Oriental VisArt and the 42nd annual Art Basel

Art Basel, Switzerland’s premier international Art Fair, came to a close this past Sunday, 19 June, 2011. Often referred to as “the Olympics of the art world”, art lovers, collectors, and galleriests from all over the globe were treated to countless different works and presentations at this summer event. Said to have set the record for highest attendance in its history, this year’s Art Basel featured over 300 different galleries and more than 2,500 different Artists.

This year’s Art Basel not only broke records in terms of attendance, but in terms of expectations from majority of the exhibitors. Expectations of the vast majority of exhibitors were far exceeded with the event. Most were pleased to report great contacts and sales had been made to benefit the future of their programmes.

Art Basel is broken down into a different divisions, specialising in different types of works from different Artists. Art Unlimited featured 62 different works, some created specifically for Art Basel. Art Statements featured 27 young Artists from across the globe and Art Parcours, where specific works and performances were held was also a major draw.

Oriental VisArt spent the week in Basel taking in the sites and sounds of this fabulous event. Below are pictures of the great experience. Please enjoy, and hope to see you there next year!

 

Art Parcours 'Ai Weiwei'

Gabriel Orozco, 'Fly stamp collection', chromogenic print, 16 x 20 inches, 2010

Art Unlimited

Galeria Continua

Jaume Plensa, 'The three graces', painted stainless steel, three parts, 203 x 137 x 134cm, Galerie Lelong

Kohei Nawa, 'Polygon-Double-Deer 2', mixed media, 159.3 x 80.3 x 63.2cm, 2011, SCAI the Bath House

Main hall view

Main hall view

Marijke van Warmerdam, 'Up-convolution', acrylic paint, ink jet print on canvas, 2009, Annet Gelink Gallery

Ron Mueck, 'Youth', silicone, polyurethane, steel, synthetic hair, fabric, 107 x 40 x 40cm, 2009, Hause & Wirth

Scope Basel view

Scope Basel view, Kashay Hildebrand Gallery

Sooja Kim, 'To breathe-A mirrow woman', duraclear photographic print in light box, 119 x 89 x 10cm, 2006-2008

Team Gallery

U Ram Choe, 'Winged Tree of God', metalic material, machinery, electronic devices, 79 x 112 x 46cm, 2011, SCAI the Bath House

White Cube

Zhang Ding, 'Next', installation, 300 x 280 x 260cm, 2010, ShangArt

Korean Artist Kim Youn Ji

Kim Youn Ji is Oriental VisArt’s newest member. She was born in Pusan, Korea in 1978 and is currently living and working in Ibarakiken, Japan. In 2001 she earned a B.F.A. in Sculpture from Hong-ik University in Seoul, Korea. She later earned an M.F.A. in Painting at the same university. Kim Youn Ji is currently pursuing an M.F.A. in Inter Media Art at Tokyo University of Art in Tokyo, Japan. She specialises in Installation. Her exhibitions include:

Group Exhibitions
2000	‘Next Generation’	The Headquarter of labor party, Cheolwon, Korea
1999	The outside sculpfest	Hong-ik University, Korea

She says,

“Light’ evokes the first and last moment of life. It also serves as a crucial element for visualising realistic images, which are from subtle illusions from the internal parts of the human body.

In terms of composition, I like transforming clear and various shapes found in nature into unrealistic forms. It conveys sarcastic remarks of a fixed sense that admits only existence of a familiar and fixed form.

My views suggested in my work signify infinite attachment to original forms of nature. Mechanisms that are like a state of play will be created to tell hidden stories and secrets.

The theme of my work is to create interesting stories that can be visualised and understood by the audience through their own eyes and through that moment space-time goes crooked and illusion is made.”

Please enjoy her work images and video!

'Cross over'

'That of that' , cloth, cotton, thread, needle, 2000

'The Surface', wire, string, acrylic and sand on plywood, 120 x 50 x 170 cm, 1996

Indian Artist ‘Akshay R.S. Rathore’

Akshay R.S. Rathore was born in 1978, in Chindwara (Madhya Pradesh) India, he is a visual Artist based in New Delhi, where is he has also been practicing as a creative director for advertisements, publications and set design.

He was given a B.F.A. from the Faculty of Fine Arts, M.S. University, Baroda and a PG from National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.

Trained as an animator, his first film, Swayambhuva, explores the concept of creation, sustenance and destruction derived from the mythology of Shiva’s dance (Nataraja). It was largely acclaimed for it combines a modernist/scientific view of life seen through the scales of time, space and matter; from one unknown end of a sub-atomic world to the other end of the infinite cosmos, arising questions such as who we are and what is our existence at a micro and macro level.

Since his first film, he has been experimenting with various media (drawing, photography, sculpture, animation, sound and installations) to address issues of violence at all levels, from the internal to the societal, always keeping latent the promise of an immanent harmony.

In his current work, modern weapon imagery become decorative items shaping peace, beauty or gives a feel of happiness. In the hands of the artist, weapons become passive and almost absurd.

His recent participation to group shows/residencies include: Soilbite, Khoj Bihar (2009), Sandarbh International Artists Residency, Partapur, Rajasthan(2009), Outer Circle, Arts.i Gallery, New Delhi, India (2008), Satyagraha, A Soul Force, India Festival, Johannesburg and Durban, South Africa (2008).

