photo basel is the first and only photo art fair in Switzerland and is dedicated exclusively to art photography. This year it will take place from 13 to 18 June. The fair brings together galleries from all over the world in a unique, authentic setting and sees itself as an integrative and hybrid platform that connects all the players in the art world. As a fair, photo basel actively contributes to this dialogue and makes art photography accessible to broad circles. Similar to Art Basel in the nearby exhibition centre (from 15 to 18 June) for art in the broader sense, photo basel is the ideal place for all those who deal with or collect classical and contemporary photographic art. In addition to 39 represented international galleries, photo basel has put together a diverse supporting programme.
Arnold Odermatt joined the Nidwalden police in 1948. He photographed accident scenes to which he was called with a Rolleiflex in order to supplement the police report with photos. With the accuracy of a chronicler, the photographing policeman recorded his rural officer’s life in pictures – on duty and in civilian clothes. Photo: Buochs 1972 by Arnold Odermatt
photo basel welcomes 39 galleries from 11 countries to its eighth edition. More than 400 photographic positions (artworks) by over 165 artists will be shown. photo basel is pleased to count Peter Fetterman Gallery (Santa Monica), Fisheye (Paris), Foreign Agent (Lausanne), Francis Boeske Projects (Amsterdam), Galerie S. (Paris), Fotonostrum (Barcelona), Art is Bond (Houston), Alexandra de Viveiros (Paris), The Bridge Gallery (Paris) and WBB Gallery (Zurich) among this year’s new galleries.
Foreign Agent presents a solo exhibition of Shen Wie’s photographic work, which celebrates the essence of individuality and the transformative power of the natural world. On display are self-portraits as well as unique mixed-media works embellished with floral elements. Photo: Foreign Agent by Shen Wei
Several special exhibitions
Alex Kayser
At this year’s edition of the fair, photo basel is presenting the special exhibition “Alex Kayser” in collaboration with Galerie Esther Woerdehoff (Paris + Geneva) and the Alex Kayser Foundation.
In 1978 Kayser moved to New York and carried out his “Artists’ Portraits” series there for several years, the protagonists of which always came from New York’s artistic environment. Photo: Meret Oppenheim by Alex Kayser
While Kayser initially worked in narrative black-and-white photographs, from 1974 onwards Kayser changed his approach and began increasingly colouring his photographs by hand. The interest in colouring ran through a large number of his work series from this point on. At the same time, Kayser began to work with photography in a cross-media and performative way. A found plastic toy poodle named Zak supported him in these endeavours and symbolises the humorous approach of Kayser’s work.
Pure Photography. 20th Century Floral Masterworks
The curated special exhibition “Pure Photography. 20th Century Floral Masterworks” shows photographs by Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, Brett Weston, Edward Weston, Don Worth and other American photographers of the 20th century.
The term “Pure Photography” was coined by Ansel Adams (1902 – 1984), co-founder of the legendary f/64 group, a loose association of Californian photographers in the San Francisco area. Photo: “Leaves” (1942) by Ansel Adams, © Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust
The term “Pure Photography” was coined by the legendary Group f/64, which was active on the American West Coast from 1932. The photographers in this group opposed the prevailing pictorialism, which attempted to bring the “artist’s hand” into the photographs through elaborate printing techniques and the processing of negatives and photographs in order to establish the medium of photography as a fully-fledged means of artistic expression. The representatives of Group f/64 wanted to free black-and-white photography from any manipulation. Their aim was authenticity and clarity as well as technical perfection in the darkroom. The creation of the finest grey tones and deep blacks led to a pictorial language whose aesthetics often took on abstract features and made the smallest details visible.
Michal Chelbin’s work has been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions worldwide. Her work can be found in many private and public collections such as: Metropolitan Museum New York, LACMA, Getty Center LA, Jewish Museum New York, Cleveland Museum of Art, Tel Aviv Museum, Sir Elton John Collection, SF MoMa and others. Photo by Michal Chelbin
Practical information on photo basel
at the Volkshaus Basel, Rebgasse 12, CH-4058 Basel.
Tickets at a price of CHF 20.80 per day are available from here online.
