Art Basel 2015 Preview

Art Basel 2015 Preview presented at the fair: Cristian Andersen Anton Henning Klaas Kloosterboer Lutz & Guggisberg Muntean/Rosenblum Julian Opie Albrecht Schnider Shirana Shahbazi Marcel van Eeden Ger van Elk Booth S17, hall 2.1 We look forward to welcoming you at the fair! Bob van Orsouw & Team

2 3 Cristian Andersen Danish artist Cristian Andersen s large-scale ceramic works evoke a playful and irreverent attitude toward the formal ideals of classical sculpture. The idiosyncratic and intuitive approach suggests an expansive vision of the genre that combines visual wit and moreover a great material sensibility. His irregular, expressive as formally rigid forms and surfaces often evoke a sense of outsized physicality. While the outright wit definitive of his sculptures still lingers in certain pieces, his most recent work demonstrates a geometric abstraction calling to mind both a classical modernism and elements of art from the 1950 s. Copies, combining figuratively narrative elements with constructively abstract post minimal industrial materials, become the new originals, which play an intriguing game of mimicry with the porcelain-like ceramics. The pastiche of the original sculpture enters a new material existence, the casting of which encapsulates decay, destruction and loss, while the combined relics settle within the reservatory medium ceramics. As a result, actual fragments have been transformed into blocks of complex surfaces. This tactile complexity is mirrored in the painterly works, a series of which are exclusively shown at Art Basel 2015, in combination with his latest piece, Sundaymorning, inspired by this artist s work for one of the three public artworks and commissions he will be unveiling this summer alone. Based in Zurich, Andersen s (b. 1974) work can be found in prestigious international collections, such as the Danish Arts Council; Sittard Fortis Bank; Kunstsammlung der Stadt Zürich, Zurich; The Pizzuti Collection, Columbus, OH; The Speyer Family Collection and Collection of Jill and Peter Kraus, New York; or the Zabludowicz Collection, London. Cristian Andersen Sundaymorning, 2015 Neon lamp, steel, clour pigments, Acrystal Unique within an ed. of 7, plus 1AP 67.5 x 198 x 59 cm / 26 5/8 x 78 x 23 1/4 in ANDER20479

4 5 Anton Henning Anton Henning s creativity knows no bounds. He uses every technique, from painting and drawing, to sculpture, photography, film and music, all the way to environmental installations. But to him, painting is the most important and there are only a few artists who wield brush and paint with such ease and such delight. Like many artists of his generation, Henning works from what is already out there. He plunders archives art historical ones and others and not only stamps them with his personal signature, but absorbs, metabolises, interprets and re-informs them, like a jazz musician. He constantly finds new points of reference and incorporates them into his own. Similarly Henning s latest paintings created especially for Art Basel 2015 are instantly recognisable, perfectly finding their place within the his unique and surreal universe. Furthermore, Henning will be responsible for optics of this year s booth. Born 1964 in Berlin, Henning is one of Germany s leading present-day artists and has become internationally known through exhibitions at Zeppelin Museum Friedrichshafen (2015); Magasin 3, Stockholm (2012); Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst (SMAK), Ghent (2007); Museum für Moderne Kunst (MMK), Frankfurt am Main, Marta Herford, Herford and Museum Haus Esters, Krefeld (2005); Kunstmuseum Luzern (2003); or De Pont Foundation, Tilburg (2002), to name a few. His works can be found in notable collections, such as Arp Museum, Rolandseck, Remagen; Centre National des Arts, Paris; Daros Collection, Zurich; Deutsche Bank Collection; LA County Museum of Art (LACMA); Magasin 3, Stockholm; or The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (LA MOCA). Anton Henning Vanitas Vanitatum Nr. 2, 2015 Oil on canvas each 150 x 120.5 cm / 59 x 47 1/2 in HENNI20480

