On the occasion of its 40th edition, Art Basel, arguably the most important modern and contemporary art fair in the world, displayed a monumental poster in its Art Unlimited hall listing the names of the 3,109 galleries that have exhibited at the fair since its establishment in 1970. In its nascent stage, the annual fair attracted approximately 90 galleries per year, however, that number has continued to increase and is now approaching 300.
This elite assemblage features the names of prominent New York dealers, who have begun to realize the necessity of escaping the art world's de facto center for a week each June, and who crate their stock and set up shop in the sleepy canton of Basel in order to woo international clients as well as meet and greet (and sell to) their international colleagues in the trade.
In this ARTINFO exclusive, Sarah Douglas speaks with seven leading New York-based dealers who have made the voyage to ask about the importance of exhibiting at Art Basel and what, in these uncertain times, they can deduce from the fair's activities about the state of the market.
