Following its debut in Basel, the Art Basel Shop comes to Paris this month. Curated by Sarah Andelman in the city she calls home, this edition of the shop features a capsule collection by the collective Claire Fontaine as well as a range of specially conceived and commissioned products reflecting Art Basel’s heritage, this year’s brand campaign, and some of the outstanding exhibitions on view around Paris. ‘I love art and visiting exhibitions, but I especially love products related to art. For me, art is not only in museums, but it’s also what you see every day at home,’ Andelman told Art Basel. With price points ranging from EUR 3 to EUR 9,000, there’s something for everyone – so stop by the Art Basel Shop and bring home your own piece of the fun.
A Heritage Story
In 1975, Art Basel launched its sixth annual catalogue with a seemingly hand-drawn cover graphic. The title, Art 6’75, is made visible only via shadowing, the letters themselves the same color as the page. For the Art Basel Shop in Paris, this heritage graphic has been reimagined on white T-shirts and hoodies as well as a canvas tote bag with black detailing.
Another heritage reference – the word ‘ART’ repeated three times, pulled from a 1989 Art Basel billboard – made its debut on products in Basel and will return in Paris on limited-edition black totes and baseball caps with purple lettering. For those looking for something a little more interactive, a Rubik’s Cube offers a brainier take on the logo.
Public Made Private
Art Basel Paris’s brand campaign features three visuals, one of which is a portrait of the Italian-French singer and actress Dalida by artist Nina Childress. But fans of the iconic diva will not have to rip a poster off the wall as a souvenir: The work will also appear on a T-shirt, while a detail of Dalida’s open eyes is reproduced on a sleeping mask. Other shirts will be emblazoned with works by artists including Jesse Darling and Niki de Saint Phalle.
Foreigners Everywhere
Following Christine Sun Kim’s debut series of limited-edition artist-designed products for Basel, the Art Basel Shop in Paris will feature a new collection created by the collective Claire Fontaine based on their series of neon signs ‘Foreigners Everywhere’ (2006), which lent its title to this year’s Venice Biennale.
‘We have been thinking about museum gift shops as complementary experiences to an exhibition, where traces of the artworks that one knows (in the form of postcards and other derived products) become economically accessible to visitors,’ they say. ‘Some of the items in the shop refer to museum shops as a paradigm for this exercise.’
Such products include baseball caps, a bright blue polo, a water bottle, a pencil and eraser, posters, magnets, and postcards emblazoned with adaptations and phrases from the collective’s often-sardonic works. On a black water bottle is the phrase ‘PATRIARCHY = CO2,’ an adaptation of a 2020 artwork rendering the same expression in neon blue lights. A red cap says, ‘I do it because it’s right,’ while a blue cap says, ‘It’s right because I do it.’ The posters, magnets, and postcards reproduce Claire Fontaine’s appropriations of masterpieces: the Mona Lisa with a beard and ‘L.G.B.T.Q.’ written underneath; Manet’s Olympia and Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe with paint covering the subjects’ faces and exposed breasts.
Limited editions, exclusive launches, and more
Other highlights include Art Basel by Guerlain – a special Art Basel edition of the perfume house’s Œillet Pourpre (Purple Carnation) fragrance from its art-inspired L’Art & La Matière collection – featuring a reimagined box and label by French artist Julie Beaufils. A 500-piece puzzle and a candle-holder feature the work of Pop Art icon Tom Wesselmann, whose work takes center stage in the exhibition ‘Pop Forever, Tom Wesselmann & …’ at the Fondation Louis Vuitton. Two additional puzzles will reproduce some of American artist Jeff Koons’s iconic works, including a sculpture from his ‘Play-Doh’ series.
The Art Basel Shop will also showcase an expanded ‘curator’s pick’ of artist monographs, zines, exhibition catalogues, and printed ephemera by exhibitors and leading international publishers. These will include a monograph of French artist JR’s monumental public art projects; Anne Imhof: Sex, which documents recent performances by the Berlin- and New York-based German artist, and a selection of independent magazines from across the creative industries, including Alphabet, BLAU International, Elephant, Family Style, and Mousse.
Activations such as meet-and-greets, book signings, and workshops will take place throughout the week at the Art Basel Shop – browse our Online Events Calendar to discover more.