6 7 Lutz & Guggisberg Swiss artist duo Lutz & Guggisberg will be prominently featured at this year s Art Basel presentation, demonstrating the rampant multiplicity that is their artistic output. On view will be a three-piece video work, Galaxy Evolution Melody, combined with an array of diverse sculptural pieces, visualising a bluster of orderliness that is so typical of their oeuvre on a whole. The absurd as the flip-side of logic, they address the both with a witty abstractive attitude, discharging them to become free again of preconceived significance. The result is an absurdly humorous world of painting, sculpture, performance, installation and film. Andres Lutz (b. 1968) and Anders Guggisberg (b. 1966) have been working together since 1996. Important solo exhibitions include: Museum im Bellpark, Kriens (2014); MUDAM Luxembourg (2013); Museum Boymans van Beuningen in Rotterdam (2010); Centre Culturel Suisse in Paris (2009); Kunstverein Freiburg (2008); Aargauer Kunsthaus (2007); Museum Folkwang Essen and Kunsthalle Zürich (2004). In 2012, the duo, whose works form part of notable Swiss and international collections such as Aargauer Kunsthaus FRAC Franche-Compté, Besançon, Kunsthaus Zürich, Credit Suisse or USB, have received the 2012 UBS Art Award. Other awards they have received were, amongst others, the Manor Kunstpreis St. Gallen and, on no less than three occasions, the Swiss Art Award. Lutz & Guggisberg (clockwise from top left) Flamme/Flame, 2014 (LUGUG20414) Wood and concrete, 64 x 40 x 24 cm / 25 1/4 x 15 3/4 x 9 1/2 in Untitled, 2015 (LUGUG20536) Styrofoam, plaster, and enamel, 38 x 46 x 27 cm / 15 x 18 1/8 x 10 5/8 in Flötenfloss Venus Kepalonia/Flute Raft, 2011 (LUGUG18072) Wood, 43 x 54 x 23 cm / 16 7/8 x 21 1/4 x 9 in pedestal 60 x 80 x 55 cm / 23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 21 5/8 in Mammutmann/Mammoth man, 2006 (LUGUG20534) Burnt clay, enamel, and paint, 36 x 27 x 19 cm / 14 1/8 x 10 5/8 x 7 1/2 in

8 9 Muntean/Rosenblum Markus Muntean and Adi Rosenblum s trademark are paintings and drawings of despondent youths, with integrated text that underline the mood of their figurative work. What they are seeking out in the interaction of image and writing is (aside from any harmonious association) a type of resonance and feedback that aims to increase the emotional power and veracity of the pictorial composition (with the literary quotation functioning here as a multiplying mechanism). Word and painting joining forces from their position of undefined fragility in the ever elusive management of insignificance. That youthfulness is for Muntean/Rosenblum more a question of cultural memory and less of Zeitgeist phenomena: Our work is always read in the context of youth culture, which for us is only one layer of the work and isn t in the foreground. We don t make psychological portraits, we observe and try not to psychologise our observations. General cultural codes and memories actually interest us most. Created especially for the gallery s booth at this year s Art Basel, their latest large-scale work on canvas demonstrates the magnitude of their drawing skills and the continuous evolution thereof. Living and working in Vienna, Markus Muntean (b. 1962, Austria) and Adi Rosenblum (b. 1962, Israel) have been collaborating since 1992. The artist-duo has staged solo shows in renowned institutions such as at Institut für moderne Kunst, Nürnberg (2014); CAC Málaga (2012); Essl Museum Contemporary Art, Klosterneuburg/Vienna (2008); Galerie für Zeitgenössische Kunst, Leipzig (2007); MUSAC, León, SP (2006); or Tate Britain, London (2004) and the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne (2004). Furthermore, they participated in significant international group exhibitions such as Drawing Now, Albertina, Vienna (2015); Les esthétiques d un monde désenchanté, Centre d art contemporain, Meymac (2014); Rewind/Fast Forward, Neue Galerie, Graz (2009); Friendly Enemies, Galerie für Zeitgenössische Kunst, Leipzig (2008); Wann immer vorerst, BA-CA Kunstforum, Vienna (2007); The Triumph of Painting and New Blood, both at Saatchi Gallery, London (2006 and 2005); as well as the 26th São Paulo Biennial (2004) and the 2nd Berlin Biennial (2001). Muntean/Rosenblum Untitled ( Beauty is unbearable ), 2015 Black + white crayon, acrylic on canvas 220 x 147 cm / 86 5/8 x 57 7/8 in MUNRO20495

