From Thursday, Jun 15 to Sunday, Jun 18, art aficionados from all across the globe once again flock to Switzerland for the Art Basel 2023. In this year’s edition, the fair features 284 prominent galleries showcasing a variety of artists working across painting, sculpture, photography, digital art, and more. To assist you in navigating this extensive art event, we have prepared an overview and a selection of recommendations.
Art Basel Parcours – Curated for the Public
From Tuesday, Jun 13 onwards, the Messeplatz, located just in front of the halls, turns into Art Basel’s vibrant epicenter showcasing a sprawling superstructure by acclaimed Swiss-Moroccan artist Latifa Echakhch.
The artwork will act as the backdrop for live shows and events, put together in partnership with Luc Meier, the Director of La Becque Artist Residency, as a part of “Parcours,” curated by Samuel Leuenberger. For Parcours, he assembled site-specific installations, sculptures, interventions, and performances staged within the city of Basel’s public areas and historic locations, from gardens and underground tunnels to bars and libraries.
Paweł Althamer’s Astronauts, at Pacours, Art Basel 2023
Make sure to attend Jacolby Satterwhite’s exhibition, which delves into spirituality, myths, and healing. His exposition includes two video installations, a Virtual Reality piece, and an art painting. The exhibition will span two levels of the Museum der Kulturen.
Visitors can also book a guided tour of the Parcour’s artworks daily at 3 pm. It lasts one hour and takes place in German and English. The meeting point is the Parcours Info Point at Münsterplatz.
Exhibition Unlimited features 76 art projects on 16,000 square meters.
Our guide to Art Basel 2023 wouldn’t be complete without the exhibition platform Unlimited, showcasing 76 projects chosen by the Art Basel Selection Committee and curated by Giovanni Carmine. The 16,000-square-metre space will include large-scale sculptures and paintings, video projections, installations, and live performances.
Some of our favorites include Firelei Báez’s “the vast ocean of all possibilities (19°36’16.9 “N 72°13’07.0” W / 41°30’32.3 “N 81°36’41.7″ W),” Gerhard Richter’s Strip Tower, and the immersive and colorful Environnement Chromointerférent (1974) by Carlos Cruz-Diez.
STRIP-TOWER by Gerhard Richter. Presented by David Zwirner at Art Basel 2023, Courtesy of Art Basel
Check out Art Basel’s website to discover the complete lineup of artists and galleries participating in the Unlimited exhibition. On Thursday, Jun 15, Art Basel will invite visitors to Unlimited Night to experience the artworks alongside performances.
Good to know: You can book a guided tour focusing on works by female artists in this year’s Unlimited sector. The tours take place from Jun 15 to 18, every day at 2 pm, and last one hour.
Glacier Dreams by Refik Anadol
Artist Refik Anadol presents Glacier Dreams at the Theater Basel. This multi-sensory generative installation combines art, science, and technology to highlight the beauty and fragility of glaciers while emphasizing the need for their preservation. It also serves as a testament to the possibilities of AI in creating impactful art experiences.
The series consists of glacier visuals based on a vast dataset of over 100 million images from online and institutional archives and an additional dataset of more than 10 million personally-collected glacier visuals in Iceland, Greenland, and Antarctica.
When & Where: Sun, Jun 18, 2023, 8:30 pm – 11:59 pm, Theater Basel ,7 Theaterstrasse
Art Basel Conversations
Also the Art Basel 2023 edition features another format of “Conversations,” an encounter of more than 50 influential cultural figures engaging in 12 panels, all accessible to the public free of charge.
How to Overcome Gender Barriers in the Art Market?
As outlined in The Art Market 2023 report by Art Basel and UBS, female artists’ representation in galleries has gradually increased over the past several years. Despite this progress, the art market persistently undervalues their contributions. What hurdles must the art world overcome to ensure equal representation and fair valuation for women and other marginalized groups in the free market? Are marketability and institutional visibility distinct, or do they overlap?
When & Where: Wed, Jun 14, 2023, 5 pm – 6 pm, Art Basel, 10 Messeplatz
Artist-Led Spaces: Learning from the African Continent
Artist-led spaces on the African continent are expanding, fostering a new generation of creators by setting up initiatives to support their own practice and that of their peers. This panel introduces the founders of four projects across Africa, including:
- Yinka Shonibare, artist and Founder, Guest Artists Space Foundation, Lagos and Ijebu; Guest Projects, London
- Kwasi Ohene-Ayeh, curator and critic, blaxTARLINES, Kumasi
- Dana Whabira, Artistic Director, Njelele Art Station, Harare
- Kaloki Nyamai, artist, founder, and director, Kamene Art Residency, Nairobi
When & Where: Thu, Jun 15, 2023, 1 pm – 2 pm, Art Basel 10 Messeplatz
What Does Blockchain Mean for Ownership and Copyright?
Dubbed a revolutionary force, blockchain has garnered acclaim for its potential to democratize and enhance transparency within the art market, offering artists unprecedented power. Yet, questions arise as we delve into Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). What truly falls under your ownership when you purchase an NFT? How are these digital works of art validated, and who retains the copyright? Can we rely on the permanence of transactions within the blockchain? In this discussion, the panelists try to find answers and will dissect the concepts of ownership and copyright within the Web3 domain.
When & Where: Sat, Jun 17, 2023, 3 pm – 4 pm, Art Basel 10 Messeplatz