a show that included many local artists curated by Charo Oquet and Angela Valella. To add to the thriving scene numerous new galleries opened their doors in the district, including Chelsea Gallery, Jeffrey Deitch/Deitch Projects, and Dot 51. The mix of interior designers and works suitable for the decorative and cutting edge art from all over the world is particularly invigorating and marks Wynwood as the up and coming place for Miami art and artists.

In Coral Gables, the new MAC (Miami Art Central), a space that promises great things in the future, opened its doors with a provocative show organized by Manuel E. Gonz?lez, "Ten Floridians." The exhibition featured the work of ten artists, with nine curators in charge of each of the projects.

The exhibition was highlighted by powerful works with dramatic colors by Jos? Bedia and curated by Victor Zamudio Taylor, and new work by Luis Gispert from his "Urban Myth" series, curated by Rina Carvajal. Also noteworthy were Adler Guerrier's Green is the color of my quotidian space, but I hear brown photographs, curated by Thelma Golden, and Glexis Novoa's site-specific drawing, Europa, coordinated by the curator Marcelo E. Pacheco.

The support for young artists is a hallmark of Basel and continued in the Convention Center where the Art Nova and Art Statements sections were devoted to the most contemporary art. It was complemented by Art Video Lounge at the Miami Beach Public Library, organized by the British artist Chrissie, who also managed the program of videos and films for the fair.

SCOPE and NADA, satellite exhibits in local hotels, show-cased new work by emerging artists and art collectives for reasonable fees and accessible prices. Next door at the newly renovated Bass Museum, "Dispersion: A Decade of Art from Spain" and Frida Kahlo portraits attracted a diverse audience. The Wolfsonian-FIU hosted a performance by Paul Miller (a/k/a DJ Spooky) that evoked its collection of propaganda art, and the exhibition "Weapons of Mass Dissemination." All the art and cultural institutions in the Miami area featured extraordinary exhibitions and hosted the Art Basel visitors throughout the week. There was art, music, parties, and more art, for a fun and successful happening.