10 11 Julian Opie With public commissions from Seoul to New York, and an uninterrupted flow of large museum exhibitions around the world, the work of Julian Opie is firmly embedded in the cannon of contemporary art history. At once recognisable, Opie s distinctive formal language reflects his artistic preoccupation with the idea of representation, and the means by which images are perceived and understood. Always at the forefront of digital innovation, Opie explores ways of seeing through reinterpreting the vocabulary of everyday life; his typical, reductive style speaks to both a visual and spatial experience of the world around us. Addressing the fundamentals of classical portraiture, sculpture, and even classical Japanese woodblock prints, the artist connects the slick visual language of modern society and art history. Following the inauguration of his to date largest permanent public art piece, Walk (2014), last year on Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich, Galerie Bob van Orsouw presents his latest figural works at Art Basel, creating a direct link to Opie s sixth solo exhibition at the gallery in Zurich. Combining figures in motion with large-scale wall paintings the exhibition is one to be experienced. Born 1958 in London and graduate of Goldsmith s School of Art, Opie is widely exhibited internationally in renowned institutions, with solo exhibitions at Kunsthalle Helsinki (2015); IVAM, Valencia, Spain (2010); MAK, Vienna (2008); Mito Tower, Japan (2008); CAC Malaga (2006); Neues Museum, Nuremburg (2003); Kunstverein Hannover (1994); and Hayward Gallery, London (1993), to name only a few. Major group shows include the Shanghai Biennale (2006); 11th Biennial of Sydney (1998); documenta 8, Kassel, Germany (1987); or XIIème Biennale de Paris (1985). His works can be found in countless notable public and private collections, such as Kunsthaus Zurich; National Portrait Gallery, The Victoria and Albert Museum, and The Tate Gallery, London; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Museum of Modern Art, New York, and Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh, USA; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; The National Museum of Art, Osaka; Deutsche Bank, Frankfurt; and The National Museum of Modern Art (MoMAT), Tokyo. Julian Opie Soldier and Pilot. 2., 2015 Vinyl on wooden stretcher 221 x 180 cm / 87 x 70 7/8 in OPIE20452

12 13 Albrecht Schnider Swiss artist Albrecht Schnider loves to draw; preferably seven days a week, including Sundays and holidays, he would spend creating hundreds of drawings, despite, however, having devoted himself to painting. For it is these abundant sketched examinations of the world that surrounds him that serve as the basis for the finally very few, perfectly geometrical enamel paintings. Both his flood of drawings and meticulously executed canvases reveal the artist s constant mêlée with art and the question what in actual fact it can achieve? As a result Schnider s works are often described as painting about painting: he is an artist forever on a quest for meaning that hovers somewhere between possibility and potential bareness. Shedding light onto both aspects of his immense pictorial range brand new painterly abstraction as well as figurative drawings will be on view. Born 1958, Schnider is one of the most idiosyncratic painters currently at work in Switzerland, due not so much to his subjects, which comprise the traditional genres of art history, but rather on account of the individual and highly distinctive attitude and direction he follows in terms of both form and content. Major solo shows include Helmhaus Zürich (2014); Kunstmuseum Solothurn (2011); Aargauer Kunsthaus, Aarau (2006). While Schnider s participation in prestigious groupshows include Kunstmuseum Luzern (2015); Aargauer Kunsthaus, Argau and Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht (2014);Museo Cantonale d Arte Lugano, Lugano and Kunsthalle Bremen (2012); Bündner Kunstmuseum, Chur (2011); and Musée royaux d Art et d Histoire, Brüssel (2010), to name only a few. Albrecht Schnider Ohne Titel (Porträt), 2008/2014 Kreide, Bleistift, Pigmentierte Tinte, Atelierspuren auf Papier 70 x 50 cm / 27 1/2 x 19 5/8 in framed ca. 99 x 78 cm / 39 x 30 3/4 in SCHNI20473

