Art Basel has this year brought together gallery owners, artists, curators, art critics, art lovers and, of course, millionaire art collectors. Millions of dollars, however, were also the prizes for works of art. Already on the first day there were million sales. The artwork Versammlung“ / "Assembly" by Gerhard Richter was sold for $ 20 million. Eight paintings by Sigmar Polke, Neo Rauch, or a Georg Baselitz painting for 2,5 million euros were sold. But also a Pablo Picasso plant by 40 million, as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein by several million euros, or a work by Cindy Sherman offered by 650 000. But also works of art between 6000 and 14000 Euro, like objects of the artist Giulia Cenci were sold. In addition to Brad Pitt, who comes to Basel every year to enjoy and buy art, singer Rihanna was also surprised on Friday, who visited the Art Basel after lunch in the restaurant "Teufelshof" and was loud "Blick" from the artwork "Sacred Heart "Impressed by Jeff Koons at the booth of Larry Gagosian. Not only the art in Basel was striking. The visitors to Art Basel were also attracted to art. There was a lot to see: from Burberry, Valentino, to selfmade jeans and recycled clothes. Model Alessandra Ambrosio wore a friendship bracelet from British label Bottletop, supporting the UN's goals for sustainable development. Some even wore their art and thus attracted attention, like Pop Art artist Tanja Playner. In addition to the Art Basel, there were some spectacular from the world of art in Basel to see. The Fondation Beyeler extended the exhibition "The Young Picasso - Blue and Pink Period" for visitors to the Art Basel and those attending the Venice Biennale. After the Gauguin exhibition 2016, the Picasso exhibition with 320,000 visitors since 3 February is the second most successful exhibition in the history of the Fondation Beyeler.
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Basel in the art hype
Text: Heinz Playner 28.06.2019
The Kunstmuseum Basel hosted for the first time an event that was not officially called a party, but combined art and music. The main act of the event was performed by musician and producer Flying Lotus from Los Angeles. The "2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel", organized by the MAMAG Modern Art Museum with curator Heinz Playner transformed the entire ground floor of the Grand Hotel Euler into an art museum during Art Basel time and presented a selection of artists from several continents. Some artists of the "2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel" have received an art prize. Like the artist Bo Song from South Korea. Her juicy colors, Buddhist philosophy and mandala stylized works of art impressed not only curator Heinz Playner, but also the visitors of the exhibition. The artist Kalin Luy Ken also received an art prize from the Biennale. His elaborate philosophical work "Chariots of Fire", which was conceived at the "2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel", refers to how people deal with the environment, themselves, politics and the destruction of the world. The Biennale's art award winners include Hong Kong-born and UK- based artist Wendy Yeo for her artworks with fish in a vivid abstract implementation.
A constant experiment of photography showed Biennale with the works of the artist Pavel Proskuriakov. The result of his work is always surprising, because the artist never knows what that will look like and that releases his imagination. The free play of the thoughts sets also artist Sisko Linnea in her works of art. Her expressive, spontaneous works of art in which she connects the conscious with the subconscious were to be seen in Basel. Golden colors in combination with impressionistic strokes sound almost like classics. Karol McQuade from Costa Rica, however, has created a striking implementation in her artwork. Some works of art from the series "Golden Rain" were on view in Basel and were well received by the audience. A mix of photography and design by US artist Howard Harris was also on display at the Biennale in Basel. The philosophical basis for Harris' work is partly the study of quantum physics and chaos theory, in particular the proposition that the observer always influences what is observed. The artist Aprajita S Chadha from Singapore also deals with chaos. In Basel, the MAMAG Modern Art Museum presented two of her works of art at the 2nd International Fine Art Biennale in Basel. Her artworks are very much based on emotions, inner exploration and a few small details, creating communication between the artwork and the viewer.
Pop Art artist Tanja Playner in her dress and with her bag, designed from her artwork, sits on the artwork of Franz West on the Unlimited
Pop Art artist Tanja Playner in dress and bag, designed from her artwork
Curator Heinz Playner and artist FANT Wenger at the 2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel
One of the highlights of the Biennale included some artworks by the world well known pop art artist Tanja Playner. The artist deals with the topics of love, dealing with each other and sets accents to a positive attitude in life. The art of the artist Erica Fromme from Germany also brings a positive mood. Her works of art, which she themselves called "Crazy Art" were to see in Basel. Among the eye- catchers of the Biennale is the artwork "Empfnger" by the Swiss artist Fant Wenger. His conceptual art is based on communication between people, nature, information and technology. The work of Jungching Hsiau from Taiwan aroused great interest among the audience. His artworks show the precise technique of caligraphy and emotional communication between the sheet and the artist. Works by the artist Dominique Meunier from France were also shown at the Biennale in Basel. His abstract artworks mostly in blue green colors were very well received by the audience. Extraordinary is the characteristic of art in Basel. The black and white snapshots of faces and situations captured during his travels are a feature of his iconographic production by Italian photographer Maurizio Iazeolla. Emotional facial expressions set in soap bubbles were seen with excitement by visitors to the Biennale in Basel. For the artist Christin Ohlin Sign Kin from Sweden, art is not only a self-healing tool, but also the communication tool between her psychic language and the viewer. At the Biennale the artwork of the artist "Lily was here" was exhibited.
Curator Heinz Playner and artist Kalin Luy Ken at the 2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel
Pop Art artist Tanja Playner at the 2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel
artwork „Lily was here“ from Christin Ohlin Sign Kin
Artist Bo Song at the 2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel
Artist Bo Song at the 2nd International Fine Art Biennale Basel