Although this landlocked capital city is often ignored by travelers, not a single Mexican beach town can hold a candle to the art scene found in the DF (as it’s known to Mexicans, which stands for Distrito Federal). April’s Zona Maco fair provides many opportunities for collectors, who can also discover Mexico City’s museums, galleries and architectural gems — not to mention its stylish restaurants and hotels.

Go:

ZONA MACO
WHAT: Mexico City’s only contemporary art fair, featuring 90 galleries from 18 countries.
WHEN: April 22-26
WHERE: The Centro Banamex
HIGHLIGHTS: Returning to the fair this year is Copenhagen’s Nils Staerk, whose booth features work not only by up-and-coming Danish artists but also sculpture by Brit Richard Hughes and Switzerland’s Olaf Breuning. • Josée Bienvenu, a New York gallerist who has been exhibiting at the fair since its debut, in 2004, will offer politically charged photo-based works from the Colombian artist Juan Manuel Echavarría and vintage photographs from Mexico City’s own Enrique Metinides. Bienvenu praises Zona Maco for attracting blue-chip collectors like Patty Cisneros and Diane and Bruce Halle. "It’s very international," she says. "You meet collectors there that you will see again at Art Basel." • The chic Hotel Habita will once again provide the fair’s concessions, giving fairgoers the option to sip champagne on an open-air terrace or munch brie-and-truffle-oil sandwiches at the indoor restaurant.

GALLERY-HOPPING
WHAT: Check out what the best galleries in Mexico City have to offer.
WHERE: Roma and Chapultepec districts
HIGHLIGHTS: Although you can visit their booths at Zona Maco, some of the city’s most prestigious dealers will also be holding exhibitions to coincide with the fair.
Don’t miss the show of new paintings by Gabriel Orozco at Kurimanzutto, which the fashion designer and entrepreneur Victor Alfaro calls "the leading gallery in Mexico." (Gob. Rafael Rebollar 94; 52-55/5511-1179). • Galería OMR (Plaza Río de Janeiro 54; 52-55/5256-2408) unveils two shows on April 21 — an installation by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, a Mexican artist who uses light, sound and audience participation; and work by Melanie Smith, a British-born multimedia artist. • Check out Galería López Quiroga (Aristóteles 169 Esq. Horacio/ 52-55/5280-1710), which is an excellent source for photography by Graciela Iturbide, Manuel Álvarez Bravo and others.

Stay:

LAS ALCOBAS HOTEL
This exciting addition to the high-end hotels of the tony Polanco district opened its doors in March. It offers 36 rooms created by acclaimed hospitality designers Yabu Pushelberg, the firm behind the ethereal interiors of the W Hotel in New York’s Times Square.
Avenida Presidente Masaryk 390
52-55/3300-3900
Rates: $415-$2,500
lasalcobas.com

CONDESA DF
The fashion and art crowds flock to Condesa DF, a hip, design-conscious hotel named after its bohemian district. "Condesa is the coolest neighborhood," says Bienvenu. "It’s like SoHo or the Lower East Side." Enjoy the world-class breakfast (especially the homemade granola) in an open-air courtyard, and don’t forget to browse in the Culture Room, where the obscure art books make for great late-night conversation starters.
Avenida Veracruz N. 102
52-55/5241-2600
Rates: $205-$695
condesadf.com

CAMINO REAL
This 712-room hotel sets the standard for large-scale lodging thanks to its flashy, ’70s-era design and a few touches from Mexico’s artistic elite. "There is a spectacular Rufino Tamayo mural and a metal gate that is by Mathias Goeritz," says loyal guest Julián Zugazagoitia, the director of New York’s El Museo del Barrio. Even if you don’t book a room, get a drink at the Blue Lounge, whose Plexiglas floor is suspended above a stream of water.
Mariano Escobedo 700
52-55/63-8888
Rates: $165-$280
caminoreal.com/mexico

HOTEL HABITA
Lounge in an Eames chair or on a B&B Italian sofa at this boutique hotel, which is furnished with postwar design from Scandinavia, the Mediterranean and the U.S. For further relaxation, take a dip in the rooftop pool or make a spa appointment.
Avenida Presidente Masaryk 201
52-55/5282-3100
Rates: $215-425
hotelhabita.com

Eat:

IZOTE
Izote is named after the white flower that blossoms from the yucca plant — one of the many indigenous ingredients that acclaimed chef and cookbook author Patricia Quintana employs in her high-end Mexican fare. "I like it because there is no attitude — just great food," says MFA Houston curator Gilbert Vicario.
Avenida Presidente Masaryk 513
52-55/5280-1671

