Clockwork for Oracles (2008), Ugo Rondinone, De la Cruz Collection Contemporary Art Space

  Punkt, Absatz, Blümli (2011), Kai Althoff, Gladstone Galler

It’s been a very good year for the folks behind the prestigious Art Basel contemporary art shows. This summer record numbers flocked to the 42nd annual Art Basel in Switzerland. The company then purchased the Hong Kong International Art Fair—the leading show in Asia, giving them critical leverage on that key continent and its ever-expanding market. And this December 1 through 4, Art Basel Miami Beach (ABMB)—sister event to the Swiss behemoth—celebrates its 10th anniversary.

With a committed and growing contemporary art community here in Boston, more and more residents are joining the dealers, collectors, curators and art enthusiasts from all over the world who make the pilgrimage to the show. Local collector Mario Russo feels that the city of Miami itself helps to boost ABMB. “The town is well-suited for the event,” Russo offers. “With the convention center being conveniently located to the hotels and beach, it has proven to be a great venue. When people aren’t looking at art, they are still genuinely enjoying themselves.”

Fellow Boston collector Bridgitt Evans attends the show every year, usually joining the curated tour given by Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art. This annual expedition is incredibly comprehensive; participants make visits to the main fair, local museums, private collections and satellite fairs, “all while enjoying the warm Miami weather,” says Evans. “It is a great gathering of like-minded individuals in search of knowledge and understanding about today’s art.” Adds Russo, “Miami has fine-tuned the best galleries from around the world to exhibit the art, and the codirectors’ expertise has truly set this fair apart from others. Art fairs have become homogeneous, but ABMB has differentiated itself by location, time and environment.”

Indeed, after launching in 2002, ABMB quickly established itself as the most significant art show in the Americas. It has grown to include an international selection of more than 250 galleries, cutting-edge exhibitions and performances featuring music, film, architecture and design. The show has also helped transform Miami into a leading cultural capital, which boasts some of the world’s most ambitious private collections. This, coupled with the tropical climate and South Florida’s location at the social and economic nexus of North America and Latin America, makes the city a perfect backdrop for the show and helps draw an elite global audience.

So out of all of those offerings, what does Evans most look forward to during the show? “My favorite program is the Artist Conversation Series,” she says, referring to the platform for international art-world luminaries to exchange ideas and discuss issues of the moment. “If I had to pick one private collection to visit, I would choose the de la Cruz collection,” she continues. “I very much admire the selection of artists they have amassed.”