Vitra Design Museum, Frank Gehry, 1989; Image: Courtesy of Thomas Dix
Cover Vitra Design Museum, Frank Gehry, 1989; Image: Courtesy of Thomas Dix

Don't miss these exhibitions while you're in town

With Art Basel opening to the public today, June 13 and running through Sunday, June 16, contemporary-art lovers visiting the Swiss city should have plenty to take in, especially with several more exhibitions open concurrently to the Swiss fair. Here is a selection of five museum offerings to check out during your stay in Basel.

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Rendering of the film installation by Jürg Egli, on show in the exhibition 'Swim City'  © Image Courtesy of Jürg Egli and the S AM Swiss Architecture Museum
Above Rendering of the film installation by Jürg Egli, on show in the exhibition 'Swim City'; Image Courtesy of Jürg Egli and the S AM Swiss Architecture Museum

This exhibition, curated by Barbara Buser, Andreas Ruby and Yuma Shinohara, draws attention to the urban phenomenon of river swimming.

It focuses particularly on the characteristics and historical development of river swimming in the Swiss cities of Basel, Bern, Zurich and Geneva.

Swim City also features an immersive film installation by electronic media artist Jürg Egli, which allows visitors to discover the four cities from the perspective of a swimmer in the river.

This presentation, which is free of charge, is on show through September 29 at the S AM Swiss Architecture Museum.

Find out more here

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Cy Twombly's 'Untitled' (1957) on show in the exhibition 'Continuing Abstraction'  © Courtesy of Cy Twombly Foundation
Above Cy Twombly's 'Untitled' (1957) on show in the exhibition 'Continuing Abstraction'; Image: Courtesy of Cy Twombly Foundation

"Continuing Abstraction" marks the inaugural exhibition of Gagosian's new pop-up gallery, opening during the Art Basel event.

This group presentation explores the development of abstract art in the United States and Europe from the immediate postwar period to the present.

It features contemporary works by artists such as Theaster Gates and Mark Grotjahn, alongside historical pieces by Cy Twombly and Roy Lichtenstein.

Continuing Abstraction will run through June 16 at Gagosian's pop-up gallery at Rheinsprung 1. Although the show closes along with Art Basel, the space will host a year-long exhibition program starting in September.

Find out more here

This exhibition looks at the ongoing debate in the museum field about the appropriate handling of sensitive objects, such as West African masks and Greek pillars.

These historical artefacts are now increasingly facing repatriation to their country of origin, pushing ethnographic museums to question the motives of their collecting mania.

This presentation also examines how perceptions have changed regarding rare and precious materials such as ivory and gold.

Thirst for Knowledge Meets Collecting Mania will be on show at Museum der Kulturen Basel through January 19, 2020. 

Find out more here

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Installation view of Geumhyung Jeong's 'Homemade RC Toy' (2019) at Kunsthalle Basel  © Image Courtesy of Kunsthalle Basel
Above Installation view of Geumhyung Jeong's 'Homemade RC Toy' (2019) at Kunsthalle Basel; Image: Courtesy of Kunsthalle Basel

This summer, Kunsthalle Basel presents the first solo exhibition in Switzerland of South Korean artist and choreographer Geumhyung Jeong.

The ensemble focuses on the boundaries between animate and inanimate, human and machine, desire and control, through a series of robotic sculptures built from DIY technologies and short films.

Geumhyung Jeong: Homemade RC Toy will also feature Jeong's new performance, in which she interacts with "homemade" robotic sculptures.

The show will run through August 11 at Kunsthalle Basel, which has extended its opening hours during Art Basel.

Find out more here

The Swiss museum will present the first international retrospective outside Asia dedicated to Balkrishna Doshi, who is considered a pioneer of modern architecture in his native India.

The exhibition focuses on numerous projects realized between 1958 and 2014, ranging from urban planning projects to private residences and interiors.

Balkrishna Doshi: Architecture for the People also includes several original works from the 2018 Pritzker Prize laureate, including drawings, models and several full-scale installations.

The retrospective will be on show at Vitra Design Museum until September 8.

Find out more here

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