3 to see at Art Basel Miami

Every fall, the frenzy that accompanies Art Basel Miami Beach builds as the event approaches. The annual fair — loosely referred to by locals as “the madness”— lasts four days in the first week of December. More than 50,000 visitors attend every year, with participation from galleries from North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa. The key for visitors is to choose which of the many components of Basel to explore. Here are three you shouldn’t skip.

Pulse Miami (pulse-art.com)

Pulse Miami focuses on large contemporary art installations as well as performance art and concepts you may never before have thought of as falling under the category of “art,” from mobile galleries fashioned inside of shipping crates to feather sculptures to documentaries such as 2011’s “At Least You Know You Exist,” which chronicled the paradox of a drag queen and his/her two different lives. There will also be a Pulse Play, a series of curated video and tech installations that address advancements in everything from films to video games.

» Hours: Thursday, Dec. 5, 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, Dec. 6, and Saturday, Dec. 7, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 8, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

» Tickets: $20; students and seniors, $15

» Where: Ice Palace,
1400 N. Miami Ave., Miami

Design Miami/ (designmiami.com)

A major part of Basel — not just in Miami but also the Basel fair in Switzerland every summer — is the Design Miami/ global symposium of furnishings and art that brings together a host of top designers, curators, collectors and critics from around the world to show and sell their limited-edition creations. Every year, an architectural firm is called on to design an entry pavilion for the tent. This year, the firm is Formlessfinder, which is planning to build an aluminum-truss roof that appears to be sitting on a 70-foot-wide pile of sand.

» What you’ll see: Museum-quality exhibits of 20th- and 21st-century furniture, lighting and other objets d’art

» What you’ll hear: Cultural programming, panels and lectures with experts in design, architecture, art and fashion, plus commissions from rising designers and architects

» Hours: Wednesday, Dec. 4, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Thursday, Dec. 5, through Saturday, Dec. 7, noon to 8 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 8, noon to 6 p.m.

» Tickets: General admission, $25; students and seniors, $15

» Where: Miami Beach Convention Center, P-Lot

Elle Décor Modern Life Concept House (elledecor.com)

For the second time, Elle Décor magazine has put together a group of the crème de la crème of interior designers along with select up-and-comers in the field of design in a 10,300-sq.-ft. mansion on Miami Beach’s exclusive Sunset Island II. The parameters given to the designers this year: “Create a space for young and successful entrepreneurs who have a passion for art and design,” says Miami-based Swedish designer Sofia Joelsson of SoJo Design. The home is open for touring not just during Basel but also the weekend after. If you like what you see and you happen to be in the market for such a place, it’ll cost you a cool $16.5 million. All proceeds from ticket sales for the tours will go to the University of Miami’s Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center.

» Hours: Wednesday, Dec. 4, through Sunday, Dec. 8, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 14, and Sunday, Dec. 15, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

» Tickets: $35

» Where: 1435 W. 27th St., Sunset Island II, Miami Beach