Whilst in Basel, we had a chat with British artist P. Staff (*1987) about their show In Ekstase at Kunsthalle Basel, which incorporates all new works in video, sculpture, and installation. As their largest solo show to date, it draws on persistent concerns of the artist, such as the myriad processes by which the living are disciplined in a society defined by capitalism and its brutality. Through a weaving of trans poetics, mysticism, and necropolitics, Staff constructs an exhibition at once atmospheric and haunting.

As the art world descends upon Basel this week, we interviewed Elena Filipovic, director and curator of Kunsthalle Basel to find out more about the current shows on there, what's new in town and her ideal day in Basel.

To mark the beginning of Zurich Art Weekend (June 9–11, 2023) we had a conversation with artist Shirana Shahbazi (*1974 in Tehran, Iran; lives and works in Zurich). Her exhibition at Galerie Peter Kilchmann from June 9 - July 28, 2023 features all new works. Over the course of her career, Shahbazi has developed a unique approach to the medium of photography to create uncompromising layouts and installations in which her political consciousness comes to the fore. Shahbazi’s works are represented in the collections of the Centre Pompidou, Paris; Guggenheim Museum, New York; the Museum of Modern Art, New York, Tate Modern, London.

Photo: Anne Morgenstern

On the occasion of the opening of the exhibition of Evaporating Suns we met with the curators Munira Al Sayegh and Verena Formanek. The preface to the exhibition catalogue edited by KBH.G, poses some key questions to underline the importance of this exhibition: “does the function of myth in the Arab world differ from that in the West or the global South? Is there a common denominator, are there core stories that are generally valid and accessible beyond cultural differences?” The answer relies upon the audience, viewers are invited to suspend preconceptions and stereotypes and open themselves up to a journey through the region’s artistic production.