Outstanding art from the world’s premier galleries leads to buoyant sales to private collections and institutions worldwide
The 47th edition of Art Basel in Basel closed on Sunday, June 19, 2016 amid reports of significant sales across all levels of the market, including many major sales by galleries exhibiting within the Unlimited sector.
Attendance from international collectors and institutions was once again very strong, with new collectors from countries across Africa and the former Soviet Union, as well as Iran, Lebanon, Japan, Korea, the Philippines and Thailand, coming to the fair for the first time. In a more volatile market and political environment, this edition proved that there continues to be a strong demand for high-quality works when premier international galleries and leading collectors from across the world come together. This year’s edition received widespread praise for its strong booth presentations and for the powerful artistic positions, many poignantly responding to the current socio-political situation within Europe and further afield.
The show, whose Lead Partner is UBS, brought together 286 premier galleries from 33 countries, presenting the very best contemporary and historical material by around 4,000 artists. This year saw a strong list of galleries participating in the show for the first time, including: Johan Berggren Gallery (Malmö), Carroll / Fletcher (London), Grimm (Amsterdam), Maisterravalbuena (Madrid), Sprovieri (London), Galeria Stereo (Warsaw) and Waldburger Wouters (Brussels) from Europe; Bergamin & Gomide (São Paulo), Corbett vs. Dempsey (Chicago), Derek Eller Gallery (New York), Foxy Production (New York), Moran Bondaroff (Los Angeles), Pace/MacGill Gallery (New York), Simone Subal Gallery (New York), ULAE (Bay Shore) and Van Doren Waxter (New York) from the Americas; and Selma Feriani Gallery (Sidi Bou Said) from Africa.
“As usual, the fair has continued to attract some of the most significant people from across the international art world to Switzerland. Initiatives such as Parcours were particularly strong this year and have helped connect the fair to the city more so than ever. We are pleased to report excellent sales at the fair from the outset of both the contemporary and modern works.”
Stefan von Bartha, Director, von Bartha, Basel, S-chanf
Art Basel 2016 attracted an attendance of 95,000 across the six show days. Demonstrating its position as the central meeting point for the international artworld, artists in attendance at this year’s Art Basel show included: Davide Balula, Hans Op de Beeck, AA Bronson, Tracey Emin, Zhang Enli, Zeng Fanzhi, Cao Fei, Alfredo Jaar, Christian Jankowski, Alison Knowles, Joseph Kosuth, Jannis Kounellis, Michael Landy, Jonathan Monk, Oscar Murillo, Pope.L, Robin Rhode, James Turrell, Haegue Yang, Ding Yi and Samson Young. Leading private collectors from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa attended this year, as well as representatives from over 300 distinguished museums and institutions, including: The Art Institute of Chicago; Astrup Fearnley Museet, Oslo; Bass Museum of
Art, Miami Beach; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C.; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid; Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporáneo, Mexico City; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo; the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York; The National Museum of Art, Osaka; Palais de Tokyo, Paris; Serpentine Galleries, London; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Tate, London; and The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing.
‘This has been a very successful fair for us, and we were impressed with the number of high quality international collectors who attended this year. We sold work by George Condo, Andreas Gursky, Jenny Holzer, Thomas Ruff, Cindy Sherman, Frank Stella and Rosemarie Trockel, placing works with prominent collections across Europe, the United Kingdom, the United States and Asia.’
Philomene Magers, Co-owner, Sprüth Magers, Berlin, London, Los Angeles
