Art Basel in Switzerland returns to impress art lovers and woo the hearts of its favorite investors. Known to be Art Basel's best edition, this year's edition is already the rage on social media, with celebrities, investors and with art aficionados. Billionaire art dealer Helly Nahmad, convinced a judge to allow him to attend the fair even though he was recently convicted for running a celebrity-studded gambling ring. Nahmad has already set up a booth featuring Picassos priced at $16 million and a Rothko for $50 million. Picasso's “The Women of Algiers,” sold for a record-breaking $179 million at a Christie's auction in London last month, which was six times more than what it went for in 1997. Approximately 300 leading galleries from North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa showcased works of more than 4,000 artists, at the fair, also known as the ‘Olympics of the Art World.' The show is divided into eight sectors that represent various artistic mediums from paintings, sculpture, prints, photography, live performances, symposiums, films and artist talks. You can engage in art activities throughout the city, offered by cultural institutions in Basel. Art Basel drew nearly 100,000 visitors from around the world last year, attracting huge traffic of financial buyers looking for investment opportunities, private collectors and representatives from museums. Juerg Zeltner, head of wealth management at Switzerland's largest bank UBS, said that in a world where interest rates are very weak, people are looking for solid value and are increasingly turning to art. However many have complained about the art fair becoming a commercial sphere and purely an investment opening. Art Basel director Marc Spiegler advised against buying works purely with intentions of financial returns. “My advice for people who want to invest in the art market is buy works that you like, because that way, even if it loses value, you have a work that you like,” he said. “In the time I have been with Art Basel, the art world has become truly global. Artists, gallerists and collectors travelling all around the world engage with each other and learn about different art scenes and art histories.” ‘Unlimited' is a platform for projects that transcend the limitations of norms. The works includes out-sized sculpture and paintings, video projections, installations and live performances. It features 74 projects from galleries participating at the fair. Artists participating are Ai Weiwei, Kenneth Anger, John M. Armleder, Ed Atkins, Kader Attia, Julius von Bismarck, Martin Boyce, Martin Creed, Olafur Eliasson, Hans-Peter Feldmann, Dan Flavin, Gilbert & George, John Gerrard, Shilpa Gupta, Jeppe Hein, Robert Irwin, Jannis Kounellis, Ryan McGinley, Bruce Nauman, Roman Ondák, Pedro Reyes, David Shrigley, Gary Simmons, Lorna Simpson, Sturtevant and Zhang Enli. The ‘Film' sector presents a program of film and video works, selected by Cairo-based film curator Maxa Zoller. The program will also showcase Hassan Hajjaj's new film ‘Karima: A Day in the Life of a Henna Girl', Takashi Murakami's first feature film ‘Jellyfish Eyes' and ‘Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict'. ‘Parcours' is another sector that engages the city's historical sites with site sculptures and live performances. This year will take place around the Münsterplatz area near the Basel cathedral and guided tours will be available in German and English. ‘Statements' will present new solo projects by young, emerging artists. Swiss artist Raphael Hefti will produce aluminum sculptures onsite. The event runs till June 21. Founded in 1970s by gallerists, Art Basel has gone global with three shows on three continents across three time zones. Their annual shows are held in Basel, Hong Kong and Miami.
