Art Unlimited

Until recently still a blank spot on the world map of art, China today occupies one of the top positions in the rankings of the global art market and has moved into the center of the speculations and the covetousness of its protagonists. But what is really happening on the spot, beyond the ethnocentric distortions of the Western viewpoint? What social representations and uses of art can be identified? A research team from the University of St. Gallen has taken up such questions in an ethnographical field research project which enables the actors in this emergent and nonetheless already market-dominated art field to have their say.

Art Basel presents the 13th edition of Art Unlimited. The concept it represents of a large-scale museum-quality exhibition in the framework of an art fair is unique and popular among collectors and visitors alike. This year the meanwhile legendary platform will feature over sixty artists and be curated by Gianni Jetzer, Director of the Swiss Institute, New York for the first time. Boundaries are consciously broken, as can be seen in the oversized artworks that require a gigantic exhibition hall to come into their own. This year's edition of Art Unlimited promises to be both spectacular and profound. Unlike a museum that organizes and classifies, it is a dynamic collection of solo artworks that testify, at the highest level, to the vitality of contemporary art.

Graphic designers who wish to work with print finishes like blind embossing and phosphorescent ink constantly face the same problem: there are no compelling examples of the available techniques. They must either turn to existing books, which only present them in photographs and make it impossible to experience their tactile qualities, or to samples in advertising brochures put out by individual printing presses, which are so focused on the technology that their visual and haptic appeal is lost. This is where extra comes in: it uses sensuously experienced examples to present the most important finishing techniques practically and theoretically, in variants and experimental combinations. Thirty internationally renowned designers created pages especially for this book as a basis for explaining the special design and technical features of each technique, with an in-depth exploration of its possible uses. Additional articles deal with general issues such as planning and costing a finish or its mode of operation. With its large amount of information, its easy-to-navigate structure, and a glossary, this book is an indispensable reference work on print finishing. At the same time, its experimental character and high-quality design make it a source of inspiration for everyone with an interest in the subject. Designers of the "show pages" in alphabetical order: 123buero Antoine+Manuel Catalogtree Drushba Pankow Fanette Mellier Fons Hickmann m23 Hans Gremmen Hort Sarah Illenberger Jung+Wenig Karlssonwilker inc. Hoon Kim Hort Yang Liu Mario Lombardo LUST Thomas Mayfried mischen Maureen Mooren NODE Berlin Oslo OK-RM onlab Pixelgarten Project Projects Rimini Berlin Viola Schmieskors Ariane Spanier Annik Troxler Üppig Weiss–heiten Design Welcometo.as