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Basel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The 40th Basel Art Fair, the world’s largest contemporary art fair, opens Wednesday 10 June to an economic backdrop that is sharply different from that of the 2008 fair, a fact reflected in a public panel discussion on the economy. The art fair welcomes some 60,000 visitors each year and with a record 1,100 applications for the 300 slots for galleries to show and sell their ware, this year promises to be equally busy despite the economy.

Most fair-goers come to see the artwork itself but among the additional attractions are the public “conversations”, with American artist Jeff Koons and British  curator who spent 10 years with the Royal Academy of Arts in London, Norman Rosenthal, providing the opening talk in the series Wednesday 10 June.

Friday 12 June chief curators from the Pompidou Centre in Paris, the Whitney Museum in New York and several others will explore the private/public partnership in art and the impact on this of the current economic crisis.

The weekend offers visitors several films, concerts and other shows, with many of the artists appearing with their galleries. A highlight will be 19 curated gallery shows which are part of “Art Premiere” and that have been selected by the fair, many of which feature “dialogues juxtaposing two artists.”

Complete programme (open daily 11:00-19:00)

Related: Le Temps, Fre, will be carrying daily reviews and news from the Basel Art Fair, 9-14 June.