Pedro Reyes’ puppet performance “Baby Marx” (2008-present); All photos by Caroline Claisse for Art Observed

Art Parcours Night was the official debut to the four-day expansive Art Basel festival.  Held at neighboring sites around the city, this year the annual event featured a performance and installations by Kathryn Andrews, ‘Voix de Ville’ (2012).  Andrews staged several Vaudeville-era acts along the Rhine River, using the talents of acrobats, magicians, and musicians.  The performances took place against her installations, which served as backdrops on an unconstrained stage space.  The show ran adjacent to other performances and on-site exhibitions of work that will remain on display till this Sunday, June 17.

Claude Lévêque‘s “Ring of Fire” (2011) installation

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Art Basel via The Telegraph

In it’s 43rd conception, Art Basel is continuing its legacy as the leader among the contemporary art world’s fairs.  Last year, 65,000 people flocked to the cultural capital, situated at the border of Switzerland, France, and Germany.  For this year, Basel will no doubt draw a similar, if not greater audience throughout its four-day duration.  Art Observed will be on site to cover and photograph throughout this fair.

Founded in 1970, Art Basel quickly surpassed Germany’s Art Cologne and similar fairs in scale and remains today as the world’s largest.  Almost 300 galleries from around the globe participate, spanning five continents.  This international representation results in a large and diverse assortment of exhibitions, video works, performances, and public installations.  This year specifically there will be more than 2,500 artists exhibiting $2 billion worth of art, nearly 300 gallery booths, and many more single stands present.

Perhaps the star feature of this year’s Basel will be Marlborough Fine Art’s Mark Rothko canvas, dated 1954.  The painting, for which there is already buyer interest, is priced from $78 to $84 million.

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