Basel
Art Guide

Whether you're interested in discovering contemporary art by established artists like Nan Goldin, Georg Baselitz, or Jordan Wolfson, or by emerging talents, below are some of the best galleries in Basel's vibrant art scene presenting a range of both.

In the heart of Altstadt Grossbasel, nestled within the old town, you'll find mega-gallery Gagosian. Renowned for its focus on modern and contemporary art, Gagosian's Basel location showcases established international artists such as Sarah Sze, Louise Bonnet, Christo, and David Reed.

From Gagosian, a ten-minute stroll southward along the river leads to Hauser & Wirth's new space at Luftgässlein 4. Housed within a former ribbon factory built in the 1880s, the gallery comprises an exhibition space and showroom. The inaugural exhibition in June 2024 featured works of Vilhelm Hammershøi, the first in a series of historic exhibitions under the direction of Carol Knöll.

Beyond the city centre, near Landschaftspark Wiese Park, lies Galerie Henze & Ketterer. Established in 1946, the gallery specialises in German Expressionism and manages the estate of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Also specialising in modern and contemporary art, the gallery participates in art fairs including Art Basel, TEFAF Maastricht, and Art Cologne.

Every summer, Basel transforms into a global art hub for Art Basel. Alongside the event, an array of high-quality exhibitions take place in and around the city, continuing throughout the year. Both established and emerging artists showcase major new works in exhibitions at museums, non-profit institutions, and contemporary galleries.

Basel is home to over 40 museums and institutions dedicated to history and the arts. Their focus ranges from Basel's Roman past, displayed at the archaeological site of Augusta Raurica, to 20th- and 21st-century design, celebrated by the Vitra Design Museum.

Located in the historical heart of Basel are some of Basel's best-known international institutions. Kunstmuseum Basel, a three-building municipal institution, boasts a collection spanning from the Mediaeval era to the present.

Kunsthalle Basel, housed in a grand neoclassical building, is one of the city's oldest institutions alongside the nearby Museum of Cultures and Natural History Museum Basel. In its renovated interiors with skylights, Kunsthalle Basel has featured works by renowned modern and contemporary artists like Edvard Munch, Paul Gauguin, Jackson Pollock, and Joan Jonas.

Just around the bend in the river is the Tinguely Museum, which houses the world's largest collection of art by avantgarde Swiss sculptor Jean Tinguely (1925–1991). Its programming centres around Tinguely and his contemporaries, including Niki de Saint Phalle, Yves Klein and Marcel Duchamp, as well as contemporary artists tackling socially relevant issues of our era.

Kunsthaus Baselland, located on the outskirts of the city, focuses on experimental and innovative exhibitions. It hosts group exhibitions on socially relevant topics and individual shows that enrich contemporary art conversations, integrating both local and global viewpoints.

Further out, in the city's northeastern municipality of Riehen, you will find the Fondation Beyeler: a popular art museum and collection presenting curated exhibitions of modern and contemporary art from around the world. The institution boasts a permanent collection of around 250 paintings and sculptures by celebrated modern masters like Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh, and Pablo Picasso. Scattered around the surrounding park you'll find sculptures by artists such as Ellsworth Kelly and Alexander Calder.

Other highlights include Schaulager, a research institution dedicated to exploring new ways of storing and presenting artworks, and Vitra Design Museum, which is committed to the research and presentation of design, both past and present.

Since its launch in 2010, Ocula Magazine has interviewed some of Switzerland's most significant artists including Pipilotti Rist and Ugo Rondinone. Ocula Magazine also publishes features of artists such as Nicolas Party and Pamela Rosenkranz.

Led by Ocula's founder Simon Fisher, Ocula Advisory assists new and established collectors in growing and managing their collections.

With 40+ years of combined experience and extensive relationships with galleries, auction houses, art dealers, and collectors, Ocula Advisory has exceptional knowledge of modern and contemporary art, as well as market trends.

Follow Advisory Picks, Perspectives, and Selections for must-see art in Basel.

Sign up to My Ocula to follow artists and galleries, save artworks to your favourites, and be informed when new exhibitions and features are published.

Basel has propelled the careers of Swiss and international artists, with its renowned galleries and museums providing a global stage for seminal exhibitions. Artists who have recently held exhibitions in the city include Donald Judd at Gagosian, Mika Rottenberg at the Tinguely Museum, Dan Flavin at the Kunstmuseum Basel, and Jeff Wall at Fondation Beyeler.

Sign up to My Ocula to follow artists and galleries, save artworks to your favourites, and be informed when new artworks become available.

Basel is best known internationally as the home of Art Basel, the famed art fair held annually at the Messe Basel exhibition complex. Founded in 1970 by Basel gallerists Ernst Beyeler, Trudl Bruckner, and Balz Hilt, the fair began with 90 galleries and 20 publishers from 10 countries. Today, Art Basel brings the international art world together, showcasing over 200 leading galleries and more than 4,000 artists from five continents.

An international hub of contemporary art, Basel hosts several other major contemporary art fairs. Among them is photo basel, a unique, small-scale fair exclusively dedicated to photography-based art. It's the first and only fair of its kind in Basel, showcasing a diverse range of photographic works.

LISTE Art Fair Basel is dedicated to offering a platform for new, internationally active galleries and emerging contemporary artists. Previously featured galleries include Capsule Shanghai, P21, and Gallery Vacancy.

Other prominent fairs include VOLTA Basel, which focuses on both up-and-coming and established artists; Design Miami/Basel, dedicated to collectible designs; June Art Fair, a gallery-led international art fair; and Basel Social Club, founded in 2022 by a collective of artists, gallerists, and curators with the aim of creating social spaces for art.

Reflecting its location to both the French and German borders, Basel also hosts several unique cultural festivals. Best known is Fasnacht, a three-day carnival that begins on the first Monday after Ash Wednesday.