Art Basel has announced its selections for the Parcours section of the Swiss fair, installing public works by, Darren Bader, Pierre Bismuth, Ryan Gander, and more. The show will consist of 15 site-specific projects installed around the city, and will also include Seth Price’s audio work 8-4 9-5 10-6 11-7, an eight-hour dance track meant played around Basel. (more…)
The Wall Street Journal summarizes the deathbed agreement of Cornelius Gurlitt to relinquish his collection of Nazi-looted art works, including the exchange of national pressures, personal politics and legal wrangling that ultimate led Gurlitt to sign the works over to Bern’s Kunstmuseum without notifying the museum directly until after Gurlitt’s death last week. “It all went a bit crazy,” says museum director Mathias Frehner. (more…)
Heidi Bucher, Untitled (Herrenzimmer), (undated) via Osman Can Yerebakan
Known for her ongoing focus on the relationship between the body and architectural space, the late Heidi Bucker is being commemorated with an exhibition at the Swiss Institute. The exhibition, running through May 11th at the gallery’s SoHo space, stands out being the first solo exhibition of the artist in the United States in more than forty years.
Heidi Bucher, Untitled (9 Objects), (1972-1987), Courtesy Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zürich (more…)
A new lawsuit in the ongoing Knoedler Gallery investigation has drawn Swiss art historian and curator Oliver Wick of the Kunsthaus Zurich into the fray, holding him allegedly responsible for the sale of a $7.2 million forged Rothko to casino owner Frank J. Fertitta III. Wick was paid a $300,000 consulting fee by the Gallery for his opinion that the work was original, and also showed the piece at the Beyeler Foundation in Basel, Switzerland, where he was working at the time. (more…)
The Art Basel fair has announced the list of exhibitors for its 2014 edition, to be held this June, with 285 Galleries from around the world. A number of small galleries, like New York’s Ramiken Crucible and London’s The Approach will appear this year alongside the annual players. (more…)
Thomas Schütte, United Enemies (2011), courtesy Fondation Beyeler
At Fondation Beyeler in Basel, Switzerland through February 2nd is an exhibition displaying sculptural works of human figure, created by German artist Thomas Schütte. Made from a wide variety of materials, including steel and aluminum, bronze, modeling clay, ceramic, wood, and glass, and are placed throughout the museum as well as outside in the gardens surrounding the institution.
Thomas Schütte, Walser’s Wife (2011), courtesy Fondation Beyeler (more…)
The New Yorker has published an in-depth profile on dealer David Zwirner, taking time at the Art Basel fair earlier this year to watch him in action as he sells his works, while offering interesting perspectives on the current state of the art world. “One of the reasons there’s so much talk about money is that it’s so much easier to talk about than the art,” he says. (more…)
The New York Times profiles Adam Szymczyk, the current curator of Kunsthalle Basel, examining his current contributions to contemporary art, and some of the groundbreaking work he has done in the past years. “He is able to identify what is happening in the zeitgeist,” said Iwona Blazwick of Whitechapel Gallery, “to have his finger on the pulse and create the intellectual framework within which to understand it.” (more…)
Maurizio Cattelan, KAPUTT (Installation View), via Fondation Beyeler
KAPUTT, an installation by Italian-born sculptor, painter, and installation artist, Maurizio Cattelan is currently on display at the Fondation Beyeler until October 6th. Known for his humor and morbid imagery, especially in his use of taxidermied animals, Cattelan has been described as “as one of the great post-Duchampian artists, and a smartass, too” by Jonathan P. Binstock, curator of contemporary art at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. This installation draws upon many of the themes found in the artist’s previous work, and viewers may be reminded of the numerous tongue in cheek sculptures Cattelan has already exhibited at the Vienna Secession; Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt; Kunsthalle Basel; MoMA and MoMA PS 1, New York; Museum Fridericianum, Kassel; The Tate Gallery, London; and Moderna Museet, Stockholm. (more…)
KAWS, Wooden Companion (2013), via More Gallery
Opened during Basel Week Switzerland, More Gallery is presenting a solo exhibition by American artist KAWS, entitled “GISWIL,” composed of paintings and two large-scale wooden sculptures culled from the artist’s recent output.
Ugo Rondinone, Soul (Installation View), via Gladstone Gallery
Gladstone Gallery is currently presenting a series of new works by Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone, exploringhuman creativity, expression and individuation through a series of primitive stone sculptures, collectively titled Soul. Complementing the artist’s enormous sculptural installation Human Nature, on view at Rockefeller Center, the exhibition features a series of individually carved stone statues. (more…)
Taking a cue from its country’s robust banking operations, the Swiss art market is luring more foreign buyers to the country for the purchase of Swiss works. “A lot of collectors see that Swiss art has a very high standard in comparison with international movements, and our most important artists, like Hodler, Cuno Amiet and the Giacometti family, were not only Swiss but European avant-gardists.” Urs Lanter, head of Sotheby’s Switzerland unit says. (more…)
The Wall Street Journal reports on the popularity of mirrored works on sale at the recently-concluded 2013 edition of Art Basel in Switzerland. Reflective works by Anish Kapoor, Doug Aitken, Virginia Overton and others sold well this year, continuing the recent trends toward glass and mirrored works that seem to be appearing across the contemporary landscape. When pressed for comment, dealer Eva Scherr noted: “narcissism often plays a role.” (more…)
Yoshitomo Nara, Pace Gallery at Art Basel 2013, Courtesy Pace Gallery
Last evening, the conclusion of Art Basel marked the finish line of a 6-week art world marathon, including Frieze New York, the first edition of Art Basel Hong Kong, and finally the Switzerland-based Art Basel, alongside the opening of the Venice Biennale, and record auction sales in New York. While the time period was most certainly overflowing with events and attractions, the so-called “fair-fatigue” did not kick in at Basel, with record numbers of visitors at Art Basel (86,000 in total), and strong sales across the board. Interestingly, as the number of viewers has grown, the gallery booths have evolved, showing a more focused curatorial approach, often planned months in advance.
