Art Basel has unveiled more details about their flagship fair in Basel, which will feature 290 galleries from 42 countries and territories. This is a slight increase from 289 galleries at Art Basel 2025. Of the 290 exhibitors, 21 are new to the fair, hailing from the Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey. The fair will once again return to the Messe in Basel from June 18th to 21st, with VIP preview days taking place June 16th and 17th.
The fair also announced the unveiling of major commissions by Nairy Baghramian and Ibrahim Mahama, winners of the inaugural Art Basel Gold Awards in the established artists category. Baghramian, an Iranian-German sculptor and installation artist, will present her work on the Messeplatz, while a large-scale installation by Ghanaian multidisciplinary artist Mahama will be on view on the Münsterplatz.
Returning for its second year, the fair’s Premiere sector will expand to include 17 presentations, up from 10 in 2025. Premiere offers participating galleries the opportunity to present pioneering new works created within the last five years, including museum-scale installations, sculptural installations, film and sound works, and experimental pieces. Three galleries joining the sector for the first time include Madrid-based Ehrhardt Flórez, New York gallery Magenta Plains, and Öktem Aykut from Istanbul.
Stefanie Hessler, director of the Swiss Institute in New York, will curate Parcours for the third consecutive year. The 2026 theme for the sector—which is dedicated to site-specific installations, sculptures, and performances—is “conviviality.” The included works will center on the joys and obstacles of co-existence. They will be installed in historic and public spaces along Clarastrasse.
The main Galleries sector will welcome 12 new exhibitors, eight of whom have previously shown in the Feature, Statements, and Premiere programs. They include San Francisco-based Jessica Silverman, British gallery Pippy Houldsworth, and P420 in Bologna, while Berry Campbell Gallery, Tim Van Laere Gallery, Phillida Reid, and Ortuzar will make their first appearance at the fair by entering directly into the main sector.
“For one week, Basel becomes the central meeting point of the art world—where historic depth meets bold new production across the halls and throughout the city,” said Maike Cruse, the director of Art Basel’s flagship fair, in a press statement. “From major new public commissions by Nairy Baghramian and Ibrahim Mahama to Ruba Katrib’s first edition as curator of Unlimited and the expansion of Premiere, this edition reflects both the enduring strength of the field and the exciting directions it is taking next, reinforcing Basel’s role as the global reference point for the art market.”
The fair has indeed previously announced that American curator Ruba Katrib, who serves as chief curator and director of curatorial affairs at MoMA PS1, will lead Unlimited, the fair’s sector dedicated to large-scale works, for the first time.
