Art Asia
ART ASIA Basel will present a highly selective list of international galleries showcasing the finest examples of paintings, drawings, prints, photography, sculpture, mixed media, installations, and video from both established and emerging Asian artist. In addition, through a partnership/special alliance with National Treasure Funds of China, China Foundation for the Development of Social Culture, an organization affiliated with the Ministry of Culture of China, ART ASIA will further develop academic and cultural exchange programs and introduce a wider audience to Asian contemporary art.

Title: Repositioning Chinese Art following the Downturn
Curator: Victoria Lu, Shanghai MOCA and Dr. Caprice Horn
Artists: Artists include: Li Wei, Maleonn, Edgar Martins, Matthew Carver.

This is The SCOPE Foundation’s second curated survey exhibition dedicated to contemporary Asian art. The Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai (MOCA Shanghai) is the first non-profit, independently-operated contemporary art institution in Shanghai. Endorsed by the Shanghai Municipal Government and funded by the Samuel Kung Foundation, MOCA Shanghai is devoted to the promotion of Chinese and international contemporary art. Many of the artists included have substantial exhibition records or are on the brink of larger international recognition. A panel discussion featuring Arthur Duncan, Sally Chu, Victoria Lu and Dr. Caprice Horn look at collecting contemporary Chinese art during the global financial downturn.

Tommy Hilfiger presents -
“You and I will be together in the end”
New York visual artist, Reed Barrow, will be producing “You and I will be together in the end”. A kinetic sculptural installation inspired by the poetic nature of the cosmos. Using the architecture of the space, the artist uses holes in the wall to create 5m smoke ring vortices that hurl towards each other, colliding in the middle of the space in a singular explosion of smoke.

Arróniz Arte Contemporanea - Arróniz is a Mexico City gallery focusing on contemporary emerging art highlighting works on paper, painting, photography and installation. Arróniz represents artists from all over the world contextualizing the international art landscape with the select works of a few young emerging art world sensations.
Highlighted Artist: Arróniz is bringing to SCOPE Basel a collection of photographs by artist Mark Powell which focus on small unsentimental moments and uncomfortable situations challenging traditional photographic perceptions.

Pool Gallery - One of the top emerging Berlin artist-run galleries, Pool Gallery was founded in 2006 by Lars Dittrich and S.Ruby Anemic. Pool represents emerging artists commenting on the landscape of the contemporary art-world led by Anemic’s sharp curatorial eye, Pool focuses on young artists from all over the world working in a range of media.
Highlighted Artists: Amy Stein will be one of the represented artists Pool is bringing to Basel. Stein’s work has been gaining international recognition and in 2006 she won a Saatchi Gallery/Guardian Prize for her Domesticated series. Some images from this series will be featured at SCOPE.

Galerie LJ - Showcasing next-generation artists on the rise, Galerie LJ is located in Paris, France. Galerie LJ carries work exclusively by American and French-born artists who focus on edgier work. LJ owner Adeline Jeudy has a knack for seeking out new talent in specific markets that focus on often subversive cultural influences.
Highlighted Artists: Galerie LJ brings work by two powerhouse artists AJ Fosik and Olivier Kosta-Théfaine to SCOPE Basel this year. Fosik’s pieces call into question cultural assumptions combined with the seemingly familiar yet distinctly uncomfortable subject matter. Kosta- Théfaine started as one of the most well known graffiti artists in France in the ‘90s. His interest in logos and branding carries over to his current body of work. He is concerned with ideas of class bringing codes originally associated with the ghetto to the white walls of a gallery space.

Bonelli Arte Contemporanea - Italian gallery Bonelli Arte Contemporanea brings the works of three artists to Basel this year. All three are either of Italian descent or are currently working in Italy, thus giving a good overview of the emerging Italian art landscape.
Highlighted Artist: William Marc Zhanghi will be one of Bonelli’s featured SCOPE Artists and his work has appeared in group and solo shows all over Italy. Zhanghi’s work often features dark subject matter depicted in light-hearted bright colours, making his work somewhat ironic and visually dramatic.

