ART BASEL | CONVERSATIONS

Art Basel’s stimulating Conversations series allows audiences to deepen their knowledge of artistic practice, the international artworld, and the art market. The daily artist talks, panels, and discussions give the audience access to the thoughts of important artworld players – artists, curators, critics, gallerists, and collectors – who offer their unique perspectives on producing, collecting, and exhibiting art. Conversations is programmed by Mari Spirito, Founding Director of Protocinema, Istanbul/New York.

Conversations is held daily from Wednesday, June 14, to Sunday, June 18, Hall 1 auditorium of Art Basel, free public access.

All Conversations panels are streamed live at artbasel.com/basel/conversations, where videos of the panels will also be available after the show.

WEDNESDAY JUNE 14

10am to 11:30am
Premiere | Artist Talk | Annette Messager

Renowned French visual artist Annette Messager discusses her work and practice with Dr. Maria Balshaw, newly appointed director of Tate. Messager was born in France in 1943 and attended the École des Arts Décoratifs from 1962 to 1966 where she started producing Surrealist-style sculptures. She is known for creating installations for which she uses large-scale images to explore the human body. Amongst winning numerous art prizes, Messager has exhibited in solo shows around the world, such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Centre Georges-Pompidou in Paris, and the Bonner Kunstverein in Bonn.

Annette Messager, Artist, Malakoff, in conversation with Dr. Maria Balshaw, Director, Tate, United Kingdom

4pm to 5pm
Collector Talk | Private Collections Ascension

Leon Amitai, Collector, Bogotá/New York; Maja Hoffmann, Art Patron, Founder of LUMA Foundation, Zurich Moderator: Linda Yablonsky, Writer, and Columnist, Artforum, New York

THURSDAY JUNE 15

10am to 11:30am
Public/Private | New Rules: Is the Artworld a Mature Industry?

Across the artworld, established but opaque ways of doing business are increasingly seen as a hindrance, not an advantage. Governments are eager to enact regulations and investment-minded collectors are pressing for greater transparency. It is no longer a question of whether data becomes available, but when, and on whose terms. The institutional sector is also under scrutiny, as funders demand clarity about private interests. How will the artworld keep up and how can the art market be modernized without stifling its dynamism?

Lindsay Pollock, former Editor-in-Chief, Art in America, New York; Olav Velthuis, Professor, Department of Sociology at University of Amsterdam, and President, TIAMSA, Amsterdam; Adam Sheffer, Partner, Cheim & Read, and President, Art Dealers Association of America, New York; Pierre Valentin, Partner, Constantine Cannon LLP, London; Bob Rennie, Collector, Vancouver Moderator: András Szántó, Author and Cultural Consultant, New York

2pm to 3pm
Museum Talk | Reconsidering Museum Growth

Beatrix Ruf, Director, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Frances Morris, Director, Tate Modern, London Moderator: Nina Siegal, Freelance Contributor, The New York Times, Amsterdam

5pm to 6pm
Biennale Talk | Two Approaches: The Postcolonial & The Personal

Gabi Ngcobo, Curator, 10th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art, Berlin; Elmgreen & Dragset, Artists, Curators 15th Istanbul Biennial, Berlin Moderator: Georgina Adam, Editor-at-large, The Art Newspaper, London

6pm to 7pm
Collector Talk | My Journey as Collector

Wilhelm Schürmann, Collector and Photographer, Herzogenrath, in conversation with Susanne Titz, Director, Städtisches Museum Abteiberg, Mönchengladbach

3pm to 4pm
Artist Talk | Do Artists Need to Leave Africa to be Successful?

Candice Breitz, Artist, Berlin; Zanele Muholi, Artist and Visual Activist, Johannesburg Moderator: Valerie Kabov, Editor-at-Large, Art Africa Magazine, Harare

4pm to 5pm
Artist Talk | Russian Conceptualism: Silent Resistance

Vadim Zakharov, Artist, Berlin; Margarita Tupitsyn, Independent Scholar, Curator, and Critic, New York Moderator: Ekaterina Inozemtseva, Senior Curator, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow

5pm to 6pm
Artist Talk | Artificial Lives

Aparna Rao, Artist, Pors & Rao, Bangalore/Zurich, in conversation with Alia Al-Senussi, Art Patron, London

FRIDAY JUNE 16

10am to 11:30am
Artist Talk | Artists' Influencers

Conceived by Hans Ulrich Obrist, this series brings together artists with the individuals who have been of great influence to the development of their artistic practice. In this edition, the artists' influencer is a leading figure in the art community: It brings together French artist Dominique Gonzalez- Foerster with Kasper König, artistic director of Skulptur Projekte Münster 2017, where Gonzalez-Foerster will exhibit. This panel is addressing their relationship, as well as their artistic visions.

Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Artist, Paris; Kasper König, Artistic Director, Skulptur Projekte Münster 2017, Berlin Moderator: Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director, Serpentine Galleries, London

2pm to 3pm
Art Market Talk | Bricks-and-Mortar & Acquisitions

Anthony Reynolds, Founder and Director, Anthony Reynolds Gallery, London; Janice Guy, Co-Owner, former Murray Guy, New York Moderator: Josh Baer, Advisor and Publisher, Baer Faxt, New York

3pm to 4pm
Artist Talk | Social Practice Changes

Sue Williamson, Artist, Cape Town; Carlos Garaicoa, Artist, Havana/Madrid Moderator: Gianni Jetzer, Curator of Art Basel’s Unlimited sector, and Curator-at-Large, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C.

4pm to 5pm
Photography Talk | The Future(s) of Photography

Thomas Zander, Owner, Galerie Thomas Zander, Cologne; Philip Tinari, Director, Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing; Nathalie Herschdorfer, Director, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Le Locle Moderator: Tobia Bezzola, Director, Museum Folkwang, Essen

5pm to 6pm
Artist Talk | Fluidity of Identity

Claire Atherton, Film Editor, Paris; Rania Stephan, Filmmaker and Artist, Beirut Moderator: Kathleen Bühler, Curator, Kunstmuseum Bern, Zürich

SATURDAY JUNE 17

10am to 11:30am
Artworld Talk | Cohabitation & What is wrong with Ecological Art

This talk debates the different perspectives and problems on our planet, concerning exploitation of labor, extraction of minerals, and its consequences. It addresses issues of cohabitation in terms of living in the same time and spaces where different worlds and cosmo-visions exist simultaneously, the paradigm of the modern man, and culture. Is making art on these issues self-important and contributing itself to waste? And what is the role of art in general in this context?

Lara Almarcegui, Artist, Rotterdam; Julian Charrière, Artist, Berlin; Luise Faurschou, Founder and Director, ART 2030 and Faurschou Art Resources, Copenhagen Moderator: Ana Paula Cohen, Independent Curator, Editor and Writer, São Paulo

2pm to 3pm
Creative Cities Talk | Culture for Urban Identity

Abraham Cruzvillegas, Artist, Mexico City; Bernard Khoury, Architect and Designer, Beirut; Afroditi Panagiotakou, Director of Culture, Onassis Foundation, Athens Moderator: Mark Rappolt, Editor-in-Chief, ArtReview, London

3pm to 4pm
Museum Talk | Jerusalem Lives

Yazan Khalili, Artist, Ramallah, in conversation with Reem Fadda, Independent Curator, Amman

4pm to 5pm
Artist Talk | Oh the Humanity!

Cécile B. Evans, Artist, London, in conversation with Susanne Pfeffer, Director, Fridericianum, Kassel, and Curator, German Pavillon, 57th Venice Biennale

5pm to 6pm
Curator Talk | Archives and the Digital Dark Age

Glenn Phillips, Curator and Head of Modern & Contemporary Collections, Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles; Sabih Ahmed, Senior Researcher, Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong Moderator: Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director, Serpentine Galleries, London

SUNDAY JUNE 18

10am to 11:30am
Artist Talk | The Artist and the Gallerist

This panel offers a frank and informal conversation about the unique and fundamental relationship between artists and their gallerists. American artist Stanley Whitney speaks with gallerist Claes Nordenhake about how they met, how they came to work together, and if and how their working relationship has changed over time. What is the significance of this relationship and how does it differ from other relationships? What have they learned from each other and what are their plans for the future?

Stanley Whitney, Artist, New York/Parma; Claes Nordenhake, Founder and Director, Galerie Nordenhake, Berlin/Stockholm Moderator: Alexie Glass-Kantor, Executive Director, Artspace, Sydney

2pm to 3pm
Artist Talk | Nurture vs. Promotion: Young Artists

Giovanni Carmine, Director, Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, St. Gallen; Gina Folly, Artist, Basel Moderator: Irene Calderoni, Curator, Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin

3pm to 4pm
Art Market Talk | The Social Media Art Market

Amadeo Kraupa-Tuskany, Founder and Director, Kraupa-Tuskany Zeidler, Berlin; Tobias Gombert, Collector, Basel Moderator: Astrid Mania, Art Critic and Author, Berlin

4pm to 5pm
Artist Talk | The Stage as Safe Space

Samuel Leuenberger, Curator of Art Basel’s Parcours sector, Director and Curator of SALTS, Birsfelden; Than Hussein Clark, Artist, London/Hamburg; Marvin Gaye Chetwynd, Artist, Glasgow Moderator: Jane Morris, Editor-at-large, The Art Newspaper, and Contributor, The Economist, London