06 News
Art Basel Cities Creator Patrick Foret on How the Experimental New Initiative Works—Even Amid an Economic Crisis
1 OCTOBER, 2016 | HOSPITALITY | 
276
Last week, the denizens of Buenos Aires suddenly found themselves awash in art—dotting their public parks, climbing up colossal buildings, punctuating desolate industrial areas, and even built into the pavement underfoot. This eruption of artworks, most of which were made by up-and-coming Argentine artists, was the most visible flowering of Art Basel Cities, the new master plan being pursued by the Swiss art-fair juggernaut to help cultivate the global art ecosystem.
Following the flurry of big-idea talks and celebrations that kicked off the initiative last November, the exhibition, curated by Cecilia Alemani, lasted for a week and will now evolve into a new stage that is still taking shape, but promises a long-term period of economic development for the local art scene.
Does that sound a bit nebulous? Well, such is the nature of the the grand experiment that is Art Basel Cities, which is gradually taking form in real time. In fact, it helps to imagine its well-intentioned organizers as laboratory technicians, painstakingly attempting to transmute the enormous sums of global capital ricocheting through the art and luxury sector into a sustainable energy source for struggling art scenes, like the one teetering on the edge of the world in Buenos Aires. Complicating matters, the Argentine peso’s utter collapse this year has meant that these technicians have been forced to work in a particularly bumptious environment, amid the closure of government ministries and the slashing of budgets and tightening of belts nationwide.
None of this phases the man behind this experiment, Art Basel director of business initiatives Patrick Foret, who has a keener insight into the intersection of art and global capital than most. A French-born fluent Japanese speaker who frequently uses the word “beauty” when talking about business, Foret was previously the project manager for the extravagantly ambitious Louvre Abu Dhabi and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi complexes, working for the emirate’s Tourism Development and Investment Company to create an art utopia on Saadiyat Island.
"From our perspective, there’s a lot of pride in their arts and culture, but there’s at the same time a lack of confidence in their ability to engage with the world. So for us to come in and tell them, “You can do it,” has been very liberating. The beauty has been to see this art scene that has been extremely divided working together toward a common goal, which is: let’s present ourselves to the world. If you talk to people here, there is tremendous optimism and excitement in moving the culture forward, and the government shares that commitment, too." - Patrick Foret
276
Last week, the denizens of Buenos Aires suddenly found themselves awash in art—dotting their public parks, climbing up colossal buildings, punctuating desolate industrial areas, and even built into the pavement underfoot. This eruption of artworks, most of which were made by up-and-coming Argentine artists, was the most visible flowering of Art Basel Cities, the new master plan being pursued by the Swiss art-fair juggernaut to help cultivate the global art ecosystem.
Following the flurry of big-idea talks and celebrations that kicked off the initiative last November, the exhibition, curated by Cecilia Alemani, lasted for a week and will now evolve into a new stage that is still taking shape, but promises a long-term period of economic development for the local art scene.
Does that sound a bit nebulous? Well, such is the nature of the the grand experiment that is Art Basel Cities, which is gradually taking form in real time. In fact, it helps to imagine its well-intentioned organizers as laboratory technicians, painstakingly attempting to transmute the enormous sums of global capital ricocheting through the art and luxury sector into a sustainable energy source for struggling art scenes, like the one teetering on the edge of the world in Buenos Aires. Complicating matters, the Argentine peso’s utter collapse this year has meant that these technicians have been forced to work in a particularly bumptious environment, amid the closure of government ministries and the slashing of budgets and tightening of belts nationwide.
None of this phases the man behind this experiment, Art Basel director of business initiatives Patrick Foret, who has a keener insight into the intersection of art and global capital than most. A French-born fluent Japanese speaker who frequently uses the word “beauty” when talking about business, Foret was previously the project manager for the extravagantly ambitious Louvre Abu Dhabi and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi complexes, working for the emirate’s Tourism Development and Investment Company to create an art utopia on Saadiyat Island."From our perspective, there’s a lot of pride in their arts and culture, but there’s at the same time a lack of confidence in their ability to engage with the world. So for us to come in and tell them, “You can do it,” has been very liberating. The beauty has been to see this art scene that has been extremely divided working together toward a common goal, which is: let’s present ourselves to the world. If you talk to people here, there is tremendous optimism and excitement in moving the culture forward, and the government shares that commitment, too." - Patrick Foret
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