Art Basel preview: the best talks, exhibitions and installations you should check out

GALLERIES

Of the Indian participants in the Galleries section this year, GallerySKE, a now-staple, returns alongside Kolkata-based Experimenter Gallery and Chemould Prescott Road of Mumbai. GallerySKE will feature the work of Sakshi Gupta, Dia Mehta Bhupal, Pors and Rao, Sudarshan Shetty, Sunil Parwal, Avinash Veeraraghavan and Bharti Kher.

Chemould Prescott Road brings together artists such as Atul Dodiya, Shipla Gupta, Dhruvi Acharya, Jitish Kallat, Mithu Sen, Rashid Rana, Reena Kallat and Sonia Khurana. Experimenter gallery will showcase the work of Prabhakar Pachpute.

MULTIDISCIPLINARY: UNLIMITED

The Unlimited section, curated by New York-based Gianni Jetzer, will see 76 large-scale installations—as the name suggests, the Unlimited section is reserved for works that break the boundaries of conventional art displays.

Among the notable works this year are the visually arresting installation by Sue Williamson, “Messages from the Atlantic Passage”, which hauntingly draws attention to the slave trade in the 19th century. Mickalene Thomas' “Do I Look like a Lady? (Comedians and Singers)”, celebrates the diversity of womanhood. One to certainly keep an eye out for is Subodh Gupta's “Cooking the World”, where, under a canopy crafted out of cooking utensils from around the world is a culinary performance allows audiences to witness the creation of—and also enjoy—helpings of saffron yogurt and lentil soup.

TALKS

On June 15, Bangalore-based Aparna Rao, one half of Pors and Rao, will discuss her artistic practice—and the technical know-how behind it—with Alia Al-Senussi of London.

When one makes art about social issues—whether political, social or ecological—is one making a difference, or is one merely creating another wasteful, self-important commodity? Artists Lara Almarcegui, Julian Charriere join Louise Faurshcou in a talk on “Cohabitation and What is wrong with Ecological Art” on June 17.

June 18 will see gallery director Giovanni Carmine and artist Gina Folly discuss the promotion of emerging artists, the nature of digital self-promotion, and the pros and cons of being offered a platform early in one's career.

PARCOURS NIGHT

On June 17, Parcours Night will see various locations around Münsterplatz come alive with special evening performances, extended museum hours and—as the metaphorical icing on the cake—food trucks serving diverse cuisines and drinks through the night.

Among notable performances are Than Hussein Clark's theatrical exploration of the themes of fact versus fiction, autonomy and narrative, “Yes, Yes, All the News that's Fit to Print”, and Eric Hattan and Julian Sartorius' “Chelsea Musicales”, where they repurpose everyday objects to playfully alter and question our perception. Hans Berg will perform “Live Electronics”, remixing his own old work into new electronic compositions.

Art Basel will run from June 15 to June 18, 2017. Visitor information can be viewedhere.