Photo by Andrei Z. Feature photo by ImageMD.

You know about Art Basel and SCOPE, but some of the world’s best art fairs—and best art—can be found off these well-worn paths:

10. FEMACO

The Feria Mexico Arte Contemporaneo just celebrated its fifth year. A walk through the 2008 event, held at the spacious Centro Banamex in Mexico City, confirmed that the Mexican art scene embraces a vision much larger than its admirable tradition of mural art, exemplified by Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and Jose Clemente Orozco, and its propensity for self-inspection, a la Frida Kahlo.

In fact, the FEMACO fair is notable precisely for the fact that its exhibitors include not only the most respected Mexican galleries and the artists they represent, but also a surprising number of European galleries, particularly from Scandinavian countries.

Photo by Nahkahousu

FEMACO is truly an international art fair, and a visit to this fair can easily be extended into a longer vacation that immerses you in Mexico City’s rich tradition of artistic activity, as well as its bustling contemporary scene. Mexico City is my part-time home, so if you do visit next year’s FEMACO, be sure to check out my Green Guide to Mexico City and the Top 5 Ways to Experience Mexico City Like a Local.

9. CIRCA Art Fair

CIRCA has been incorrectly dubbed as the Caribbean’s first international art fair, which overlooks the fact that Havana has long sponsored a biennial that is respected around the world, but no matter: CIRCA is a highly respectable art fair entering its third year, and each year has been better than the one before.

What makes the CIRCA Art Fair a must-visit on the international art fair circuit is the fact that both gallery owners and artists are accessible to new and established collectors alike. The fair gets bonus points because of its strategic location: a new convention center placed at the crossroads between historic Old San Juan and the popular nightlife and beach destination, Condado.

Having called San Juan home for two and a half years, I know the area well. Check out my Green Guide to Puerto Rico and Top 10 Experiences in Puerto Rico Guide.

Photo by Naligum.

8. ARTSingapore

While the Shanghai Art Fair might be bigger and more popular, ARTSingapore offers an interesting alternative in Asia for collectors and browsers.

First, the fair is held in October, whereas many other international fairs are held in the late spring or early summer, so ARTSingapore is a welcome addition to the fall fair schedule.

The other attractive aspect of the ARTSingapore fair is the diversity of its exhibitors. The 2008 exhibitor list includes at least 22 galleries from Korea, a country often excluded from other fairs, and additional participants from Israel, Australia, and Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam, countries which also tend to be overlooked on the international art fair circuit.

Want some local news from Singapore? Contact Matador member Nora Dunn, whose current trip has her transiting through Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.

Photo by Hiromy

7. Affordable Art Fair

If you’re not in the market to buy an artwork with an inflated price tag, this is the art fair for you.

Held each June in New York City, the premise of the Affordable Art Fair is simple: attract a new generation of art collectors by introducing art work that can be bought within the limitations of almost any budget.

Pieces range in price from $100 to $10,000, but don’t think that the low prices mean substandard art work. With more than 70 galleries representing artists from North and South America, Asia, and Europe, you’ll certainly find a selection of art that doesn’t just fit your budget, but also aligns with your tastes.

While you’re in town, take advantage of your visit and see how many of The 10 Best Experiences in New York City. Period you can check off my list.

6. Joburg Art Fair

2008 was the inaugural year of this latest art fair in an already crowded international art fair schedule, but is poised to quickly become the “IT” destination for purchasing contemporary African art.

The fair also promises to be interesting to watch for the political issues it raises regarding the way Africa is represented and represents itself before the world, as well as economic issues.

Get insiders’ tips from our resident South Africa expert, Ethekwinigirl.

Photo by Matthias Contze.

5. Art Dubai

It’s not hard to believe that Dubai is the latest go-to destination for art collectors; after all, this is the “city built for tourism” as a “playpen for the rich.”

But even if you can’t afford a single piece at the Art Dubai fair, you’ll surely enjoy taking in views of some of the most exciting and edgy art in the world, from the ironic “Desperately Seeking Paradise,” a curated exhibit of work from Pakistani artists, to the Bidoun Lounge, a site-specific installation serving both as bar and theatre for the exhibition of video works from Middle Eastern artists.

Learn more about Dubai before you go from Matador member, Abha, who lived in Dubai and is our resident expert on the city.

4. Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair

Another young art fair, the DAAF also promises to be a hot fair within the next few years.

