As Head of Content & Curation for Samsung North America, as well as Global Curator for Samsung Art Store, Daria Greene utilizes the transcendent power of art to connect global communities and create dynamic cultural endeavors. During the singular Art Basel fair in Switzerland, Greene took a moment to speak with Whitewall about spearheading pivotal conversations, seeing performance and motion art as the next frontier, and reveling in the city’s best Campari Bar.
Portrait courtesy of Daria Greene.
WHITEWALL: Within your role at Samsung, what are you looking forward to in Basel for Art Basel?
DARIA GREENE: On behalf of Samsung, I’ll be leading two talks in The Frame Lounge at Art Basel—I’m looking forward to discussing how digital platforms like Samsung’s Art Store can democratize access and transform the way we live with art, and of course, build new and lasting revenue streams for artists and institutions. I’m excited to hear Art Basel’s perspective: I’ll be speaking with Angelle Siyang-Lee, Director of Art Basel Hong Kong and Irene Kim, Global Head of VIP Relations.
WW: What do you have your eye on at the fair?
DG: I look to the Basel edition of Art Basel as the fair that sets the tone for what’s to come in the global art world. I’m particularly excited by the performance program at Unlimited this year—and the off-site Parcours, particularly Eva Kotátková’s “My body is not an island”. I also think that new digital modalities in the art will trigger a full-circle moment for performance art—I really see performance and motion art as the next frontier.
WW: What are the exhibitions on your must-see list—at other galleries in Basel (or Zurich)?
DG: Top of my must-see list is “All my love spilling over” at Fondation Beyeler—this is a group show that promises to be edgier than the Fondation’s usual. Experiential artworks will be leveraging the green, pastoral setting that makes this campus such a unique and stunning location to view art.
“I look to the Basel edition of Art Basel as the fair that sets the tone for what’s to come in the global art world,” — Daria Greene
WW: Where are your go-to places to grab a bite or drink after the fair/opening? Any favorite hotels or shops?
DG: My favorite Basel spot used to be “Jay’s,” so much so that I married Chef Jay in 2019 and he packed up for Brooklyn to open a new restaurant, LORE. This year I’m thinking of returning to the old-school classics like Chez Donati, and of course it’s a Basel tradition to grab a drink at the Campari Bar at Kunsthalle.
WW: What else are you looking forward to experiencing this season in Basel?
DG: I am very excited to see Agnes Denes’ reprise of her 1982 New York wheatfield installation, wherein the artist planted 2 acres of wheat in a landfill alongside the newly-built twin towers in lower Manhattan. I was a small child living in New York when this work was executed, and the photo documentation of it has always haunted me— the stark juxtaposition of nature vs. industry in a commentary on the erosion of our societal values. The new version will be installed at the Messeplatz, against the backdrop of the Art Basel fair.
The Best of Basel, According to Daria Greene:
1. Visit Eva Kotátková’s “My body is not an island” at Art Basel 2024
Installation view of Eva Koťátková’s “My Body is Not An Island,” 2023, courtesy of Urbane Künste Ruhr and Kulturkirche Liebfrauen Duisburg, photo by Kate Illner, published by Meyer Riegger.
Inspired by surrealism Eva Koťátková’s distinctive artistic vocabulary unites sculpture, text and performance. As metaphor of modern civilization her comprehensive work illustrates dreams, expectations and deals with mutual anxieties mainly experienced by children, elderly people and animals – the so-presumed weak of society to indicate the fragility of the subject facing maintained structures. She further explores the relationship between the private and personal on one hand and the public, authoritarian sphere on the other and their antagonistic relation constantly implying and questioning a sublime institutional critique beneath the surface. — Source
2. Explore Evolving Summer Shows at Fondation Beyeler
Installation view of Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel, 2024, of Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, “Untitled (nuage),” 2024 LED screen, courtesy of the artist © Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, photo by Mark Niedermann.
For the first time in the Fondation Beyeler’s more than 25-year history, the entire museum and its surrounding park will be transformed into the site of an experimental presentation of contemporary art. With contributions by Michael Armitage, Anne Boyer, Federico Campagna, Ian Cheng, Chuquimamani-Condori and Joshua Chuquimia Crampton, Marlene Dumas, Frida Escobedo, Peter Fischli, Cyprien Gaillard with Victor Man, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Wade Guyton, Carsten Höller with Adam Haar, Pierre Huyghe, Arthur Jafa, Koo Jeong A, Dozie Kanu, Cildo Meireles, Jota Mombaça, Fujiko Nakaya, Alice Notley, Precious Okoyomon, Philippe Parreno, Rachel Rose, Tino Sehgal, Rirkrit Tiravanija and Adrián Villar Rojas. The Summer Show is conceived as a “living organism” that changes and transforms throughout its duration. — Source
3. Celebrate at Old School Classic Chez Donati
Courtesy of Chez Donati.
The Chez Donati, in the very best location near the Johanniterbrücke, is an institution. Opened in 1950 by Manilo Donati as one of the first Italian restaurants in Basel, the restaurant is still considered the first address for Italian classics from the cuisine and wine cellar. — Source
4. Step Up to the Campari Bar at Kunsthalle
Courtesy of the Campari Bar at Kunsthalle.
Enjoy a cocktail, a glass of wine or a long drink with us. In the shade of the large chestnut trees, at the bar in a stylish ambience or in the sun on the summer terrace, everyday life can be forgotten for a short moment. Standing at peak times, the bar and lounge are ideal for an after-work drink. You can get Campari everywhere, there is only one Campari bar. — Source
5. Journey through Agnes Denes’s Sweeping Artwork at Art Basel
Agnes Denes, “Wheatfield, Porta Nuova, Milan,” 2015, courtesy of the artist and Leslie Tonkonow Artworks + Projects, published by Art Basel.
As part of this year’s edition of Art Basel’s citywide arts program, the fair is unveiling one of its most spectacular outdoor artworks to date: a Swiss adaptation of Denes’s 1982 earthwork-cum-Manhattan-performance, titled Honoring Wheatfield – A Confrontation (2024). Curated by Samuel Leuenberger – the founder of the Switzerland-based not-for-profit art space SALTS and frequent Art Basel collaborator – Honoring Wheatfield will be sited on approximately 1,000 square meters of concrete plaza that is the Messeplatz. — Source
