The Museum of Modern Art and Basel’s Schaulager Collection are partnering to present a major retrospective focused on the work of Bruce Nauman, set to open in Switzerland in March of 2018. The show will then cross the Atlantic to MoMA for a September opening. (more…)
The Art Newspaper notes the impact that the soaring price of the Swiss Franc has had on the market at Art Basel this year, pushing Switzerland’s high prices even higher, with prices about 15% higher than last year as a result. “Even the bratwurst is unaffordable,” jokes Andreas Gegner of Sprüth Magers. (more…)
In the Courtyard of Messe Basel
As the opening previews draw to a close in Basel today, the 46th edition of Switzerland’s massive art fair and exhibition is well underway, capping two initial days of strong sales and attendance during the VIP Previews that have set a brisk tone for the week’s proceedings. (more…)
Outside Art Basel, via Art Basel
The doors are set to open at Messeplatz in Basel, Switzerland this week, for the 46th edition of the Art Basel art fair, the massive fair exhibition that has come to define the early summer months in Europe. Bringing the massively international scope of the world’s elite galleries, this year’s Art Basel promises another strong outing. (more…)
Art Basel’s Popular large-scale installation section, Unlimited, has released a 74-artist roster for its upcoming edition next month in Switzerland, including work by Martin Creed, Olafur Eliasson, Jeppe Hein, Robert Irwin, and many more. (more…)
This year’s edition of Art Basel in Switzerland will feature a specially commissioned collaborative sculpture and performative work by Rirkrit Tiravanija, architects Nikolaus Hirsch and Michel Müller, and chef Antto Melasniemi, titled DO WE DREAM UNDER THE SAME SKY. “Creating a place of hospitality, visitors can engage through the activities on offer, such as the drinking of herbal tea plucked fresh from the on-site garden, the preparation and eating of food,” the organization said in a statement. “The food will be rooted in Thai tradition and will be available with no fixed schedule, menu or price list: compensation is self-determined, by self-serving, serving others, donations or even participating in the cooking or washing up.” (more…)
A Munich court ruled in favor of the Kunstmuseum Bern’s claim to the trove of Cornelius Gurlitt this past week, rejecting the suit by Gurlitt’s cousin Uta Werner. Even so, the situation remains mostly unresolved, as the Task Force appointed to sort the provenance of the works have only returned a handful of findings, and several works are already under legal contention. (more…)
Hans Ulrich Obrist is the subject of a recent interview in The Guardian this week, exploring his view of his work in terms of the long scope of history, his recent publishing endeavors, and his relentless work ethic. “The film director Tarkovsky once lamented that in our society, ritual has disappeared,” Obrist says. “He said we need to invent our own. I thought that was stimulating, and I have always tried to do that.” (more…)
The Rudolf Staechelin Family Trust, which owned the record-setting Paul Gauguin painting that sold last week in Switzerland, has withdrawn its collection from the Kunstmuseum Basel, and is seeking a new partner institution. “These works, which had been integral to our exhibitions, will be sorely missed at the Kunstmuseum, and we are painfully reminded that permanent loans are still loans; the people of Basel do not own them, and they may be taken away at any moment and for whatever reason,” the museum said in a statement. (more…)
A Paul Gauguin painting from 1892 has reportedly been sold for close to $300 million, setting a new record for the most expensive work of art. Rudolf Staechelin, a retired Sotheby’s executive, confirmed the sale with the New York Times, but the Qatari buyer’s identity has not been disclosed, nor has the official price. “The real question is why only now?” Mr. Staechelin said of the Gauguin sale. “It’s mainly because we got a good offer. The market is very high and who knows what it will be in 10 years.” (more…)
Egon Schiele, Death and Maiden (1915), via Kunsthaus Zurich
The Kunsthaus Zürich is currently presenting a historical study in portraiture and figuration over the course of a century, comparing the output of Austrian painter Egon Schiele with YBA-affiliated painter Jenny Saville, and tying together the pair’s varying approaches to powerful and, at times, visceral depictions of the human body. Culling works from across the expanse of both artist’s careers, the exhibition seems to function both as a pair of parallel historical studies in each artist’s inspirations and development, while allowing a certain degree of overlap and cross-referencing into the various techniques each artist employed. (more…)
Peter Doig, 100 Years Ago (Carrera) (2005-2007), courtesy of Centre Pompidou, Musée national d’art moderne and Centre de création industrielle, Paris
Currently on view at Fondation Beyeler in Basel is a survey of important oil paintings by Peter Doig (1959), as well as a number of seminal works on paper and a monumental mural.
