For the 43rd edition of Art Basel, Sean Kelly will present a unique booth (Hall 2.1, Booth N2), conceived around the re-performance of Marina Abramović and Ulay's seminal work Imponderablia (1977). Imponderablia will be performed on three consecutive days, the two vernissage days and the first public day of the fair; as such, the idea of the absence and presence of an event, the notion of re-performance and the practice of revisiting significant concepts define the works that were chosen for our booth. This focus is exemplified by the pairing of early and recent work from a number of the gallery's artists, including Joseph Kosuth and James Casebere, and is further underscored by a new bulb sign by Peter Liversidge, titled BEFORE / AFTER (2012), which switches at random intervals to illuminate one of the two words. Also featured on the booth will be the largest gold painting by Terence Koh to date, new paintings by Laurent Grasso, Rebecca Horn and Callum Innes, and a rare silver rice house by Wolfgang Laib. Art 43 Basel will open with a vernissage (by invitation only) on June 12 and 13; the fair will be open to the public from June 14 through June 17, 2012.
Concurrently on view at Art Unlimited, Sean Kelly will present Anthony McCall's Circulation Figures (Hall 1.0, Booth U26), an important work that invites the viewer to revisit a performance from 1972 in which McCall asked a group of photographers to record their own presence in a space containing mirrors, lights and newspapers that he created. The installation on view evokes the original environment, yet forty years later it is imbued with new meaning as contemporary conventions of self-representation have blurred the line between our public and private lives. Sean Kelly will present the project in conjunction with Sprüth Magers, Berlin, London and Galerie Thomas Zander, Cologne. Art Unlimited will open with a preview (by invitation only) on June 11; it will be on view during the vernissage dates of Art 43 Basel and will be open to the public from June 14 through June 17, 2012.
Also on view as part of Art Basel's Art Parcours program, which presents site-specific artworks and performances in historical quarters of the city, Los Carpinteros will stage an installation at the Prediger Church at Totentanz 19, Basel. The work, titled 150 People, involves dressing chairs in the old cathedral in human clothes, creating a poetic and striking intervention that addresses core questions of functionality that lie at the center of the artists' practice. Sean Kelly will present the project in conjunction with Galeria Fortes Vilaça, São Paulo. For more information on Art Parcours and 150 People, which will be on view from June 13 through June 16, 2012, please visit the Art Parcours website.
In addition, as part of the Art Film program at Art 43 Basel, the award winning documentary MARINA ABRAMOVIĆ THE ARTIST IS PRESENT by Matthew Akers will be screened at 11am on Saturday, June 16, followed by a Q&A with Marina Abramović, Jeff Dupre, the film's producer and co-director, and Sean Kelly. For more information on the screening and Art Film, please visit the Art Film website. Also in Basel during the fair, Theater Basel will present the highly regarded Robert Wilson biographical stage piece The Life and Death of Marina Abramović, which stars Marina Abramović, Antony Hegarty and Willem Dafoe. For more information on The Life and Death of Marina Abramović, which will be performed from June 13 through June 15, 2012, please visit the Theater Basel website.
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to get live updates and reminders from us during the fair. For more information on Art 43 Basel and Art Unlimited, please visit the Art 43 Basel website.
Art 43 Basel and Art Unlimited Hours:
Monday, June 11, 4pm to 7pm (Art Unlimited preview, by invitation)
Tuesday, June 12, 11am to 8pm (Art Basel vernissage, by invitation)
Wednesday, June 13, 11am to 8pm (Art Basel vernissage, by invitation)
Thursday, June 14, 11am to 7pm
Friday, June 15, 11am to 7pm
Saturday, June 16, 11am to 7pm
Sunday, June 17, 11am to 7pm
