From September 20—26, VOLTA Art Fair will return to Basel, in-person at the city’s newly-renovated Elsässerstrasse 215. With a shuttle running between VOLTA and Art Basel for the ultimate art week experience, this 16th edition of the fair features 69 galleries from 50 international cities presenting a line-up of solo shows and group exhibitions.
“Basel has always been and always will be the true center of art fairs, and while we have been extremely busy in the background—re-branding, strategizing, and developing our fair—we are ready to resume action and provide a platform for our galleries to showcase some amazing art,” said VOLTA Director Kamiar Maleki. “We aim to make art more accessible by showcasing positions from different regions but trying to remain focused on a local collector base. VOLTA is about discovering, connecting, and ultimately about collecting.”
Highlights include Retro Africa sharing work by the Nigerian artist Alimi Adewale, Tokyo’s Gallery Kogure showing ceramic works from Yoca Muta, and Saradipour Art International’s fair debut of work by Abbas Nasle Shamloo and Mahdieh Abolhasan. Other presentations to look out for include those like BOLDI and Mózes Incze’s two-booth exhibition with Léna Roselli Gallery; Nuweland’s commentary on the violence within beauty featuring the work of three South African artists; a look at contemporary life in Iran from Bavan Gallery; and booths from names like Charlie Smith London and Galerie Thomas Fuchs.
The 2021 edition welcomes several first-timers like the Swiss galleries Selene Art Media and ARTPOWHER Contemporary, who is sharing works by the artist Sola Olulode. And of note inter-gallery presentations include like Kahn Gallery and Nadia Arnold Ltd.’s short surveys of international emerging artists and Pythongallery with Von Fraunberg Art Gallery, exhibiting “Nature and Provocation,” which looks at the real and surreal through works by Willky Verginer, Georg Küttinger, Christoph Rode, Maxim Wakultschik, and Rita Rohlfing.