Jun 16, 2015
Basel VIP Preview: 3 Standout Booths
3 booths making a big impression at the world’s best art fair:
Art Basel, June 16–21.
1. Gavin Brown’s enterprise (Booth S2)
Gavin Brown’s booth boasts work by established artists such as Rob Pruitt, Alex Katz and Joe Bradley, among others. However, the NYC-based gallery takes a characteristically unconventional approach (one of the most unconventional of the fair) to exhibiting its artists, fully utilizing its space with a wallpaper by Karl Holmqvist that provides a backdrop for many of the artworks on display and a floor installation by Martin Creed, who has covered the booth’s floor with a patchwork of rugs and textiles. Thus Brown creates an immersive, interactive experience with their art.
2. Metro Pictures (Booth B5)
New York-based Metro Pictures’ Basel selection includes works by Cindy Sherman, Camillie Henrot — whose drawing below has already sold for $45,000 — and a notable charcoal on paper piece from Robert Longo, who uses an unusual, powerful amount of negative space to offset his iconic flag emblem. The booth also includes multiple pieces from the subject of Metro Pictures’ current NYC exhibition, Olaf Breuning, whose large steel sculptures and photo collages mirror the visual vernacular of our contemporary society.
3. Anton Kern (Booth L10)
From NYC, Anton Kern has brought pieces from 17 different artists to Art Basel. One artist making a particularly big impression is Matthew Monahan, who has multiple sculptures and works on paper in the Kern booth. Monahan’s paintings and sculptures reference ancient relics in their imagery and materials. Thus his works seem to be part of their own archeological revealing, to contain a greater history than their own creation. Kern also has two large scale sculptures from Jim Lambie and David Shrigley in Art Basel Unlimited, Basel’s exhibition platform for works unsuited for a fair booth, such as large-scale sculptures, video projects and performances.
To read more about individual pieces making a big impression at the VIP Preview, check out our post on Basel’s standout artworks.
