BASEL, June 10 — The Swiss art fair, now in its 49th edition, will open to the public from June 13 to 16.
This year, some 290 galleries from across the globe will join the Basel show, including 19 that are participating for the first time.
Here is a selection of four installations to take a look at:
‘Tin Man of the Twenty-First Century’ by Coco Fusco
This figurative sculpture by Cuban-American artist Coco Fusco will be on view in Art Basel’s Unlimited sector, which presents projects that transcend the limitations of traditional art-fair displays.
The three-metre high piece, created in collaboration with artist Chico MacMurtrie, depicts Donald Trump as the Tin Man from the classic children’s book The Wizard of Oz.
Following the 2016 American presidential election, Fusco decided to parody Trump in a style reminiscent of the monuments of authoritarian leaders that tower over public spaces.
“Immediately after Trump was elected, an old argument was resurrected against arts funding. There were also many attacks on opponents of Trump’s policy, directed at artists, activists, Congress, and the press. This made me think of two things — the cultural policies of authoritarian states, and the kind of art that authoritarian governments sponsor,” she said in a statement.
‘Open Secret’ by Andrea Bowers
This installation, on show in the fair’s Unlimited section, documents the development of international movements against sexual harassment and assault #MeToo and Time’s Up — which spread virally following public revelations of sexual misconduct allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
“Open Secret” includes approximately 200 photographic prints on red backgrounds, each of which lists the name and occupation of an individual accused of misconduct. It also features their public response to the accusations brought against them, as well as details of the allegations and legal action or any other resulting action.
Bowers, whose work foregrounds struggles for justice and human rights, stated that the project was inspired by a tweet of feminist writer Jessica Velenti: “[P]art of what women are saying right now is that what the culture considers ‘normal’ sexual encounters are not working for us, and oftentimes harmful.”
‘Notel’ by Lawrence Lek
This multimedia installation is conceived as a marketing suite for a luxury hotel of the future, in which all service is automated.
This virtually rendered hotel — which is reminiscent of Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, California — is accessible through VR headsets and game controllers.
Through room upon empty room, visitors are accompanied by the sounds of distorted high-frequency noises and voiceovers created by electronic musician Kode9.
This site-specific installation, on show in the Unlimited section, reflects on the boom of fully-automated luxury accommodations mushrooming in capital cities worldwide.
‘Aggregate’ by Alexandra Pirici
This performative environment by Romanian artist Alexandra Pirici will be presented in a newly designed temporary pavilion situated on Basel’s iconic Messeplatz.
It will feature over 60 performers who can spontaneously initiate a movement from a list of rehearsed references, ranging from the leap of an antelope to Camille Claudel’s “Sakuntala”.
The choreography is also punctuated by recitations of poetry excerpts from Forough Farrokhzad, Gil Scott-Heron and Simone Yoyotte, among others.
As viewers walk around this performative landscape, the dancers and enactors mix seamlessly with the audience.
“Aggregate” invites viewers to reflect on how identities are constructed, highlighting that collectivity is built through the selective recollection of knowledge and information. — AFP-Relaxnews
