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Art Basel 2022: great deals and lots of people for an amazing edition
15/06/2022

Art Basel 2022: great deals and lots of people for an amazing edition


di Elisabetta Roncati

The world's leading modern and contemporary art fair will be open to the public from tomorrow until Sunday

Forget masks and social distance: Art Basel returns to its full glory for its fifty-first edition. 289 galleries, one less than the last pre-pandemic edition, and over 4,000 artists: these are the numbers of the event that will open to the public from Thursday to Sunday. Rumors show that excellent transactions have already been concluded. Many operators reported interesting sales done yesterday and today, thanks to the openings for the so-called “First choice VIP”.
Hauser & Wirth, for example, registered the sale of a 11-foot steel spider by French-American sculptor Louise Bourgeois. It was made in 1996 and it was acquired by Ursula Hauser, mother of gallery co-founder Manuela Hauser. A private client bought it for $ 40m.







This was not the only deal: in few hours Marc Payot, the president of the gallery, reported sales for more than $75m. Lisson Gallery sold artworks by Li Ran, Yu Hong and Jack Pierson ($32,000, $220,000 and $225,000, respectively). Gagosian reported more than 40 transaction and Pace gallery sold paintings by Loie Hollowell (priced at $450,000) and Adrian Ghenie ($1.8m) within the first two hours of the VIP fair opening.

At the opening many international museums directors were present.







It’s also interesting to note the return of Asian collectors and advisors and the generational change among the visitors of the exclusive opening: a wider and younger audience. A new generation of artists is also taking the market creating an interesting mix between blue-chips pieces and younger proposals.

However, the home for emerging and undiscovered artists at Art Basel is the upstairs hall as usual.

Regarding the stands not to be missed during the visit, it must also be included Gladstone Gallery (the interesting in-depth study on the artworks of Ugo Rondinone), Helly Nahmad, Massimo De Carlo, Lia Rumma, Kamel Mennour, Mnuchin Gallery, Galerie Lelong & Co, Victoria Mirò, Kaufmann Repetto.







The Unlimited section, which should host monumental projects, is not so exciting. Worthy of note are the works of Leonardo Drew's Number 341 (2022); Liu Wei’s Dimension (2021); Mounira Al Soh’s Lackadaisical Sunset to Sunset (2022); Fiona Tan’s Pickpockets (2020-ongoing); Huang Yong Ping’s American Kitchen and Chinese Cockroaches (2019).







After all the Basel Art Week does not revolve only around the giant based in Messeplatz and the sister fair dedicated to design (Design Miami). The other city fairs are Volta, Liste and Photo Basel. The new entry is June Art Fair: an event hosting just 19 galleries (no one from Italy) in an underground bunker initially developed for nuclear fallout.







The city exhibition program (Parcours) actually leaves something to be desired, as does the exhibition offer. From the point of view of temporary expositions, the not to be missed are: “Picasso-El Greco” at Kunstmuseum Basel, “Mondrian Evolution” at Fondation Beyeler, “Michael Armitage” at Kunsthalle Basel and “Latifa Echakhch & Zineb Sedira” at Kunsthaus Baselland.







Basel art week is not over yet and we are already meeting up for the next stage: Paris + par Art Basel from 20 to 23 October 2022.




Born in Genoa, Milanese by adoption, Elisabetta Roncati decided to combine her university education in economics and management with her passion for culture with a goal: bringing people closer to the art market in a clear, easily understandable and professional way. Interested in all forms of artistic and cultural expressions, contemporary and otherwise, she has two great passions: textile art and African art. As an art consultant, she firmly believes that culture has the power to transcend the boundaries of individual nations, creating a global community of art lovers. In 2018 he founded the registered trademark Art Nomade Milan that she uses to speak about art and culture on the main social media platforms.

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