ART EVENT Art Basel in Basel Closes Its Most Successful Edition

The 45th edition of Art Basel in Basel closed on June 22, 2014, with galleries reporting exceptionally strong sales throughout the week and across all levels of the market, as Art Basel once again confirmed its position as one of the most important annual art events, and as the central meeting point for the international art world.

Art Basel, whose Lead Partner is UBS, presented 285 galleries from 34 countries across the six sectors of the show, exhibiting the work of over 4,000 artists. A total of 24 galleries showed in Basel for the first time, coming from Brazil, Chile, China, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The show attracted a record attendance of 92,000 over the six show days – 6,000 more than last year. Alongside major private collectors from Europe, North and South America, and Asia, representatives and groups from over 70 museums from across the world attended the show, including: The Art Institute Chicago; Centre Pompidou Paris & Metz; Cincinnati Art Museum; Dallas Museum of Art; Groeninge Museum, Bruges; Institute of Contemporary Arts, London; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Louvre, Paris; Fondazione MAXXI, Rome; Museo de Arte de Lima; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw; The New Museum, New York; Palais de Tokyo, Paris; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Tate, London; Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; and Yuz Museum, Shanghai.

This year's edition saw significant changes to the urbanism of the show, redefining the visitors' experience: The only artworks displayed in Hall 1 were the 78 artworks making up the Unlimited sector, as Statements returned to Hall 2 after nine years in Hall 1, giving the younger generation of artists and galleries a more prominent placement. The Edition sector of the fair moved downstairs, creating a uniform layout on both floors. The auditorium and Magazine sector were moved within Hall 1, making this area accessible not only to ticket holders but also to the public. Therefore, for the first time, the entire Basel talks program of over 30 panels was free and open to the public. A total of over 2,400 people attended this year's talks program.

Art Basel in Basel 2014, General Impression / © Photo by Daniela & Tonatiuh / Courtesy of Art Basel

Art Basel in Basel, Outsideview, MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

Galleries exhibiting within all sectors of Art Basel expressed their enthusiasm about this year's show:

‘Art Basel remains the most important week in the art world’s calendar. We were thrilled to place several works in museum collections, including the Bruce Nauman video installation we presented at Unlimited and a painting by Mark Bradford that went to the MAXXI in Rome. We can report equally incredible sales across the board – in fact, this has been our greatest Basel ever!’ Iwan Wirth, President, Hauser & Wirth, Zürich, London & New York

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Greene Naftali, New York / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Esther Schipper, Berlin / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

'Art Basel in Basel has a long history as the quintessential art fair, and the success this year has only reinforced its dominance. We brought contemporary masterpieces of the highest quality and placed them into important collections in both Europe and the United States. Art Basel is the place where the greatest collectors congregate and blue chip artworks find a home.' Per Skarstedt, Skarstedt Gallery, New York & London

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / David Zwirner | New York, London / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Yvon Lambert, Paris / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

‘Art Basel 2014 was not a one-day or a one-hour wonder for us, as is sometimes the case with art fairs. We have had significant and steady sales each day, with strong engagement from European and Asian buyers.’ Larry Gagosian, Founder and Owner, Gagosian Gallery, New York, Beverly Hills, London, Paris, Rome, Athens, Geneva & Hong Kong

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Galeria Elvira Gonzalez, Madrid / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Barbara Mathes Gallery, New York / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

‘We've had a very good year at Art Basel. The fair is an important meeting place for us and holds to very strong standards of quality. Though we have never done a fair in Asia we met a number of Asian collectors here in Basel, possibly an effect of Art Basel in Hong Kong, which was particularly interesting.’ Jocelyn Wolff, Galerie Jocelyn Wolff, Paris

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Galerie naechst St. Stephan Rosemarie Schwarzwaelder, Vienna / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG

Art Basel in Basel 2014 / Thomas Dane Gallery, London / MCH Messe Schweiz (Basel) AG / Courtesy of Art Basel

‘We really appreciate Art Basel’s commitments to prints and editions. It continues to be an excellent fair for us, having exhibited here from the first year of the fair. We welcome the serious audience we always get here, and this year in the new location of the Edition sector, we have sold work by all our represented artists.’ Alan Cristea, Alan Cristea Gallery, London