ARTISTS
All eyes set on Basel
Considered one of the largest and most important art fairs in the world, Art 41 Basel assembles over 300 galleries from 26 countries. See what's happening this year.
黑料不打烊
09 Jun, 2010
The art world is set to descend on Basel next week as Art Basel opens its gates for the 41st time on June 16 through June 20. Considered one of the largest and most important art fairs in the world, Art 41 Basel assembles over 300 galleries from 26 countries, bringing 20th and 21st century art created by 2,500 artists. According to its organizers, last year's event attracted over 60,000 visitors, and this year's fair is expected to exceed that number.
Watch higlights from last year's fair:
What's new at Art Basel this year? Among the different attractions found at the fairgrounds, the inaugural Art Feature site focuses on the curatorial aspects of the gallerist鈥檚 practice. Twenty gallery projects will be featured, ranging from artist dialogues and solo shows, to presentations of historical art material. London gallery Vilma Gold for example will present the piece 鈥淛oints,鈥� a collaborative video and light installation displaying previously unseen work from artists Charles Atlas, John Cage and Merce Cunningham. The artwork reflects "Atlas's ongoing engagement with dance, and his series of 1971 films made with Merce Cunningham will be shown across a choreographed arrangement of nine monitors. As Cage's unpublished ambient recordings of cities are broadcast, spotlights will cast multiple and shifting shadows across the configuration."
Returning to the fair is Art Unlimited, which displays 56 projects highlighting innovative and large-scale works such as sculptures, video projects, wall paintings, and performances. The Gagosian Gallery, participating for the 16th time, will present Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity鈥� (2008), a piece by Yayoi Kusama. The gallery told 黑料不打烊.com that it is "anticipating a great fair this year with a strong booth."
"In 1965, Yayoi Kusama made her first mirrored room and called it Infinity Mirror Room - Phalli's Field. In an effort to find ever new ways to visualize infinity within a closed environment, since then she has produced increasingly sophisticated structures incorporating recent technological developments. Upon stepping into a darkened room, a delicate, shimmering mirage unfolds around the viewer in the form of a myriad of gleaming lights that reproduce and reflect endlessly upon each other. The operating system is a combination of simple yet ingenious optical devices: the walls and ceiling of the room are mirrored in a floor of shallow water, while the lighting system increases and diminishes on a timed sequence at 90-second intervals." - Gagosian Gallery.
Yayoi Kusama
Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity, 2008
Mixed media installation
163 1/2 x 163 1/2 x 113 1/4 inches (415 x 415 x 287.4 cm)
© Yayoi Kusama, Courtesy Gagosian Gallery, New York
Chosen out of more than 150 applicants, creations by other renowned artists such as Nancy Spero can be observed alongside younger favorites such as Doug Aitken. Some of the selections in this area require more than 200sq.m., such as Dan Flavin's installation.
View earlier work by Dan Flavin:
Attracting museum directors and private collectors alike, the fair鈥檚 popularity and significance to the art world is more than evident. This year, veteran New York dealer Edward Tyler Nahem is visiting the fair for the first time, curious about the fair鈥檚 chances in the current prosperous market. 鈥淚 think that the New York auctions in May helped bolster a certain level of buoyancy and credibility for the art market,鈥� he told The Financial Times. 鈥淐learly people are buying, both at auction and from the galleries. It鈥檚 a healthy, strong market for exceptional works of art. We should see a flow of US collectors at Basel who dropped off last year.鈥�
Excitement is already building around how Picasso will fare given his record-smashing rise to first place in the art market; Landau Fine Art, Helly Nahmad Gallery and the dealer Richard Gray have already confirmed that Picasso works will sit at their Basel booths, with prices ranging between $1 million and $15 million. Fairgoers should also keep their gaze fixed on the outcome of works for sale by the late New York graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, whose Catharsis (1983) wears a $9 million price tag; even a performance piece by Brussels-based Dora Garc铆a, Insulting the Audience: Adaptation (2009) is selling the framed performance script at 鈧�8,000.
On Messeplatz, fairgoers can behold a Dora Garc铆a performance as part of Art Public, which "places art in the urban context and encouraging interaction with the general public.鈥� Showcasing 14 works by artists such as Ai Weiwei, whose Field (2010) contribution is constructed of pipe elements and pocelain decorated with blue patterns mimicking the Ming Dynasty style, assembled thoughtfully into orthogonal scaffolding with no functional purpose.
Watch a feature about Ai Weiwei's exhibit at the Haus der Kunst in Munich
The city of Basel itself will also be transformed by Art Parcours, a unique program that outfits the historic city center with site-specific works and performances, at sites such as the M眉nster cathedral, the City Hall, and a ferry boat traversing the Rhine.
For those searching out new talent, discover Art Statements, featuring 26 emerging artists from younger galleries. Or, to encounter some noteworthy figures of the international art scene, Art Basel Conversations and Art Salon will be conducted every morning and afternoon, respectively, presenting talks, book signings, and panels that offer a platform of dynamic dialogue. The initial morning conversation brings Paul McCarthy.
This year also sees the return of Berlin film scholar Marc Gl枚de and Zurich collector This Brunner to curate Art Film, presenting films such as "Women Without Men" by Shirin Neshat, winner of the Best Director Award at the last Venice Film Festival.
The Art Basel list goes on, while concurrently the city plays host to a multitude of other events that compliment the celebration of contemporary art. Those wanting to stick to art fairs can choose from six others all opening on the 15th or 16th, such as the inaugural Red Dot Basel 2010. Or, visit one of the city鈥檚 museums and institutions to find exhibitions of significant artists, such as Basquiat at Foundation Beyeler.
Expectations are high that the fair will reinforce the revival of contemporary art seen in the past year, especially noticeable in recent months with the record-breaking Picasso, Warhol, and Jasper Johns successes. The anticipation about Art Basel precedes some of the largest auctions of 2010, coming up shortly at the end of the month. On June 22nd, Sotheby鈥檚 London will hold its Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale , offering just 51 lots but with a total estimate of 148,050,000 GBP. 脡douard Manet tops the list with an estimate ranging from 20,000,000 GBP - 30,000,000 GBP.
The following day Christie鈥檚 takes its turn, presenting 63 works estimated to garner 230,000,000 GBP, prompting The Independent to dub the event as 鈥渢he most valuable art auction in history.鈥� Picasso and Monet take the lead here with top lots estimated to fetch between 拢30m and 拢40m each.
It would be interesting to see what effect Art Basel has on these auctions.
Written by Joanna Bledsoe and 黑料不打烊.com staff
