Not everyone is happy about Art Basel and all the subsequent events that accompany the celebrated art fair every year, the first week of December. For some people in the local art world, in fact, the fair has become like a dark cloud that yearly descends upon the city.

The event has prompted local noted art-blog, Artlurker, to take a “public holiday from art.” Other local artists have taken the more drastic measure of boycotting the fair and its surrounding festivities, some even planning to leave town for the next week or so until the hysteria dies down.

Basically there’s the unshakable fact that art fairs are more about commerce than they are about culture. A fair is great place for collectors to purchase work, but there’s not really an ideal place to appreciate work on its natural an intended level. But appreciating art seems to take a backseat anyway to crass consumerism and rampant partying, as even Jeff Koons was recently quoted saying “Miami is really just more about a party scene.” While the international art world uses Miami as its personal playground, many locals feel snubbed and ignored. Meanwhile, you can expect a lot of fly-by-night art events and galleries that won’t (or in some cases can’t) stay open longer than a month foisting bad art upon the public, the modern day equivalent of snake oil salesmen.

None of this is to say that Basel isn’t a game-changing event that has probably affected culture positively in Miami in many ways. But it’s important to consider the fair’s negative implications as well.