Donald Judd, David Zwirner at Art Basel 2013, Courtesy David Zwirner, New York/London (more…)
Outside View, Art Basel 2013, Photograph Courtesy of Art Basel
The city of Basel, situated at the border between Switzerland, France and Germany, will be transformed into a contemporary arts hub this week for the 44th annual Art Basel. Anticipating record attendence, the fair will look to top its record of over 65,000 visitors at the marathon art event this year. With over 300 top galleries from all over the world flocking to the city to display over 4,000 artists’ work, the fair is commonly referred to as the “Olympics of the art world.” and features a similarly brimming schedule of events and claustrophobic crowds of eager spectators. Each day boasts its own full agenda, including film screenings, artist talks, and performances, and joined by the vast number of peripheral art exhibitions and events hosted by cultural institutions of Basel throughout the entire region, held in obscure and romantic venues amidst the Swiss lakes and mountains.
Noted Max Ernst scholar Werner Spies has been ordered to pay half of the €652,883 owed to collector Louis Reijtenbagh for the purchase of a falsely attributed work. This is not the first time Spies has had issues over his authentication; he was fooled by noted forger Wolfgang Beltracchi in 2011 over several works he authenticated as Ernsts. (more…)
Hong Kong Convention Center, site of the Art Basel Hong Kong Art Fair, via Forbes
With the closing of the doors at the Hong Kong Convention Center this past Sunday, the first edition of Art Basel Hong Kong was brought to a conclusion after a flourish of strong sales, critical praise, and notable attention for the art fair giant’s first foray into the Asian continent.
Looking forward to 2016, the Manifesta Arts Festival has announced the location of its 11th edition, taking place in the Swiss city of Zurich. “The Manifesta board appreciated the openness expressed in the Zurich Bid and the willingness to invite Manifesta to take a critical position. With full awareness that initiating a Manifesta Biennial involves unpredictable outcomes Zurich embraces the critical discourse including the opportunities and risks that it entails. That is why we are thrilled to be going to Zurich for Manifesta 11.” Says Manifesta Director Hedwig Fijen. (more…)
Alex Katz, Sunset 2, (2008) via Museum Haus Konstruktiv
The Swiss museum Haus Konstruktiv is currently presenting Landscapes, a solo exhibition of work by American Painter, Alex Katz, focusing mainly on the artist’s landscapes and natural scenes, spanning from 1948 until today. The exhibition marks the first comprehensive display of Katz’s work by a Swiss Institution, despite his international acclaim and presence in several important private Swiss collections. Of particular note are a number of included works that have previously never been displayed. (more…)
Roni Horn, Untitled (“Consider Incompleteness as a Verb”), (2010-2012), via Hauser and Wirth Zurich
Currently on view at Hauser & Wirth Zürich is a solo show by American visual artist and writer Roni Horn, encompassing the artist’s signature glass sculptures alongside a photographic series created between 2010 and 2012.
Peter Fischli and David Weiss (Installation View), via Sprüth Magers
On view at Sprüth Magers Berlin is a solo exhibition of work by the collaboration between artists Peter Fischli and David Weiss (often shortened to “Fischli/Weiss”), which explores themes of transition, globalization and ephemerality through a selection of plastic sculptures and photographic installations. (more…)
A fresh series of tests on a Swiss-held portrait of the Mona Lisa has bolstered claims that it is in fact an earlier version of the famous portrait by Leonardo Da Vinci. The “Isleworth Mona Lisa” was recently examined by experts of Da Vinci’s sacred geometry techniques, and also underwent a series of carbon dating tests, both of which supported evidence of the work being an earlier version of the immediately recognizable painting. “When we add these new findings to the wealth of scientific and physical studies we already have, I believe anyone will find the evidence of a Leonardo attribution overwhelming,” said David Feldman, vice-president of the Mona Lisa Foundation. (more…)
New York Magazine sat down with Iwan Wirth at the opening of Hauser and Wirth’s new space in the Manhattan neighborhood of Chelsea last month, spotlighting the global arts enterprise he has built from the gallery’s modest Swiss origins, as well as his active encouragement of his impressive stable of artists. “I think with Iwan it’s not a commercial venture. It’s very much about the artists and what they need and what they want,” says Paul McCarthy. (more…)
The Art Basel festival has announced the gallery list for its 44th edition in Basel, Switzerland, welcoming 304 galleries from across the globe. The festival will also feature several special exhibitions, including presentations by Leo Castelli Gallery in New York City, Parra & Romero in Madrid, and Take Ninagawa in Tokyo, alongside its usual lineup of talks, exhibitions, installations and special commissions. (more…)
