BY INVITATION ONLY
Is fair fatigue setting in? Rest up in these exclusive collectors’ lounges, which also host their very own exhibitions
UBS
Swiss bank UBS has commissioned Hong Kong artist Elaine Ng Yan-ling to create a modular installation for its lounge that reflects on the issue of air pollution. Inspired by the way plants react to their surroundings, this interactive artwork creates unique light performances based on data it receives from more than 8,000 air quality-monitoring stations around the world, revealing the state of the global pollution crisis.
BMW
New Zealand artist Zac Langdonpole, who won last year’s BMW Art Journey grant, is showcasing new works that were inspired by his recent travels, which have taken him from Germany to Samoa. Simultaneously in the lounge, BMW is exhibiting BMW Art Car #1, the very first car that the German brand gave to an artist to transform into an artwork. This inaugural art car was designed by Alexander Calder, who died shortly after completing the project.
AUDEMARS PIGUET
The watchmaker has commissioned acclaimed Brooklyn-based artist Fernando Mastrangelo to design its lounge at Art Basel in Hong Kong, where it will showcase its new collection, Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet. Inspired by a visit to the brand’s headquarters, Mastrangelo’s design evokes the landscape of the Jura Mountains in Switzerland.
LA PRAIRIE
This year La Prairie’s scientists are announcing the latest breakthrough in the skincare brand’s ambitious Science of Light project, which investigates the effects of light on the skin, so it’s only fitting the brand has partnered with South Korean light artist Chul-hyun Ahn for Art Basel. For La Prairie’s collectors’ lounge, Ahn has created three new light
sculptures that feature his trademark mindbending mix of mirrors, glass and a spectrum of coloured lights.
SANLORENZO YACHTS
This year is the first time Sanlorenzo Yachts is taking part in Art Basel in Hong Kong. In its collectors’ lounge, Sanlorenzo is showing a bold painting by Taiwanese artist Alixe Fu alongside a new installation created specially by acclaimed architect and designer Piero Lissoni.
DIOR
In its collectors’ lounge, Dior is presenting the results of its Lady Art #3 project, for which the brand gave 11 female artists from around the world carte blanche to redesign its Lady Dior bag. Don’t miss Li Shurui’s colourful effort. (Spoiler alert: it looks like a pixelated screen.)