Your Compass in Basel 2025 curated by Hester Koper

Basel is a rare and peculiar jewel: medium-sized, multicultural, with a medieval heart. The city has established itself into a center for contemporary and modern art, as well as old masters. It boasts an astounding density of world-class museums and cultural institutions, and hosts the leading art fair in the world: Art Basel. The fair, founded in 1970 by three local gallerists, is now the most important and highly anticipated commercial event in the world of contemporary and modern art. That same year, Margareta and Miklos von Bartha established the gallery von Bartha.
In the following years, more galleries and fairs emerged.
Twenty-five years later, Liste was created to promote the careers of emerging artists and galleries.
This year, Liste is celebrating its 30th anniversary. Alongside Art Basel’s Unlimited and Parcours, as well as a multitude of side fairs and events, the city offers much to look forward to during this art-buzzing week.

CITY CENTRE GROSSBASEL
MAP M03 – M06
Let’s start the tour at the Münsterplatz, a large square in the old city with a grove of old trees, offering an excellent view along the Rhine across the city. Walking through the historic Rittergasse, we pass by the new location of Basel Social Club, featuring more than 50 rooms for art installations, performances, concerts, dinners, and parties. Within close proximity, the paramount Kunstmuseum Basel, with its world-leading art collection housed in three buildings, is one of the city’s most important landmarks and the oldest public art collection in the world.
Down the hill towards the river, the Museum für Gegenwartskunst opened in 1980 as the first museum in Europe focusing solely on contemporary art from the 1960s to the present. Continuing past the city center, we pass Kunsthalle Basel – a landmark of contemporary art, dedicated to exhibiting, discussing, and reflecting on the art of the present since its founding in 1872, hosting some of the most groundbreaking exhibitions of its time. Around the corner is the famous fountain by Jean Tinguely and the award-winning Theater Basel, which will host many events and workshops during the week as part of the Social Fight Club Festival – especially on Saturday evening of Art Basel, when the venue will be buzzing all night long during Finally Saturday. Next door, Restaurant Kunsthalle offers both casual dining in the wooden part and fine dining with tablecloths, for those who like it a bit more fancy. Further down, we arrive at the large Marktplatz (market square), known for its beautiful markets, especially on Saturdays. Surrounding the square are notable galleries like Stampa and Contemporary Fine Arts, alongside shops like Ramstein Optik, which has been displaying small exhibitions in its window since Jean Tinguely collaborated with them in 1947. From this point, you can either cross the bridge and continue towards Kleinbasel and the main fair, or head back up Freie Strasse for your everyday shopping needs.

CITY CENTRE KLEINBASEL
MAP M01 – M03 – M04
On the sunny side of the Rhine board – Kleinbasel, in the north of the city – Art Basel, Unlimited, Parcours, Liste, and Swiss Design & Art Awards are located around Messeplatz, which artist Katharina Grosse will transform into a site-specific artwork this year. The district is a cultural hot spot, crammed with bars, cafes, restaurants, bookshops, creative ateliers, galleries, and independent spaces. At Kaserne Basel, the annual art book fair I Never Read is worth a visit, and within walking distance to galleries such as Galerie Mueller, Nicolas Krupp, For, See You Next Tuesday, and more. Additionally, offspaces like Soft Space and CC:, located right next to the main fair, host exhibitions, performances, and food and drinks events.
Kleinbasel is always crowded with visitors and locals, especially at night when bars and restaurants open, such as Renée, Zum Goldenen Fass, Astro Fries, Concordia, or Volkshaus with its Imi-Bar. Further down or up the Rhine stream, you will find cultural institutions such as Tanzhaus at Franck Areal and Tinguely Museum. And if the riverfront stroll feels too crowded with swimmers, the Solitude-Park, in the shadow of the Roche towers with its impressive outdoor artworks, is a nice alternative to hang out.

BASEL WEST, ST. JOHANN
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St. Johann, an old working-class neighbourhood in the West of Basel, has undergone significant changes in recent years. It now features several shops, cafes, restaurants, bars, and art hubs. At the heart of this transformation is Kannenfeldplatz, where the gallery von Bartha is situated. As a home for artists and art lovers and a place to explore 20th and 21st-century art luminaries, the gallery sits opposite beautiful Kannenfeldpark, by the bus stop towards the airport. There are several excellent culinary spots to explore in the area between Johanniterbrücke, Voltaplatz, and the University. Some of the highlights include café, bars, and restaurants such as Rosenkranz and Rhyschänzli, which are fantastic for meat lovers and have the best service in town. Closer to the Novartis Campus, Basso offers a great option for dinner and drinks after the fair by the riverbank. Near the Biozentrum of the University of Basel, you will find Galerie Tony Wüthrich, the art space Hebel_121, and further up, Villa Renata for contemporary exhibitions and projects.

GUNDELDINGEN, CAMPUS OF THE ARTS
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Over the past couple of years, Dreispitz – along with the adjacent residential area Gundeldingen – has become an up-and-coming neighbourhood, with several institutions centered around the Campus der Künste. The renowned FHNW Academy of Art and Design is an epicentre of new ideas in a huge former industrial zone, with many art-supporting centres and creative spaces, including HEK (House of Electronic Arts), Kunsthaus Baselland, Atelier Mondial, and Schaulager. Nearby is the Auf dem Wolf district, with loads of artist-initiated spaces and ateliers, such as InfoSpace, which is collectively run by Stretcher, Responsibility, distro, and other initiatives.

AROUND BASEL
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Basel is located on the tri-national border of Switzerland, France, and Germany, so its cultural influence goes far beyond the city centre. In Riehen, where Basel fades into the German countryside, you can visit Fondation Beyeler, one of the best international museums and collections. In Birsfelden, on the outskirts of Basel, Kunstverein Salts is a place to make discoveries of emerging artists. It also has an outpost called Country Salts in Bennwil, an hour from the city. On the German side, you find Vitra Design Museum, the building designed by Frank Gehry. Before you go back home, make sure to enjoy the many buvette and little food caravans along the Rhine, where you can drink and eat after you have had a swim in the river, one of the best things about Basel in the summer!