MIAMI, FLA.- The first major event to kick off Miami Art Week, Art Miami maintains its prestigious reputation as the leading international contemporary and modern fair each December. Along with its sister event, CONTEXT Art Miami, the fairs report record-breaking sales and VIP attendance throughout the week, and an overwhelming representation of significant works sold to both established and new private and corporate collectors, notable museum professionals, cultural foundation executives, dealers, art advisors and consultants.

A total of 79,000 people attended Art Miami and CONTEXT Art Miami throughout the week, and nearly 14,500 VIPs attended to kick off the fairs at the VIP Preview, which was presented by Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, sponsored by Christie's International Real Estate and benefited the Pérez Art Museum Miami.

"This year was a level above any in our 26 years of Art Miami," said Nick Korniloff, Fair Director and Partner of Art Miami LLC. "We saw the highest level of quality art work ever on exhibit for acquisition at Art Miami." There was a prevalence of works by artists such as Frank Stella, Joan Miró, Alexander Calder and Roy Lichtenstein.

The true success of the week was characterized by the massive sales reported by the galleries. Further establishing Art Miami as the city's integral anchor fair, Cernuda Arte gallery had some of the most significant sales for Latin American, and specifically Cuban, artists. There were two pieces by artists Mario Carreño and Amelia Peláez purchased at Cernuda Arte gallery, representing some of the most important modern work in private hands for Cuban art and totaling over $3.5 million.

"Once again Art Miami is fantastic," said Ramon Cernuda, Gallery Director of Cernuda Arte. "We have sold over $6 million in art in five days, and we have met a very interesting group of new clients. It is our 13th edition this year."

As well as presenting an Ai Weiwei piece, Haines Gallery sold Iranian artist Monir Farmanfarmaian's The First Family, which is worth over $300,000; Farmanfarmaian recently was the subject of a career showcase at the Guggenheim. Waterhouse & Dodd placed three pieces from artists Sam Francis, Jean-François Rauzier and Theodoros Stamos, amounting to over $450,000 in sales. Bernarducci Meisel Gallery practically sold out, with total sales reaching nearly half a million dollars. With clients from Korea, Germany and South America, Galerie von Vertes had several major purchases, including a $1.5 million Joan Miró piece, as well as a $400,000 work from Damien Hirst.

An undisclosed collector acquired another Sam Francis work at Gallery Delaive's booth for $175,000. Famed artist Barbara Kruger's $450,000 photoengraving, Untitled (Who is beyond the law?), was sold by Scott White Contemporary Art, which also saw an acquisition of a Joan Mitchell painting worth over $100,000. Berry Campbell had a successful week, selling three pieces worth over $100,000: an abstract expressionist painting by Alfonso Ossorio; a rare, early color field masterpiece by Walter Darby Bannard; and an impressive Raymond Hendler painting. Dranoff Fine Art sold John Chamberlain's Stuffed Tonsure at $35,000 to a client who had also purchased from the gallery last year at Art Miami. Mark Borghi Fine Art and KM Fine Arts collectively sold four pieces by artist Bernie Taupin (lifetime visual artist and lyricist), including When Woody Guthrie Left Oklahoma for $22,000 and BANG for $23,500. Gallery 55Bellechasse sold 10 pieces by Pascal Vochelet to one person at $3,200 each. James Barron Art closed the week with nearly $1 million in sales. Some of the works purchased included five Beverly Pepper sculptures (one for $250,000 and the rest for $75,000 each); a Ken Price sculpture worth $95,000; and an important Jules Olitski painting for $125,000. Makana, a beautiful horse sculpture created by Deborah Butterfield and priced at $150,000, was acquired from Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, while Chowaiki & Co placed a Keith Haring sculpture worth over $375,000. Hexton | modern and contemporary experienced significant sales throughout the week, including purchases of a large Eric Fischl glass sculpture for $225,000, a Fischl collage for $60,000, a Fischl Marquette glass for $75,000 and six Eric Holubow photographs averaging $10,000 each.

At CONTEXT Art Miami, the 95 participating galleries saw great success. Dubner Moderne had 33 works acquired from its solo exhibition of Viviane Rombaldi Seppey; the pieces ranged from $1,000 to $38,000. Shine Artists London sold nine pieces by artist Jeff Robb. Sim Smith placed the gallery's largest piece by artist Bradley Wood to an undisclosed buyer, and Lyle O. Reitzel sold Edouard Duval-Carrie's Ogou And His Internal Beast for $30,000. Blank Space Art's sales highlights include four works from Seung Mo Park, prices ranging from $14,000 to $52,000; four works from Arno Elias, prices ranging from $16,000 to $25,000; and 10 edition pieces sold of Byung Jin Kim's LOVE Heart.

"CONTEXT Art Miami had a substantial year in its fourth edition," said Julian Navarro, Director of CONTEXT Art Miami. "Many galleries reported robust sales and enthusiastic follow-up from collectors, curators, and critics. The premiere of our solo exhibition area and the 12-curated sound stations had a positive reaction from the public. This year, CONTEXT Art Miami made a distinctive dialogue between Art from Berlin and Korea, making the fair a destination of international acclaim.

For a cumulative $60,000, Liquid Art System White Room saw one buyer purchase three pieces-two works by Marco Grassi called Gold Experience and one work by Seo Young Deok titled Nirvana. Bau-Xi Gallery from Toronto sold out of the seven pieces they brought from emerging abstract painter Janna Watson. The sales from Watson alone amounted to over $30,000, and the gallery reported total sales of $62,000. Kavachnina Contemporary Gallery had very impressive results this year, walking away with new contacts for important collectors and art institutions. They placed two paintings by Salustiano for $290,000 and closed the fair with total sales upward of $400,000. Alida Anderson Art Projects sold about 20 drawings by F. Lennox Campello with embedded video, Super Girl Flying Naked.