Held in Darwin City, Australia, the DAAF is smaller than most international art fairs in terms of the number of exhibitors it includes in its schedule, but it’s also much more intentional about who it includes and why: only artists, galleries, and community based arts centers who can verify the provenance of the art work as justly acquired from indigenous and Aboriginal peoples.

Many artists are on hand to talk about their work. The diversity of the work itself is another reason to recommend this fair: in addition to paintings on canvas, collectors can acquire bark paintings, timber and metal sculptures, didjeridus, fiber arts, and jewelry.

Get some travel tips from Australia experts and be sure to check out the blog of Matador’s Australian expat, croftyangel, who reports about life down under.

3. The Moscow World Fine Art Fair

It’s likely you won’t be able to purchase a piece at this fair unless your pockets are deep, but that’s part of the fun of this particular art fair.

Attracting the growing nouveau riche class of art collectors from Russia and Asia, the Moscow FAF is as much about people-watching as it is about analyzing art.

Beyond the social value of this art fair, it’s one of the few fairs that have such a broad scope of artistic genres and works from various periods, ranging from antiquity to the present.

The location is interesting, too: poised between the Kremlin and Red Square, the Moscow FAF is pure fun. Matador member ZTP Teo has lived in Moscow; hit him up for some local recommendations.

Photo by 101 Tokyo Contemporary Art Fair.

2. 101 Tokyo

Fresh from its wildly successful first year, the 101 Tokyo Art Fair has already outgrown its host space and will be expanding in 2009, including 60 national and international galleries.

The list of first year exhibitors proves that the 101 Tokyo organizers are clearly able to collect an impressive range of galleries and genres under a single roof; the 2009 fair promises to be even more exciting.

Contact Matador’s Tokyo expert, Masaya, if you plan to visit this fair.

1. Toronto International Art Fair

TAF nabs the number one spot on our list because its organizers clearly concern themselves with much more than just selling art; they organize the fair to stimulate conversation about art by introducing a series of special projects intended to engage both serious collectors and first-time browsers alike.

The vast majority of exhibitors are Canadian galleries, suggesting that TIAF sticks with what it knows best: its own country’s art. Finally, like ARTSingapore, TIAF is held in October, a strategically smart move that minimizes competition.

Check out Matador member Travelflare’s guide, 5 Reasons to Visit Toronto.

Community Connection

Want to find local art fairs in the US? Check out ArtFairCalendar. For a list of other arts fairs around the world, check out Art Fairs International.

Photo by crashmattb

Let’s be clear: This is not a guerrilla guide to Nashville’s secret underground indie-rock haunts or its little-known hipster underbelly.

No. This is a guide to the Nashville you’ve always known existed, but probably never thought was worth visiting. It’s a Nashville full of corny cowboy merchandise, country music at full blast, and middle-aged RVers from Indiana. It’s also a helluva good time.

The Pitch

Once upon a time, country music was officially known as “hillbilly music” on the Billboard charts – and the reputation has stuck. Making an occasional exception for suitably counter-cultural types like the Dixie Chicks, hipster music critics won’t touch the stuff – and in the same way, too-cool travel types don’t often make the trek to country’s mecca, Nashville, aka Music City, USA.

But country has a rich heritage and a vital modern scene. It’s also quite possibly the greatest drinking music of all time. Frankly, Hank Williams Jr. is to beer-guzzling what Bob Marley is to ganja-smoking.

So come on down, hit Nashville’s finest honky-tonks, and throw back a Bud or three. Soon enough, you too might have some new friends in low places.

Where To Go

“They say the neon lights are bright on Broadway,” the old song goes. “They say there’s always magic in the air.”

Sure, the song’s about a musician trying to make it big in New York City, but it might just as well be about Nashville. Broadway forms the heart of the downtown scene. Live music spills out of several blocks worth of bars; the party gets going early and doesn’t stop till “early” comes around again.

Most places have no cover; the bands play for tips only, and no one pressures you to keep buying drinks non-stop – though if you’d like to, no one will stop you, either!

Be sure to hit Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, a historic dive that can claim legends like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Patsy Cline as past customers. Live bands play upstairs and down, from the early afternoon to the wee hours. The place draws a mixture of country music pilgrims, curious tourists, and die-hard locals, and can morph from a quiet sit-down scene to a foot-stomping dance floor almost without warning. It’s at 5th and Broadway.

Next on the strip is Robert’s Western World, a more laid-back place with an older crowd and talented cover bands playing traditional country: think more Hank Williams Sr. and less Lynyrd Skynyrd. It’s between 4th and 5th on Broadway.

