The 2024 Art Basel experience descended upon Paris with the grandeur and the spectacle, as expected by the “City of Lights.” However, it became obvious that several of the local residents had no clue there was an Art Basel Paris, including myself.
A dumbfounded look fell upon their faces when I pointed out that Art Basel was happening, “Juste a la” (Just over there). The premier art exhibition, hidden in plain sight—across the street from the Parisian staple, the Moderne Art Fair. Who would have thunk it?
Miami hosts, arguably, the most popular of the Art Basel events among the web3 community, knowing this gave me high hopes for the Paris edition. Here is my take on Art Basel Paris from the perspective of an American art lover and Web3 Degen living in Paris.
Location, Location, Location
Art Basel Paris 2024, core programming, took place at the newly renovated Grand Palais and the Petit Palais, conveniently located across from one another, right at the foot of the Champs Élysée.
The Grand Palais memorably was the host of the 2024 Olympics Fencing Competition. The expansiveness of the location and the architectural glass dome design added to the awe and magic of the art-viewing experience.
It’s what I imagine people felt like attending the World Fair for the first time; a total rush of child-like excitement.
Photo of Courtesy of Art Basel Paris © Art Basel
Program Structure
A series of Conversations & Workshops for Art Basel Paris took place primarily in the Petit Palais, giving attendees the unique opportunity to learn and engage directly with top-tier artists and curators.
The Grand Palais housed the vast majority of the artwork, with 195 galleries on showcase. While the Art Basel Book Shop, also in the Grand Palais, held book signing events throughout the days.
The relatively close proximity of the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais made it easy to move between the core programming events. No searching on maps for multiple stages spread out all over the place.
My Actual Agenda
Day 0: Preview Day — Opted Out (Definitely Will Do Next Year)
Day 1: Petit Pallet — Attend Talks & Sessions
Day 2: Grand Palais — Focus on Creating Connections & Conversations
Day 3: Grand Palais — Full Art Viewing Immersion & the Collectors Lounge
(P.S. The app blocks screenshots of agendas and badges)
A Truly Digital Customer Experience
Upon arriving inside Grand Palais, I noticed several kiosks dedicated to check-in. An interesting aspect of the conference was the use of a digital badge making the process pretty seamless and secure, which was a first for me.
Noticeably absent were the standard physical program printouts. A list of events was made available in the Art Basel app where attendees could RSVP for each event individually. It was extremely helpful to receive push notification reminders, usually sent, a few hours before the start of an event.
This helped to reduce my general overwhelm in deciding what events to attend. Definitely on trend as many events are making efforts to reduce their carbon footprint. When I think about it, the check-in process was probably the most web3 thing about this art fair..
The Reasons To Attend Art Basel Paris
Well, the main reason to attend Art Basel is the art, of course, followed by the people, and lastly for the adventure of it all in Paris.
The actual star of the entire event is the exquisite art from world-renowned artists and galleries, some of which are featured below in an aerial video created by the Art Basel team.
“Flying across two floors the drone captures the scope of the fair, showcasing the spectacular works of contemporary and 20th-century masters. The flight offers an unprecedented view of the works as it glides through the iconic glass-domed structure.”
Presented galleries:
Victoria Miro
303 Gallery
Galerie Chantal Crousel
Piktogram
Cardi
Mennour
Perrotin
Pace Gallery
What Pipeline
Sadie Coles HQ
A night flight through Art Basel Paris at the Grand Palais
A close second to the incredible art is the city of Paris, serving as the backdrop of such a grandiose cultural event. Art Basel Paris extended well beyond the Grand Palais, with public programming including 10 installations throughout the city.
Imagine being on a four-day art scavenger hunt, crisscrossing the city of Paris to view artwork at its most iconic locations. For instance, causally walking through Place Vendôme and arriving at Carsten Höller’s work, Giant Triple Mushroom.
Photo of Courtesy of Art Basel Paris © Art Basel
I was definitely blown away by the caliber of people I met at Art Basel Paris and the opportunity to connect with them in real time. I met leading experts in modern contemporary art from top gallerists to artists and curators, to major institutions and collectors from all over the globe.
One thing about the Art Basel Paris crowd is they are extremely serious about art, and they relish the chance to have really deep conversations about art and society.
I had the privilege of speaking with artist Adéla Součková. Her main art mediums are drawing and installation within the context of ecology and feminism. When I asked her what stood out the most for her at Art Basel Paris, Adéla exclaimed:
“If speaking about the fair— I would say it was Bombon Projects [Bombon, a Barcelona-based gallery] with queer sexual comics from [the] 80s and some of the radical art from [the] 80s in renowned galleries, the contemporary art was very often [a] safe choice for the galleries.”
My Search for Proof of Web3
Art Basel Paris 2024’s curation focused more on physical artwork, as expected, but there were a few digital art experiences. I was disappointed that there wasn’t more digital art or NFTs on exhibition. Paris, though known for art and fashion, has a large and thriving web3 community.
In Paris, they sometimes congregate at the NFT Factory or Iham gallery to see web3 artwork on display. NFT collectors are a highly sought-after group by luxury brands and top auction houses such as Sotheby’s and Christie’s.
That’s why I was shocked there wasn’t more NFTs on display to cater to this burgeoning audience of collectors. I would have preferred to see collaborations with local NFT galleries like Artverse for a more interactive live action art experience.
Art Basel Paris 2024 Grand Finale
Now having completed my first go around with Art Basel Paris, I recommend doing the full week so you can cover more ground and see more art installations spread throughout the city of Paris. If you have the opportunity to go to the preview day, do it so you have more time to enjoy the art experience.
Also, if you are leaning towards engaging more on the Web3 side of art then Art Basel Miami and Hong Kong maybe a better option, if that’s your focus. All in all, Art Basel Paris 2024 was an amazing experience. Looking forward to 2025. It’s Paris, so you know never know what will happen.
