This year’s edition of the Parcours sector of Art Basel in Basel has been developed by Stefanie Hessler. Directed by the German curator for the second consecutive year, Parcours transforms unexpected areas across the city into exhibition spaces for artworks ranging from video installation, sculpture and large-scale collage. Churches, shopping centres and underpasses will provide viewers a chance to engage with these diverse works, whether you’re a well-heeled collector or simply a passer-by. Here, Hessler discusses this year’s Parcours theme, highlights from throughout the city and the importance of public art. 

Tell us about the theme of this year’s Parcours. 
I chose the concept of “Second Nature”, which I see as having multiple layers. The first layer considers the way humans have changed the world, blurring the boundaries between nature and artifice. The second layer illuminates the ways that gestures and habits form our behaviour and change our behaviour. Our movements and our gestures can become second nature to ourselves. The third layer explores the way that information flows – through algorithms and the circulation of images – and how that will continue to change who we are. 

I invited artists whose projects specifically engage with these thematic layers. I’m particularly interested in the dialogue between the artist and the site, and many of the featured creatives work site responsively. For example, Shanghai-based artist Yu Ji has made something resembling a dinner scene for humans and non-humans to be shown specifically in the banquet hall of Hotel Rheinelderhof. Collaborating with both the artists and the owners of all the various sites that we’re using has been an organic process – we’re truly integrating these projects into the local fabric of Basel.

What’s the most unusual venue you’re using this year?
The underpass, where we’re showing a video by Sturtevant, is perhaps the most unconventional venue but I was happy that we were able to make it work. The project is a 21-metre-long projection of a running dog, with the image repeating every nine seconds in an endless loop. While Sturtevant was known for recreating works by other artists, later in her life, she became interested in the endless proliferation of images and information on the internet. The running dog is one of her most iconic works and I wanted Parcours to feel more intergenerational this year. Sturtevant’s work was key to my concept and the selection of artists. The installation is in an underpass right by the river – a place frequented by people walking their dogs — which makes it a great intervention in public space.

How important is it that Parcours is a public event?
Parcours is a free and open invitation to both visitors of the fair as well as local audiences. There’s a beautiful dialogue that unfolds between the international art world and the residents of Basel. I love how art can interject in everyday life and create moments of surprise throughout your day. We have moved Parcours closer to the fair, which brings more attention to this part of the city. There are a lot of shops in Klarastrasse and it’s not as picturesque as other parts of the city visited by tourists, but that is what’s great about it. It highlights everyday life in Basel, which I – and the artists that I’ve worked with – find really inspiring. 

Has working on Parcours changed how you view the city?
The first time that I curated Parcours, I visited about 70 different sites and there are many more locations that I hope we can use for future editions. Like any city, Basel offers so much if you pay attention. It’s fantastic when artists create art with specific locations in mind because it directs our attention differently. There’s also a whole world underneath our feet where I’m hoping to stage projects during the next editions. 

Read next: Five booths not to be missed at this year’s Art Basel in Basel

One of Switzerland’s most charming cities has been bathed in bright sunshine this week as the art world arrived for Art Basel in Basel. Amid a testing time for the art market, the fair has returned with new sectors and initiatives that have revitalised the programme and re-engaged collectors old and new. Here are a few snippets from Monocle’s rundown of the booths and museum shows not to miss if you’re stopping by the Messeplatz or strolling around town. 

Hauser & Wirth 
One of the most expensive pieces at this year’s fair is a surprise addition to the booth of Swiss gallery Hauser & Wirth. Mark Rothko’s 1962 painting “No. 6/Sienna, Orange on Wine” is rarely seen and was missing from the gallery’s preview materials, which makes seeing it in person all the more dramatic. The painting is well worth seeking out if you’re feeling up for a blast of the abstract painter’s big blocky colours. And if it puts you in the mood to see more, head up the road to stop in at the Kuntsmuseum’s permanent exhibition to see “No. 16 (Red, White and Brown)”. 
Messeplatz, Gallery sector, C10 

Edel Assanti 
One of the new initiatives at this year’s fair is the Premiere sector, in which galleries present work created in the past five years. London-based gallery Edel Assanti has brought a colourful solo show by US artist Lonnie Holley. His paintings and unusual sculptures made from salvaged materials invite closer inspection. Head to the Unlimited sector for more Holley in the form of his 2019 film, I Snuck Off the Slave Ship. In it, Holley performs an improvised score, accompanied by a blend of real and re-enacted moments from his life. The combination of gorgeous music and moving visuals makes for a captivating, poignant work. 
Messeplatz, Premiere, P3 

‘Steve McQueen, Bass’, Laurenz Fondation Schaulager
The bustle and busyness of Art Basel in Basel makes for an energising but at times exhausting experience. Take a breather by hopping on the tram to Laurenz Fondation Schaulager for Steve McQueen’s Bass exhibition. The UK artist and filmmaker has taken over the cavernous space with an immersive light-and-sound experience. More than 1,000 LED tubes have been installed throughout Schaulager that slowly change colour over time. As they bathe the space in colourful hues, deep bass frequencies reverberate around it from subwoofers and speakers suspended in the air. The elements combine to create a mesmerising, calming experience. 
‘Steve McQueen, Bass’ is open at Laurenz Fondation Schaulager until 16 November 

Jahmek Contemporary Art
Sometimes the first thing that strikes you about a booth is the sign outside telling you where the gallery is based. So it will be for many visitors passing by Jahmek Contemporary Art, which hails from Angola’s capital, Luanda. Inside, heavy topics of conflict are brought to life in a haunting but beautiful exhibition. Zimbabwean artist Felix Shumba’s gentle soundscape and paintings of ethereal beings are not to be missed.   
Messeplatz, Statements sector, M4

Julian Charrière, ‘Midnight Zone’, Museum Tinguely 
At Museum Tinguely, French-Swiss artist Julian Charrière’s new exhibition Midnight Zone ponders the relationship between people and the earth – specifically as a world of water. Here, often in near-total darkness, visitors are invited to take a different perspective, whether that’s through lying down to watch films beamed onto the ceiling or by exploring parts of the ocean we’d never normally see. Many of the images of watery landscapes, both moving and still, are extraordinary and, on closer inspection, so too are the lengths to which Charrière has gone to capture them. Accompanied by a mesmeric soundscape, Midnight Zone is captivating, if at times unsettling. Dive in with an open mind. 
Julian Charrière. ‘Midnight Zone’ is open at Museum Tinguely until 2 November