Pop Icons The B-52s & Ape Artists Debut Their Joint Collection of Paintings During Art Basel Miami
The iconic pop phenomena, The B-52s, will be revealing an additional layer of hidden talents in an interspecies art project produced with a new and extended family of artistic friends for this year’s Miami Art Week taking place across the Magic City in December.
New abstract exhibition by the legendary pop group and 16 artistic apes will debut during Miami Art Week, Dec. 6—10, and benefit Save The Chimps sanctuary in Fort Pierce, FL.
The iconic pop phenomena, The B-52s, will be revealing an additional layer of hidden talents in an interspecies art project produced with a new and extended family of artistic friends for this year’s Miami Art Week taking place across the Magic City in December.
New abstract exhibition by the legendary pop group and 16 artistic apes will debut during Miami Art Week, Dec. 6—10, and benefit Save The Chimps sanctuary in Fort Pierce, FL.
The band has joined forces with the non-profit organization “Save The Chimps” to exhibit a collaborative art collection of paintings, co-produced by 16 of its most artistic primates from the Florida-based chimpanzee sanctuary, at this year’s Spectrum Miami art fair, taking place December 6—10 at the Mana Wynwood Convention Center. The unique acrylic-on-canvas exhibition by The B-52s and their ape collaborators will form a debut collection entitled “Wild Planet,” named after the band’s second album, and comprise of 52 paintings in various sizes, available for sale and ranging between $1000 and $5000 in price. Nearly half the collection has already been purchased by fans prior to the exhibit’s opening night on December 6.
Band members Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson collaborated with chimp artists from the 150-acre refuge to create a collection of paintings based on the vivid colors of the band’s most popular album covers. Kate and her fellow band members paint the base canvases in various background colors and select the color combinations for the chimps to finish each piece of art in their own style of brushstroke during their leisure time.
Each piece in the new collection of works has been named after a B-52s song or lyric and is signed by the band for the five-day Spectrum Miami exhibit taking place at the Mana Wynwood Convention Center in Miami’s trendy Wynwood neighborhood. Private collectors and known supporters of Save The Chimps include edgy rock singer, Pink, together with Sir Paul McCartney and Pamela Anderson.
A limited-edition poster from the exhibit’s collection will also be available to purchase for $50 during the fair, and proceeds from the sales of all the artwork will benefit Save the Chimps, towards life-long care for chimpanzees rescued from research laboratories, the pet trade and entertainment industry at one of the largest chimpanzee sanctuaries in the world located in Fort Pierce, Florida.
The B-52s have been performing packed-out shows for a debut 2023 residency at The Venetian in Las Vegas, that will continue into 2024 with additional dates due to the concerts proving so wildly popular with their decades-long generations of fans from the eighties, nineties and today.
“I’m so glad that I visited Save the Chimps, I was blown away by all the social and artistic activities they offer to the residents,” says Kate Pierson, who toured the sanctuary last summer. “And boy can some of those chimps paint! I am honored to collaborate with the artists among them.”
“We were introduced to Save The Chimps last year and unbeknown to us, we discovered a raw talent that now has a growing fan base of serious collectors,” says Linda Mariano, Marketing Managing Director for Redwood Art Group and Spectrum Miami. “We expect the debut collection at this year’s fair to draw an excellent attendance, judging by the pre-sales that continue to grow.”
“We anticipate the exhibit at this year’s Spectrum Miami to be a huge success,” adds Save the Chips events director, Dan Mathews. “As our closest relatives in the animal world, chimps and human share many traits, including creative impulses.”
Now in its 13th year, Spectrum Miami, a curated contemporary art fair held within 150,000 square feet of indoor exhibition space at Mana Wynwood Convention Center, takes place annually in December as part of the popular Miami Art Week. Spectrum Miami is where contemporary meets extraordinary, featuring the works of more than 200 exhibiting galleries and artists from the Florida region and around the globe. Now in its 18th year, Red Dot Miami, a curated gallery-only contemporary art fair also located in Mana Wynwood, takes place annually in December as the sister show to Spectrum Miami during Miami Art Week.
Red Dot Miami features up to 65 modern and contemporary galleries representing over 500 leading contemporary artists from primary and secondary markets throughout the world. Red Dot Miami has enriched the city’s arts scene beyond measure since its inception in 2006, becoming one of the leading satellite shows during Miami Art Week.
The only two fairs under one roof take place December 6—10, 2023, at Mana Wynwood Convention Center, 2217 NW 5th Ave. (at NW 22nd Street) in Miami, and will collectively showcase over 1000 artists among more than 40,000 international visitors and high-net-worth collectors. The Opening Night Preview for Spectrum Miami and Red Dot Miami will take place from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 6th, featuring Pommery Champagne, other libations, hors d’oeuvres and musical entertainment.
Tickets for the Opening Night Preview are priced at $85 per person. A General Admission 1-day Pass for Spectrum Miami and Red Dot Miami is $50 and includes admission to the Opening Night Preview when purchased online in advance.
For more information on Save The Chimps, visit www.savethechimps.org and to purchase tickets and for more information on Spectrum Miami, visit redwoodartgroup.com/spectrum-miami/
For more information about Spectrum Miami, visit redwoodartgroup.com/spectrum-miami/.