Take a left on 2nd to hit the Wildhorse Saloon – one of the few places to charge cover. It’s got more of a nightclub vibe, with a young crowd, new country on the stereo system, and free line-dancing lessons on the floor.

Across the street from the Wildhorse, the Buck Wild Saloon is a karaoke joint, and a great place to end your night. Had enough liquid courage that you want to take your own shot at “Folsom Prison Blues”? This is the spot to do it. Be forewarned, though: On most nights there’s enough undiscovered talent rocking the mic in this place to fill an American Idol episode.

These are just a few of Broadway’s party possibilities – take a wander and see which honky-tonk is the happeningest on the night you’re in town!

Photo by mlsj_photos

Practicalities

Most of the live music venues serve food, too. There’s a Pita Pit on 2nd for a quick bite to go, and a BB King’s across the street for the chain-restaurant take on classic Southern dishes. Big River, at 1st and Broadway, is another decent dining option with great local microbrew.

As you might expect, downtown Nashville’s hotels are pricey, the usual bland big-name chains. They’re well-located if you can split with friends, though. The city’s official tourism site has info on special offers, and a booking system.

There are also a couple of hostels around the fringes of downtown – Music City Hostel is within striking distance of the Broadway bar strip.

You can take your pick of the cheap motels on any of the highways coming into town, but you’ll need a DD or a couple of steep cab rides. Demonbreun, one street over parallel to Broadway, has plenty of parking lots between 12th and 8th – you can pay around $10 and leave your car overnight, only a few blocks from the main strip. Another option is to check out Couchsurfing for well-located locals.

For the truly bad-ass budget party hound, Nashville’s Greyhound station is in the heart of the city, at Demonbreun and 8th. So if you’re really worried about blowing too much cash on cabs and hotels, you can roll into town in the early afternoon, party through the night, and stagger back to the bus station with the sunrise.

Photo by Kelly Rice

Tango: Sultry And Elegant

It is 4am and the dimly lit dance floor is packed with couples in close embrace, chests and cheeks connected, legs moving in unison to a 50-year old tango by Pugliese.

They dance together as if they had known each other for decades, but no one in this crowd was even alive yet when this song came out and most of the couples are dancing together for the first time.

The dancers dress as if going to a disco: jeans, sneakers and the occasional dress or skirt with leggings. But as the violin and bandoneon on the recorded orquestra belt out their notes, the women take long steps, revealing their shiny tango shoes— high-heeled and in varying shades of red, gold, green and blue— spinning into backwards “ochos” while caressing the floor as if it were the third partner; this is no disco, it is the real thing: tango dancing at La Viruta on a Friday night.

In the South American city that never sleeps, now is the best time to come and experience tango.

The Golden Age Of Tango

While the history of tango has been theorized and debated for years, the common belief is that it was born from a melting pot of different dances in the late 1800s, during the biggest immigration boom in Argentina’s history. It was a dance that started in the streets, evolved in the brothels, and eventually found its way to Europe, where it received a social stamp of approval, opening the eyes of the world to this dance that at one time was “forbidden” by the authorities.

Through its history tango has endured depression, dictatorships, and rock and roll and continues to flourish today, practiced internationally by people of all ages.

Now, more than ever, people from around the world are traveling to Argentina to practice tango in its birthplace. Some come for one or two weeks and others stay for years just to perfect the dance, sometimes with aspirations to become a professional dancer, but often just to improve their skills while meeting other tango dancers from around the world.

Many serious “Milongueros” adopt a nocturnal lifestyle and attend multiple venues, making the most of the night (and better part of the morning) hopping from one dance to another until 5 or 6am.

Tango Shows For You To See

Walking around Buenos Aires, you will literally stumble upon tango street performers dancing for pennies from Florida street to San Telmo to La Boca. But if the only tango you see is in the street, you will be missing out. Here are the best spots in Buenos Aires to see Argentina’s top dancers perform at tango stage shows.

Photo by Kelly Rice

Café Tortoni

You can go anywhere in town to see spectacular dancers strut their stuff on the stage – but most places will charge you a pretty penny (US $60-150). Instead of shelling out the big bucks, I highly recommend going to a tango show at Café Tortoni (US $10-20). Turning 150 years old this year, Café Tortoni is known to most people as a historical joint to visit and admire while drinking a cup of café cortado. What many people don’t know is that it offers nightly tango shows in the basement floor and in the back of the café.