14 15 Shirana Shahbazi Shirana Shahbazi s oeuvre reflects an ongoing interest in the relationship between images and their surfaces, as well as between the various artistic media and their iconic qualities. With her latest work, which will be on view for the first time at Art Basel, her investigation seem to have come full circle: Although primarily working as a photographer, Shahbazi has always led a close dialogue with the medium of painting, and has her lead to a lithographic reproduction of her newest photographs, effusing them with an unreal, almost dreamlike quality. Born in 1974 in Tehran, Shahbazi studied photography at the Fachhochschule in Dortmund as well as the Hochschule für Gestaltung und Kunst in Zurich, where she continues to live and work. 2011 the Fotomuseum Winterthur dedicated a comprehensive solo exhibition to her work to date while further solo shows in notable institutions include the Kunsthalle Bern (2014); Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, Centre Culturel Suisse in Paris, and Museum Boijmans van Beuningen in Rotterdam (2008); or Barbican Art Gallery, London, and Swiss Institute, New York (2007). Moreover, Shahbazi participated in the group exhibition New Photography 2012 at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, and her work was seen in 2010 at the Asia Pacific Triennial (APT6), Queensland Art Gallery, South Brisbane and the 8th International Photo Triennial in Esslingen, and the 50th International Venice Biennial in 2003, or in group shows at the Martin-Gropius- Bau, Berlin (2005); London s Photographer s Gallery and Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt (2001), to name a few. Shirana Shahbazi Stuhl, 2014 Lithography on Zerkall Bütten Paper framed in white glazed maple frame, behind non-reflective glass Ed. of 3 (+ 1AP) 64.5 x 50 cm / 25 3/8 x 19 5/8 in framed 66 x 51.5 cm / 26 x 20 1/4 in SHAHB20503

16 17 Marcel van Eeden Van Eeden s paintings and drawings alike utilise a variety of templates, such as photographs, exhibition catalogues, newspaper clippings, magazines and illustrations or even cloth patterns, all of which are taken from the years before his date of birth, 1965. Thus van Eeden constructs fictional stories based on real-life happenings and things that most commonly these relate to his Dutch roots. For the very first time the artist has now turned his focus towards his adopted home, Switzerland, basing his latest, created especially for Art Basel 2015, work-series on Gottfried Keller s famous trio of novels Züricher Novellen. Like the Flaneur that is the protagonist of the novels, van Edeen wanders through Zurich, painting a beautifully eery, dream-like story of the city he now calls home. In an van Eedenesque manner the composition Herr Jaques is produced in aquarelle, a new turning point in the artist s career. Born in 1965 in Den Haag, van Eeden work has been show in numerous notable institutions, with solo exhibitions at GEM, Museum voor actuele Kunst, Den Haag (2014), Tel Aviv Museum of Art (2014), Stroom, The Hague (2014), Gemeentemuseum, The Hague (2013), Museum of Contemporary Art, Calgary (2012), Kunstmuseum St. Gallen (2011), Institut Mathildenhöhe, Darmstadt (2011). Furthermore, he participated in significant international group exhibitions such as the current show Drawing Now, Albertina, Vienna (2015); Ohne Achtsamkeit beachte ich alles, Robert Walser und die bildende Kunst, Aargauer Kunsthaus, Aarau (2014); ARTandPRESS, at Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, and at ZKM Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Karlsruhe. Marcel van Eeden Herr Jacques (Züricher Novellen), 2015 Series of 10 works; Nero pencil and water color on paper (framed) 2 drawings 10 x 25 cm, 3 drawings 19 x 28 cm, 2 drawings 28 x 38 cm, 3 drawings 28 x 76 cm VANEE20522 - VANEE20531

18 19 Ger van Elk At the end of the 1960 s and the early 1970 s, Ger van Elk was an influential contributor to the development of conceptual art in Europe (in particular in Holland and Italy) as well as in the U.S. (Los Angeles). In contrast to some of his rather more dogmatic colleagues, most of van Elk s assemblages, installations, overpainted photographs, films and slide projections admit the expression of very personal emotions. The artist s works were inspired by ongoing dualisms, whether between reality and art, between idea and emotion, surface and depth, presence and absence, or between a meeting and a farewell. Following his recent passing (2014) museum retrospectives at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, and The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (LA MACO) are in planning. Born in 1941 in Amsterdam, van Elk s work has been show in numerous notable institutions, with solo exhibitions at Kunstverein München (2014); Museum Boymans van Beuningen, Rotterdam (1993); Centre National d Art Contemporain de Grenoble (1988); Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Kunsthalle Basel and ARC Musée d Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1980); or Palais des Beaux Arts, Brussels and Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York (1974), to name only very few. Moreover, van Elk s work was seen at the 39th International Venice Biennial in 1980. Hi works for part of notwothy collections, such as Centre Pompidou, Paris; vaious FRACs, France; Huis Marseille stichting voor fotografie, Amsterdam; LA MOCA; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; and Tate Britain, London. Ger van Elk Pulling Babies, 1980 Color photograph on canvas, rubber bands dimensions variabel VANEL20497