Enjoy his work images!

‘Dreamer’, installation, 2010

‘Dreamer’- detail, 2010

‘Hustle & Bustle’

‘Hustle & Bustle’- detail

‘When she is away’

Exhibition view I

Exhibition view II

Chinese Artist ‘Qiang Wang’

Qiang Wang was born in Heilongjiang Province, China and he is currently living and working in Beijing, China. He is specialised in painting, mixed media and new media. He was received a B.F.A. from Central Academy of Fine Arts, Bejing and he is a member of Northern Wilderness Printmaking Group. He became a freelance Artist soon after graduating from the Center Academy of Fine Arts. He lost all he could lose for this freedom. The only thing he has achieved is the independent right of thinking on social problems.

He is a sensitive person who can always seize typical social issues in rapidly changing society of China. Except for persistent thinking about money and desire, he can response quickly to some accidental social problems as well. China experienced horrible SARS epidemic in 2003. Qiang Wang created some paintings, installations and action art, such as <<City Tablets>>, <<City Virus>> and <<Blue Sky is Unguarded>>, which illustrated his thinking about the issue.

‘Bicycles’ were brilliant landscape in Chinese cities. But bicycles and related life felt squeezed with cars increasing rapidly in number. This kind of squeezing is not only physical, but also psychological. For instance, paths for bicycles are more and more narrow, and cyclists feel increasingly inferior and helpless. The large-scale installation <<The Plateau of Life>> illustrates his profound thinking about changes in Chinese cities. One hundred bikes were squashed one by one under the pressure of 5000 tons. These 100 flattened bikes were neatly laid out by him in the exhibition hall of Today Museum, creating the spectacular and sad impression. The exhibition of this installation was like a farewell ceremony to an era. Those squashed bicycles lying on the floor have lost the power of outbreak in silence.

His clothing series have been existing for a long time, but we can see his continual thinking about this topic through his different choices to clothes. At first he drew female nudes inside his used tops, which indicated that the issue he focused on then had obvious personal. The conflict in above series is embodied by him, or by other young people like him. Personal problem then developed into social one while he took military uniform as material. Young men and ‘Mao’ transformed into military life of male supremacy. The ambiguious relationship between flesh and clothes, became the one between power and flesh. Social issue turned into philosophy question when he used transparent material to make clothes. That is, social issue developed into the thinking about phenomenological significance between cover and display. Transparent clothes are no longer real clothes, which makes his art works possess surrealistic characteristics.

Enjoy his work images!! 

‘Bicycles‘ process, 2008, Beijing, China

 

 

 

 

‘Bicycles’, 2008, Beijing, China

 

‘The Plateau of Life’, installation, Today Museum, Beijing, China, 2008

 

‘The Plateau of Life’, Today Museum, 2008, Beijing, China

 

‘Clothes’ series I

 

‘Clothes’ series II

 

‘Clothes’ series, III

 

‘Clothes’ series, IV

Art scenes in Beijing

I (Kayla) and the General Manager (Janis) went to Beijing 5 – 10 April. What we first said was ‘Wow’ when we arrived at the airport. Things are huge and people are so energetic. It was definitely too short to see even Art scenes there. Today I’m going to briefly talk about 798 Art District, Chaochangdi Village and Sonzhuang Village.

798 Art District is the most famous Art Zone in Beijing. There are the zone A, B, C, D and E and we spent so much time on finding some places as the information on the maps was often wrong. We got to know the reason why. Some galleries move into a new place quite often so that some maps cannot be corrected every time.

We visited many galleries for two days and where we most liked were New Age Gallery, Photo Gallery, Pifo Gallery, Gallery TN, 3181 Cool Gallery, Star Gallery and Yan Club Arts Centre. Some Galleries present well-known Artists but many are concentrating on new generation. It was good to catch local trends and see some new works from new Artists. We had an opportunity to visit Gao Brother’s studio with Ms. Melanie Ouyang Lum who is the owner of ML Art Source in Beijing. She helped us a lot to find some places and gave us great advice of Chinese Contemporary Arts. She is enthusiastic to promote Chinese Contemporary Arts and that encouraged us a lot as well.

Chaochangdi Village is located near 798 Art District but the Galleries have bigger size space so that we could see more installations and video arts there. Established galleries and foreign Galleries are located there so that Artists are also more established compared to 798 Art District. We enjoyed the group show at the Platform China. One thing that was very inconvenient was that there are no maps or directions in the village. Without a local person you would spend much time on finding a place as it is a huge area.

Songzhuang Village has about 3,000 artists’ studios and about 100 foreign Artists work from there. We visited only about 10 studios due to our time limit. This place seems to be mixed with different standards of Artists and different age groups. Many places were under construction and the same brick houses were impressive. I would like to visit during the Songzhuang Art Festival in Sept 2010.

Overall, time was too short- as you can imagine how Beijing is big!! It was more to explore Chinese Contemporary Arts and meet local Artists so I think that we could do everything much easier next time.

Entrance of 798 Art District

798 Art District

From Chaochangdi (Platform Gallery)

Group show ‘Jungle’ at Platform Gallery

Installation by famed Architect ‘Ma Yansong’ and Danish-Icelandic Artist ‘Olafur Eliasson’: UCCA