Discover our Conversations program in Basel

Held in Hall 1.1 auditorium, Messeplatz, Basel, the Conversations program kicks off on Wednesday, June 13 at 10am with the Premiere Artist Talk featuring Iraqi-American artist Michael Rakowitz, in conversation with curator and Head of the Art Institue HGK FHNW Chus Martinez. From Friday to Sunday, the 1pm panels take place on Messeplatz as part of this year's Messeplatz Project - 'Basilea'. 

In Art Basel’s 2018 Basel show, our Conversations series brings together 19 panels with leading international artists, gallerists, collectors, and more, programmed by Founding Director of Protocinema Mari Spirito. Watch the talks live-streamed on our Basel Conversations page here.

Programs include:

Premiere Artist Talk | Michael Rakowitz
Wednesday, June 13, 10am - 11:30am

Iraqi-American artist Michael Rakowitz 

his work with curator and art historian Chus Martinez. Rakowitz is best known. 

Museum Talk | Museums in a Global Narrative
Wednesday, June 13, 3pm - 4pm

Increasingly, the world's most respected museums have expanded their reach beyond their own homelands. This panel investigates what it means to bring an institution to new audiences across different cultures. 

Art World Talk | Sexism in the Art World
Wednesday, June 13, 4pm - 5pm

This is a panel brings together a range of voices and perspectives on the issue of sexism in the art community, how it is emerging from the shadows, and constructive ways to move forward.

Museum Talk | Focus - The Rise of the Single-Artist Museum
Wednesday, June 13, 5pm - 6pm

Directors from some of the world's leading single-artist museums assess their legacy and debate their future.

Public / Private | What can a Biennial do?
Thursdayday, June 14, 10am - 11:30am

Biennials provide a point of convergence for the artworld, expose large audiences to art, and catalyze interest in cities and regions with global aspirations. But along with their popularity also come questions and concerns, for example: How can such enormous events achieve impact and propose a strong curatorial point of view. 

Art Market Talk | Blockchain and the Artworld
Thursdayday, June 14, 2pm - 3pm

Artists, curators, and visionaries come together to discuss the potential impact of blockchain on art, the art community, and the world overall. 

Artist Talk | Artists' Philanthropy and Social Responsibility
Thursday, June 14, 3pm - 4pm

The number of the artist-endowed foundations has grown rapidly in the past year. This rising impulse for artists to set up foundation and non-profits that support younger artists or their local communities today plays an ever more significant role in shaping cultural philanthropy.

Artist Talk | Performance Beyond the Body
Thursday, June 14, 4pm - 5pm

Performance in the art context has had a great effect on both the role of the viewer/participant, and also on the object (the perception of the artwork). Given developments in the digital realm, such as animation and interactive software, relationships between the body and performer have taken major steps. What are the limitations of preformative arts, if any? Could performance exist without a body?  

Art Market Talk | Ethics of Exporting Gallery Models
Thursday, June 14, 5pm - 6pm

Galleries developed in Western markets have become increasingly global by expanding in parallel to the growth of the interconnected and highly-networked business field. What does it mean for culturally diverse artworld professionals to adopt these gallery models? How do galleries support art communities across regions? Or do they even hinder them? Gallerists with diverse cultural backgrounds operating galleries have adapted to survive in several locales, and evaluate the ethics of exporting gallery models while respecting different ways of working. 

Art World Talk | Society, Politics, and the Art System
Friday, June 15, 10am - 11:30pm

In a moment of great societal change, where growing numbers of artists across the globe are making art about social justice, this conversation focuses on social justice in the art system itself. How are the roles of patrons, museum directors, and curators shifting to support voices for social change and where might they be falling short? 

Conversations on Messeplatz | Self-Construction, Self-Governance
Friday, June 15, 1pm - 2pm

The panelists discuss the active role we have as citizens to intervene, reflect upon, and transform a given environment.

Art Market Talk | The Impact of Data on the Market
Friday, June 15, 2pm - 3pm

How have major shifts in art market studies and data distribution affected art-market growth and fluidity? What effects have yet to come? How do private collections access and use these new modes?.

Artists Talk | Lynn Hershman Lesson
Friday, June 15, 3pm - 4pm

Coinciding with Lynn Hershman Leeson's first solo show in Switzerland at HeK (House of Electronic Arts Basel), this conversation takes on the aritst's long-term work and obsession of biological progress, developments in artificial intelligence, and scientific research on antibodies.