Here’s some good news for the local arts scene: Miami-Dade County’s longest-running juried art fair won’t, in fact, let the COVID-19 crisis kill it this year. Instead, the Beaux Arts Festival, an entirely volunteer-driven, women-run event that has warmed up winter in Coral Gables since 1952, returns in virtual fashion this weekend for its 70th edition, which starts tomorrow, January 16.
In what we might kindly refer to as the Before Times, Beaux Arts made for a staple weekend out for families and aspiring art collectors. Even as flashier events have come along (and, in some cases, gone), Beaux Arts has continued to stand out by reminding festival-goers that artists are people and artworks don t have to be a means to shift capital around; they re meant to be appreciated and enjoyed.