Kunsthalle Basel invites you to a special day with a program centered around a selection of new books and zines presented by the artists, publishers, and authors in the form of talks and readings, surrounded by Michaela Eichwald’s paintings in her exhibition Auf das Ganze achten und gegen die Tatsachen existieren. Admission is free, and all publications will be available in our bookshop. Please keep in mind that a valid COVID certificate is required to attend the event.
11:30 am–12:30 pm
Warum ich beschloss, Peter Pakesch zu mögen, 2021, by Peter Stephan Jungk
A conversation with Peter Pakesch (Chairman of the Board, Maria Lassnig Foundation and former director of Kunsthalle Basel from 1996–2003) and Peter Stephan Jungk (author), moderated by Helen Hirsch (director Kunstmuseum Thun), in German
“This book offers many insights, critical, and sometimes anecdotal glimpses behind the scenes of a powerful impresario of contemporary art. Encounters with a gallery owner, museum director, curator, a universal man of the present.”
You can find more information about the publication here muerysalzmann.com/online-shop/peter-pakesch
12:30–1 pm
Collaborating Waters, 2021, by Stingray Editions
A lecture performance by Sarina Scheidegger, Marie Jeger, and Nayo Sauter with texts from Scheidegger’s latest publication, in English and Spanish
Some say it is poetry, and others call it an artist book, a score for a performance, a collection of song texts, designed by Kambiz Shafei. Printed matter in a constant movement between various voices always searching for accomplices and new surroundings, looking for different notes to be played, the words chanted by several singers, listened to by an audience—constantly rehearsing in collective mode and a state of broad collaboration.
You can find more information about Stingray Editions here stingrayeditions.ch
1–1:30 pm Break
1:30–2:30 pm
Presentation of four releases by Mark Pezinger Books from 2021 in attendance of the authors and artists Boris Rebetez (Photo Collages), Doris Lasch (Hellfeld), Stefan Karrer (Calypso Cave), and Claudia Rohrauer (Photography as Motif) moderated by Astrid Seme (designer and publisher) and Thomas Geiger (co-founder and publisher), in German
Mark Pezinger Books is pleased to present four new publications that explore the search for the photographic subject in different ways. In Doris Lasch’s story Hellfeld, a photographer quite literally goes in search of lost negatives. Calypso Cave by Stefan Karrer gathers travel photos from social media platform users whose eagerness for the representative vacation photo has led to a tourist comedy of errors. In Photography as Motif by Caroline Heider, Ruth Horak, Lisa Rastl, and Claudia Rohrauer, the act of photographing itself becomes a source for themes (and problems) that can themselves become motifs. And Photo Collages is comprehensively devoted to the group of works of the same name, in which Boris Rebetez’ collages, representations of landscape, and architecture dissect our habits of seeing.
Mark Pezinger Books is a Vienna-based publisher of artists’ books run by Astrid Seme and Thomas Geiger. The publications range from one-offs to larger editions and from sound works to regular books.
You can find more information about the publications here markpezinger.de
2:30–3 pm
Amphorea Me Kéfi, 2021, by family Charamandas
Dimitra Charamandas (artist and editor), Martina Meier (graphic artist and editor), and Regula Charamandas (owner of Taverna Amphorea) present their conceptual cookbook and offer home-made snacks to take home.
Published by family Charamandas, Martina Meier and Johanna Schaible.
In the cookbook Amphorea Me Kéfi, everything revolves around two central concepts; Kéfi and Paréa. Kéfi is an attitude towards life, the ability to be in the moment. Paréa is communion with others. Carried by Paréa, developed and realized with Kéfi, this unique cookbook was created, allowing viewers to immerse themselves on different levels. Amphorea Me Kéfi is a collection of recipes, a family story between two cultures, a story about the Greek landscape, its colors, shapes, and myths, about the fruits and plants of its fertile soil. With the publication of this book, Kéfi travels on, Paréa lives; in occasions around the encounter of art, pleasure, and food, in all the kitchens where cooking and sharing takes place.
You can find more information about the publication here amphoreamekefi.com
3–3:30 pm
DEARS, 2021, by A Winning Cake
Delphine Chapuis Schmitz (artist and editor) in conversation with Guillaume Mojon (graphic designer), in English
DEARS is a magazine for writing practices at the crossroads of art, poetry, and experimental writing. It is released bi-annually in a physical format, but can also transform into other mediums, like performance and audio pieces. It explores forms of language which open up new ways of living together and understands itself as a space of various dimensions, in which a diverse range of voices and perspectives can meet and echo each other.
You can find more information about the publication with contributions by Leila Peacock, Ann Cotten, Rebecca Solnit, Barbara Sirieix, Kayije Kagame, Legion Seven, Tarek Lakhrissi, Louise Guerra Archive, Heather Phillipson, and Ines Marita Schärer here edcat.net/item/dears-issue-no-2
3:30–4:00 pm
Bei mir, bei dir, 2021, by Edition Moderne
A poetry reading in Arabic, French, and German by Anisa Alrefaei Roomieh (co-author and poet) and Maeva Rubli (co-author and illustrator)
Bei mir, bei dir is the echo of a dialog: Anisa tells Maeva about her life in Syria, leaving her home behind after the outbreak of the civil war, and recites her poetry. Meanwhile, Maeva records the conversation in words and images, making Anisa’s memories and flight experience visible and tangible.
You can find more information about the publication here editionmoderne.ch/buch/bei-mir-bei-dir