Galerie Nikolaus Ruziska - Founded in 2004 in Salzburg, Germany, Galerie Nikolaus Ruziska focuses on both emerging and mid-career artists.
Highlighted Artists: This year the gallery brings the work of Vienna-born artist Brigitte Kowanz to SCOPE Basel whose large and small light installations have been prominently featured in exhibitions all over the world. In Kowanz’s work light appears as both theme and material, playing with ideas of perception and visual language.

Galerie Rätus Casty – One of the newer art galleries on the scene, Galerie Rätus Casty, showcases primarily European artists mostly Swiss and German born.
Highlighted Artists: Galerie Rätus Casty is featuring works by artists Ekkehard Tischendorf, Irene Grau, Vera Ida Müller and Birgit Widmer. Tischendorf’s semi-apocalyptic works focus on ideas of present-day terrors he sees on a daily basis in contemporary society. He represents the growing popularity of young emerging artists in Germany who are attracting a lot of attention.

Wilde Gallery – The Wilde Gallery located in Berlin, Germany, has successfully taken many “street” artists and given them a voice in a commercial studio setting in such a way that has made Wilde one of the most important contemporary emerging art galleries in Germany.
Highlighted Artists: Following a tremendous success at SCOPE New York, Wilde Gallery joins SCOPE at Basel bringing with them the works from renowned “street” artists like Evol and Kenna Apatrida. Evol’s “street art” stencils represent a take on ideas of studio-to-street art and the contrasting cultural and political questions this brings up. Both artists confront the issue of public versus private space and how art can address this.

Fabio Paris – Founded in 2000 the Fabio Paris Art Gallery is located in Bresoia, Italy. Representing a wide range of contemporary artists, Fabio Paris chooses to focus on the present, addressing man’s increasingly complicated relationship with nature, technology, commercialism and the environment.
Highlighted Artists: Returning to SCOPE Basel for a second time, Fabio Paris brings works by Eva and Franco Mattes aka 0100101110101101.org, Yumi Karasumaru, Alison Mealey, Eddo Stern, and UBERMORGEN.COM.

Charest Weinberg – Located in the Wynwood district of Miami, Charest Weinberg gallery showed with SCOPE for the first time in New York this year. Opening its doors in Miami in the spring of 2008 and showing artists from around the world, Charest-Weinberg brings the work of Marc Seguin to SCOPE Basel this year.
Highlighted Artist: Marc Seguin’s work has been presented all over the world and his most recent body of work focuses on the materiality of art making while simultaneously turning a critical eye to socio-political nuances dealing with patriotism and what it means to be or not to be American.

Galleria Pack – Located in Milan, Galleria Pack is a newcomer to SCOPE. Representing cutting edge artists, Galleria Pack opened its doors in 2001 offering an ambitious range of Italian and international artists both up and coming and with an established presence. Paying particular attention to new media, the gallery focuses on artists implementing new technologies to explore various means of creation and installation.
Highlighted Artist: Artist Matteo Bassilé combines traditional photography with new technology to create powerful images linking ideas of humanity to new means of artistic creation.

SCOPE’S main objective with its community outreach programme is to inspire the future young artists of Basel and to support the local community it visits each year. Through its various initiatives, SCOPE hopes to build a bridge with each location through art and art- related activities, aiming to be a positive influence within all the communities it touches.

Follow the Leader – Follow the leader through the first ever kids guided tour. By kids – for kids!
Copy Cat – SCOPEkids will tour the art show and mimic their favorite art piece through costumes or paint using themselves as the canvas.
Leaving Their Tracks - SCOPEkids will tour their favorite sections of the art show leaving their mark on the floor beneath them so other children will be able to follow their lead.
Let’s Build a Fort! - SCOPEkids will build their own fort on the lawn of Sportplatz Landhof and have a secret meeting to discuss the art inside the pavilion.