"For the third year in a row, CONTEXT Art Miami has completely exceeded our expectations and our sales projections," said Lenny Campello of Alida Anderson Art Projects. "We'll definitely be back next year."

La Cometa also experienced huge success during the week with over $60,000 in sales, and also reported multiple new leads that could tack on an additional $40,000 in sales. New York-based 532 Gallery placed ISIS Bullet Holes by Piers Secunda, which will be exhibited next at "Missing: Rebuilding the Past" at Anya and Andrew Shiva Gallery, the primary fine art gallery at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, a senior college of the City University of New York.

"We have been participating in CONTEXT Art Miami for several years now, and our experience and sales have consistently improved with every single event," said Thomas Jaeckel of 532 Gallery. "Importantly, we are in the midst of high-quality programs, as also strongly acknowledged by our collectors who make a point of coming back."

PSH Projects presented one of CONTEXT Art Miami's solo projects, which was received very positively by collectors. "Despite all of the unseasonal rain this year, we had great sales and an even better turnout," said Partner and Director of PSH Projects, Christopher Paschall. "We had a one-man show and were really smart about the pieces we brought. Art is supposed to be original, not copied, and the quality of work that Miguel Prypchan produces is always a step above what's expected."

Among the gallerists reporting significant sales at Art Miami and CONTEXT Art Miami were Espace Meyer Zafra, Dranoff Fine Art, Lyle O. Reitzel, Liquid Art System White Room, Hackelbury Fine Art, Heller Gallery, Mark Borghi Fine Art, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Amstel Gallery, Kuckei + Kuckei, Pan American Art Projects, 55Bellechasse, Sim Smith Gallery, Michael Schultz Gallery, Galerie Forsblom, Adah Rose Gallery, Rosenbaum Contemporary, The Cynthia Corbett Gallery, Ethan Cohen New York, Jonathan LeVine Gallery, Galeria Enrique Guerrero, Galeria Juan Silió, 532 Thomas Jaeckel Gallery, Coates & Scarry Gallery, Knight Webb Gallery, Heitsch Gallery, Fabien Castanier Gallery, Set Espai D'Art, JanKossen Gallery, Kavachnina Contemporary, Lawrence Cantor Fine Art and Klein Sun Gallery.

This year's fairs were visited by prominent attendees, including actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who was the first to see both fairs in a private tour prior to the opening, and actor/artist Adrien Brody attended the closing on Sunday. Many other notable celebrities, collectors and art advisors filled in the week, including Elle Macpherson; Troy Garity (Jane Fonda's son); Jorge and Darlene Pérez; Canadian business mogul and "Shark Tank" investor Kevin O'Leary and his wife Linda; basketball star Alonzo Mourning; fashion magnate Tommy Hilfiger; Stephen and Kara Ross; George Collins (former CEO of T. Rowe Price); Edgardo Defortuna; TV producer Larry W. Jones; Jessica Goldman Srebnick and Scott Srebnick; Richard Perlman and Ellen Hanson; Chris and Jane LaGuardia; Sandy Gross; Hilary and Wilbur Ross; owner of Philadelphia Eagles, Jeffrey Lurie; President & CEO of Miami Dolphins Tom Garfinkel; Prime Minister of Israel Ehud Barak and wife Nili Priel; U.S. Ambassador Earle Mack; Ahmet Kobasiuk (Borusan Contemporary, Istanbul); Harry Cooper (curator and head of modern art at the National Gallery of Art); The Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery assistant curator of prints and drawings Asma Naeem; Don Bacigalupi, Founding President for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art (Chicago) and Former President and member of the board of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art; collectors Lizbeth and George Krupp (Boston); David Mirvish (Toronto); Howard and Mary Frank (Miami and Southampton); Maxine and Stuart Frankel (Michigan); Paul and Paula Wittmann (Palm Beach); Andrew and Stacey Kroll; collectors Robert and Dede Moss; basketball player David Lee; philanthropists Jeff and Yolanda Berkowitz; artist Carole Feuerman; Derek Harte; entrepreneur and philanthropist Mark Ein; andart advisor Kim Heirston. Artists present included Bernie Taupin and wife his Heather; Apex; Alexis Diaz; Gino Miles; Gary Lang and Ruth Pastine; John Henry; Doug Argue; Dana Louise Kirkpatrick; and Robert Sagerman. Notable guests at the VIP Preview included board members, artists, major collectors, business leaders, curators and directors such as: Merrill Lynch Wealth Management's Market Executive Josh Moody and Managing Director Andres de Corral; Christie's International Real Estate's CEO Dan Conn, Senior Vice President Rick Moeser, and Founding Member and Advisory Board member Jeff Hyland; Debi and Jeffrey Wechsler; Martin and Audrey Gruss; Bruce Makowsky; Marvin Ross Friedman and Adrienne Bon Haes; Ed Shumsky and Sue Kronick; Michel Witmer; art advisor Kim Heirston; Pérez Art Museum Miami's new Director Franklin Sirmans and Deputy Director for External Affairs Leann Standish; Bechtler Museum's (Charlotte, NC) Andreas Bechtler; Steve Schwarzman; Jerry Powers; Jane Wooldridge and Stetson Glines; developer Tony Cho; and stylist Elysze Held, along with many museum donors and young contemporaries from Pérez Art Museum Miami, Guggenheim Museum of Art, CORE Club, Cooper Hewitt Design, Bass Museum of Art; Frost Art Museum, ICA Miami, St. Louis Art Museum and Wolfsonian, among many others.