In a more volatile market and political environment, this edition proved that there continues to be a strong demand for high-quality works when premier international galleries and leading collectors from across the world come together. This year’s edition received widespread praise for its strong booth presentations and for the powerful artistic positions, many poignantly responding to the current socio-political situation within Europe and further afield. The show, whose Lead Partner is UBS, brought together 286 premier galleries from 33 countries, presenting the very best contemporary and historical material by around 4,000 artists.
This year saw a strong list of galleries participating in the show for the first time, including: Johan Berggren Gallery (Malmö), Carroll / Fletcher (London), Grimm (Amsterdam), Maisterravalbuena (Madrid), Sprovieri (London), Galeria Stereo (Warsaw) and Waldburger Wouters (Brussels) from Europe; Bergamin & Gomide (São Paulo), Corbett vs. Dempsey (Chicago), Derek Eller Gallery (New York), Foxy Production (New York), Moran Bondaroff (Los Angeles), Pace/MacGill Gallery (New York), Simone Subal Gallery (New York), ULAE (Bay Shore) and Van Doren Waxter (New York) from the Americas; and Selma Feriani Gallery (Sidi Bou Said) from Africa.
Art Basel 2016 attracted an attendance of 95,000 across the six show days. Demonstrating its position as the central meeting point for the international artworld, artists in attendance at this year’s Art Basel show included: Davide Balula, Hans Op de Beeck, AA Bronson, Tracey Emin, Zhang Enli, Zeng Fanzhi, Cao Fei, Alfredo Jaar, Christian Jankowski, Alison Knowles, Joseph Kosuth, Jannis Kounellis, Michael Landy, Jonathan Monk, Oscar Murillo, Pope.L, Robin Rhode, James Turrell, Haegue Yang, Ding Yi and Samson Young. Leading private collectors from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa attended this year, as well as representatives from over 300 distinguished museums and institutions, including: The Art Institute of Chicago; Astrup Fearnley Museet, Oslo; Bass Museum of Art, Miami Beach; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C.; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid; Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporáneo, Mexico City; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo; the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York; The National Museum of Art, Osaka; Palais de Tokyo, Paris; Serpentine Galleries, London; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Tate, London; and The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing.