Call ahead and make a reservation and try to see a show in the upstairs venue since it is smaller and more intimate:
tel: 4342-4328

Señor Tango

If you have money to spend, dish it out and go to Senor Tango, a Las Vegas-style tango show that includes a three-course dinner and an orchestra that will blow your mind (not to mention some of Buenos Aires’ best dancers and singers) for approx. US $75)

tel: 4303-0231

Milongas: An Alternative To Stage Shows

If you want to see locals and international dancers dancing socially (no rehearsed dancing, all created in the moment), you absolutely MUST experience an authentic Buenos Aires milonga. While many of the tango dancers that you will see at the Milongas have years of experience, many places provide classes and practice sessions at the beginning of the night, giving more novice dancers a chance to test their skills on the dancefloor.

Here are a week’s worth of milonga suggestions (although by no means an exhaustive list—all milongas are updated weekly here.

Kelly Rice’s Favorite Milongas In Buenos Aires

Monday: Confiteria Ideal—A traditional see-and-be-seen milonga. Great people-watching.
Tuesdays: Practica X—A very young, experimental milonga.
Wednesdays: Villa Malcom—An extremely international crowd, dancers come to hone their skills.
Thursdays: Niño Bien—A large well-known milonga with traditional-style tango dancers
Fridays: La Viruta— Experienced and novices alike come here to make history on the dance floor
Saturdays: La Glorietta—A free outdoor milonga where dancers shed their inhibitions (rain or
shine)
Sundays: Plaza Dorrego—After an afternoon visit to the San Telmo flea market, make your way to Plaza Dorrego to watch El Indio’s performance, then stay for the outdoor milonga

While there are classes before most milongas start, it helps to have a bit of the basics. And there is no excuse not to take a couple of tango classes in the mecca of tango—Buenos Aires, where a lesson costs next to nothing and the teachers are nothing short of amazing.

Tango Classes

The following are a couple of my favorite dance studios. They cater their classes towards students of multiple levels, from first timers to advanced couples looking for choreography. Most of the teachers speak a little English, although knowing Spanish is a definite plus.

Tango Brujo
(Esmeralda 754, phone: 4325-8264)
Young teachers with experimental styles break barriers and introduce students to “tango nuevo”

DNI Tango
Another tango nuevo style school that even offers Yoga classes specifically designed for tango dancers

All group classes range from $15-$20 pesos. Private classes are to be arranged with each individual teacher but can be pricey ($75-150 Argentine Pesos)

Lambada Zouk: The Coolest Dance You’ve Never Heard Of

In order to wrap your mind around Zouk, you just have to see it. Imagine one part dirty dancing, one part salsa and one part waltz. Intimate, rhythmic and elegant, it is a beautiful seductive dance that involves partners dancing, attached at the hip, and separating to twirl, all the while maintaining a one-two-three beat to various music from the Caribbean, Brazil, and even the Middle East.

Lambada Zouk is a version of the lambada developed in the late eighties. Originating in Brazil, it (like tango) caught fire in Europe and is fast becoming recognized worldwide. One of the best places to dance lambada zouk is Buenos Aires.

Although Zouk isn’t as famous as tango, right now in Buenos Aires there are places to see and practice this unique dance form four nights a week.

Maluco Beleza

Take a class at Maluco Beleza, one of BA’s most well-known bars that boasts a huge dance space downstairs and a second floor upstairs. Wednesday nights there is a dinner show with a variety of Brazilian dances. Fridays at 10:30pm and Sundays at 9:30pm for 15 pesos ($5 US) you can take a beginner zouk class, practice your moves as the bar begins to fill up, and then stay to watch as seasoned zouk dancers light up the dancefloor, twisting their bodies—the men hold the women like precious objects and the girls spin in tune to the music and their partners, while sensually flipping their long hair off their faces.
Sarmiento 1728

Balaio

Offering a wide variety of Brazilian dance classes including different kind of Samba, Axé, and capoeira, Balaio also gives zouk classes for all levels. Take their beginners class on Fridays at 8pm with Gabriela and she will patiently guide you through basics of lambada zouk.
Mansilla 2787 top floor
tel: +54 (11) 4963-6066

Zouk group classes are 15-20 pesos. Private classes are 50.

For info on teachers, places to dance zouk and classes, refer to this website: www.zoukba.com

Editor’s Note: Kelly Rice has written some freaking awesome blogs about her experiences studying Tango and Zouk in Buenos Aires. Here are some of my favorites:

Check out Kelly’s other writing and get in touch with her and thousands of other passionate travelers by visiting her Matador profile.