FONDA EL REFUGIO
For fresh guacamole served with a little bit of stardust on the side, try this traditional Mexican restaurant. Housed in a white stucco mansion, this spot "was popular with the actors of the golden age of Mexican cinema," says photographer Miguel Flores-Vianna. Today members of the new generation, including Salma Hayek, are making reservations.
Liverpool 166
52-55/5525-8128
fondaelrefugio.com.mx

SAN ANGEL INN
After a visit to the Anahuacalli Museum (see below), Julián Zugazagoitia recommends supping at this tranquil former monastery. Sample local favorites like chicken with mole or international dishes like Shrimp Rockefeller. Diego Rivera 50 y Altavista 52-55/5616-1402
sanangelinn.com

CONTRAMAR
"You always run into four or five people from the art world," says Vicario, who raves about the tuna sashimi tostada at this lunch-only seafood spot. "Go between two and five — that’s the Mexican lunch hour," advises Museo Tamayo director Tobias Ostrander.
200 Calle Durango
52-55/5514-3169
contramar.com.mx

See:

THE KAHLO-RIVERA TRAIL
The two most obvious stops are the blue house where Frida Kahlo was born, known as Casa Azul (Londres 247; 52-55/545-999), and the pair of modernist buildings, called the Diego Rivera Studio Museum, where the famed artist duo once lived and worked (2 Calle Diego Rivera; 52-55/5616-0996). Don’t forget the Anahuacalli Museum, which houses Rivera’s collection of pre-Hispanic sculpture (Calle Museo 150; 52-55/5617-3797). And Vicario highly recommends the house of Dolores Olmedo Patiño, Diego’s longtime lover, which has an impressive cache of Kahlo and Rivera works. Avenida Mexico 5843; 52-55/5555-1221.

ANTIGUO COLEGIO DE SAN ILDEFONSO
After a stroll through the colonial-era Alameda Park — where you might run into the artist Francis Alÿs, who lives nearby — drop into the small art museum housed in an 18th-century Jesuit college in the city’s historic center. Famous for its José Clemente Orozco murals, the museum is hosting an incongruous exhibition through June 17: Mexico’s first solo show of David LaChapelle’s glossy photography.
Justo Sierra 16
52-55/5702-6378
sanildefonso.org.mx

MUSEO TAMAYO
Although founded by Tamayo, the museum is devoted not to his splashy modern canvases but to the best of international contemporary art. On view this month is a retrospective of Liliana Porter, the Argentinean artist whose dynamic, multimedia work has lately been a hit at art fairs.
Chapultepec Park
52-55/5286-6519
museotamayo.org

CASA BARRAGAN
Make reservations in advance to visit the former residence of the Pritzker Prize-winning architect Luis Barragán. This UNESCO landmark is considered by many to be the seminal work by the father of Mexican Minimalism. "In a way, it is a mini encyclopedia of everything he did in every other building," says Vicario.
General Francisco Ramírez
1452-55/5515-4908
casaluisbarragan.org

LA COLLECTIÓN JUMEX
Established by fruit-juice mogul Eugenio López Alonso, this collection of contemporary art is the largest private trove in Latin America, featuring work by Andreas Gursky and Andy Warhol. Every year during Zona Maco, López hosts at least one blowout party for fairgoers, but you can also make an appointment to see the works during daylight hours.
Vía Morelos, 272
52-55/5775-8188
lacoleccionjumex.org

Shop:

CHIC BY ACCIDENT
This flashy 20th-century design boutique, housed in a four-story, 1920s mansion, was founded by the French ex-pat Emmanuel Picault. It has garnered a reputation for its inspired mélange of objects — rustic stoneware jugs from Cuernavaca mixed with Don Shoemaker furniture from the 1960s.
Colima 180
52-55/5514-5723
chicbyaccident.com

SAN CRISTOBAL ANTIGUIDADES
This is another 20th-century design stop not found in any tour guide, and it features objects and furniture from Mexico’s most celebrated designers. "Even Gabriel Orozco buys things there," says Toluca Éditions publisher Alexis Fabry, whose limited-edition art books will be on view during Zona Maco at the Museo de Arte Moderno.
Durango 87 06700 Mexico D.F.
52-55/5207-8821

GRAFICA LA ESTAMPA
Fabry also recommends this rarity-filled bookstore to serious bibliophiles only. "It’s a marvelous bookshop of only very old first editions and prints," he says. Visit on Saturday, for the nearby open-air market.
Londres 161 Local 1-A
52-55/5514-6930

"When in Mexico City for… Zona Maco" originally appeared in the April 2009 issue of Art+Auction. For a complete list of articles from this issue available on ARTINFO, see Art+Auction's April 2009 Table of Contents.