The trends of the Paris Art Basel 2024 fair

Due to the crisis context deplored by art market players in recent months, the general trend regarding the choice of exhibited artists reflected great caution. Indeed, many of the names presented were historical, sought-after, and already had a well-established reputation in the art market. There were few surprises from the medium and large galleries, which exhibited their "safe bets," bringing together major contemporary artists and masters of the 20th century.

An initial tour of the fair revealed works by Anish Kapoor at Continua, Olafur Eliasson with his Power Tower exhibited at the Neugerriemschneider gallery stand, Jean-Michel Othoniel at Perrotin and the Korean gallery Kukje, and Daniel Buren at Cardi or Bortolami.

A sublime canvas by Miriam Cahn was presented by the Meyer Riegger gallery (Berlin, Karlsruhe), of considerable size (185 x 180 cm) and unequivocally powerful in its choice of subject. Sold for €182,000 on the first day of the fair, its presence on the stand allowed the gallery to communicate about several other works by the artist (drawings on photographs and canvases), visible in reserve. The doors opened onto a striking work by Miriam Cahn: an oil on canvas evoking a bloody childbirth scene, emblematic of her violent body of work. The Jocelyn Wolff gallery presented three charcoal drawings on paper, powerful portraits that gave a foretaste of the "devoir-pleurer" exhibition dedicated to Miriam Cahn, taking place in Romainville.

The number of paintings, sculptures, and installations was significant, with an emphasis on figuration, which is increasingly gaining momentum year after year. Textile art was very well represented, as were works using glass, which easily captured the attention of visitors (Damien Hirst, Olafur Eliasson, Tarik Kiswanson, Anish Kapoor, etc.). Photography, a little more discreet but still present despite the arrival of Paris Photo in early November, was illustrated by big names such as the German couple Bernd and Hilla Becher. The presence of monumental works remained timid, but not disturbing since the Basel fair has made it its specialty. As for video art and digital art, largely absent from the Paris Art Basel fair, a rare example was noted on the Exo Exo gallery stand with video installations by the emerging artist Lou Fauroux.

Some galleries nevertheless chose to exhibit young artists, mainly to increase their notoriety and give them international visibility. This was the case for Edgard Sarin or Rayan Yasmineh, both graduates of the Beaux-Arts de Paris, exhibited by Private Choice several years ago.

Echoing the historical exhibitions currently running in Paris, the galleries infused their displays with names of modern artists from the Pop Art, Arte Povera, or Surrealism movements. At the launch on October 17, 2024, of the exhibition "Pop Forever, Tom Wesselmann &…" at the Louis Vuitton Foundation, the Gagosian and Almine Rech galleries exhibited oils on canvas by Tom Wesselmann (sold at Almine Rech for $400,000 – $500,000).

The exhibition dedicated to Arte Povera taking place at the Bourse du Commerce – Pinault Foundation this autumn-winter explained the presence on the Peter Freeman stand of works by Franz Erhard Walther and Charles LeDray. Works by Mario Merz and Giuseppe Penone were also found at Konrad Fischer.

Finally, nods to the "Surrealism" exhibition at the Centre Pompidou on the occasion of the centenary of André Breton's manifesto were seen at Loevenbruck with a selection of several surrealist works, including Hans Ballmer's doll, or on the Applicat-Prazan stand with works by Oscar Domínguez, Wifredo Lam, Roberto Matta, and André Masson.

Julie Merle, October 24, 2024.

[i] Rafael Pic, "Art Basel Paris 2024: solid initial sales," Le Quotidien de l’Art, no. 2915, October 17, 2024.