Vito Schnabel will reportedly take over the St. Moritz gallery space formerly occupied by Bruno Bischofberger when the dealer vacates at the end of this season. Bischofberger is reportedly moving his main space in Zürich into a 250,000-square-foot complex, and will be operating without a physical location in the meantime. (more…)
Painter Peter Doig is highlighted in the Wall Street Journal this week, as he opens a broad exhibition of works at the Fondation Beyeler in Basel. “I think you only have so many ideas that you think are good ideas,” Doig says. (more…)
Uta Werner, a cousin of embattled collector Cornelius Gurlitt, has stepped forward to challenge the late man’s will in a Munich court. The move comes as Kunstmuseum Bern is preparing to announce its decision on the artworks, which were initially bequeathed to the institution when Gurlitt passed away earlier this year. (more…)
Gerhard Richter, Wald (Forest), (2005), all images courtesy Fondation Beyeler
On view at Fondation Beyeler is the largest exhibition ever devoted to German painter Gerhard Richter, with an express focus on the artist’s reoccurring interests in series, cycles, and interior spaces, while also offering some of his most singularly iconic works. (more…)
Zhang Huan, Shanxi Door No. 49 (2206), all images courtesy Pace Chesa Büsin
Pace Gallery has taken up space at Chesa Büsin in the Swiss town of Suoz this summer for a retrospective of works by Chinese artist Zhang Huan. Known for his especially visceral brand of performance art and his equally meticulous and exacting documentations, this exhibition primarily focuses on some of Zhang’s lesser known paintings, photography and works on paper. (more…)
Fischli/Weiss, Installation view of “Eine Ansammlung Von Gegenständen”, all photos via Emma Hazen forArt Observed
The ongoing collaboration of Swiss duo Peter Fischli and David Weiss has yielded countless material explorations: chain reactions and careful reproductions of various objects and spaces that introduce a momentary reflection on construction, industry and use. But rarely have the artists’ objects taken on the state of historical document in the manner that they do in their most recent show at Sprüth Magers, turning back from their respective intentions to become historical documents of their own. (more…)
The New York Times takes an inside look at the selling techniques and strategies galleries are embracing during massive art fairs like last week’s Art Basel, including massive mailings of available works (“jpeg bombing”) and pre-selling works before the fair opens. “‘First Choice’ V.I.P. access is no longer the priority as most of the major pieces at fairs are bought in advance,” says collector Kamiar Maleki. “But still, nothing beats coming to the fair.” (more…)
Following a previous excursion by Pace Gallery in the Swiss Alps, the gallery will return to a temporary space in the Engadin gallery town of Zuoz, bringing works by Donald Judd and John Chamberlain for an exhibition running from July to September. “Many collectors have beautiful houses and spend a significant amount of time in this part of Switzerland,” says director Mollie Dent-Brocklehurst. (more…)
Zhang Wan, Artificial Rock at Art Unlimited photo by Art Observed
As Sunday winds down, the 2014 edition of Art Basel in Switzerland is drawing to a close, concluding another week that saw the small Swiss city at the center of the art world for one dizzying week of sales, projects and installations. The wealth of collectors, dealers and curators saw dealers bringing big-ticket works to the table across the board, and the steady stream of sales for blue-chip works and high priced works continued well beyond the VIP days early last week.
Andra Ursuta, Orthodoctrinator at Art Unlimited (more…)
Panterapantera’s Zerzura (2014) outside Messe Basel, photo by Maria-Anna Goess for Art Observed
The doors have opened at Messe Basel for the VIP preview of Art Basel this year, launching the sales of the franchise’s flagship art fair into full swing. Despite the crowded schedule of major fairs this year (Basel Hong Kong closed less than a month ago), the first hours of the fair were as packed as expected, as all-star dealers and collectors vowed for the works on sale. Tico Mugrabi, Dasha Zhukova, Steven Cohen, and the Rubell family could all be seen wandering the aisles of the fair, and the brisk pace of sales seemed to match the star power of those in attendance. (more…)
Outside Art Basel, via Art Observed
The works are hung, the location is set, and the doors will soon open on the 2014 edition of Art Basel’s flagship art fair in its namesake city, bringing an estimated $4 billion in art to the Swiss city alongside an enthusiastic flock of collectors, dealers, artists and visitors.
Paola Pivi, Titled to be determined (2014) at Galerie Perrotin (more…)
The Swiss Art Awards have kicked off the proceedings around Art Basel this week, as eight artists, one architectural collective, and one curator have received the prize’s $27,765 award. Winners include: BITNIK (Carmen Weisskopf and Domagoji Smolji), Vancessa Billy, Kim Seob Boninsegni, Claudia Comte, Emilie Ding, Andreas Hochuli, Emanuel Rossetti, Jules Spinatsch, CKÖ (Daniel Lütolf and Sarah Widmer), and Emilie Bujès. (more…)
