'Inner Portrait' by THY and Refik Anadol at Art Basel
BASEL
A project called “Inner Portrait” prepared in collaboration with Turkish Airlines (THY) and famous media artist and designer Refik Anadol, began to be exhibited at Art Basel, which opened on June 12 in Basel, Switzerland.
The project was created based on the impact of traveling on human biology.
THY Communications Director Rafet Fatih Özgür, THY Independent Board Member Fatmanur Altun and Refik Anadol's wife, Efsun Anadol, attended the opening ceremony held on June 12.
A concrete reflection of THY’s passion for bringing cultures together with innovative methods, the “Inner Portrait” project takes four people who have never traveled abroad before on a journey into their inner world.
While Brazilian Tuikuru, an Amazonian native, explores the streets of Tokyo, Esther from Kenya discovers the rich history of Istanbul. Sahar, who lives in Australia, goes on a journey between the ancient wonders of Göbeklitepe and Cappadocia, while Icelandic Sigurbjörn experiences the fascinating beauties of Jordan.
Anadol and his team use the latest AI tools and neuroscientific sensors to capture emotional data from the experiences of first-time travelers and transform it into AI Data Images. Thus, brain data becomes the pigment for a captivating visual narrative that represents the transformative power of travel.
Inner Portrait starts with collecting biological and neurobiological data from passengers. This data includes elements such as heart rate, skin conductivity and EEG outputs and is recorded using advanced monitoring devices such as Neuroelectrics.
These recordings that continue throughout the journey form the basis of the work by capturing the participants' instant reactions to new environments and experiences. By investigating the relationship between experiences and neuronal activity, the project showcases Anadol's innovative approach to “collecting” authentic human experiences as the building stones of new aesthetic expressions.
Speaking about the project, Özgür said, “As an airline that flies to most countries in the world, we witness countless emotions and stories and see the impact of travel on people. As we are responsible for telling these stories, we are pleased to transform the impact of travel on people into a work of art at the intersection of culture, art, technology and science and to present this work on a platform like Art Basel. I believe this work will encourage people to travel.”
“I have the privilege of traveling around the world for my job, so I deeply understand the transformative experience of seeing new places, meeting new people and getting to know new cultures. Collaborating with Turkish Airlines, I took part in a project that gave four people the chance to travel abroad for the first time is truly inspiring,” Anadol said.
“Inner Portrait” will be on display at Art Basel until June 16. A 30-minute documentary with the same name will be released in the autumn of this year.
Buyers confront very active market
Multimillion-dollar works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Yayoi Kusama and Alberto Giacometti went on the market this week at the Art Basel fair.
More than 280 galleries exhibited everything from paintings and sculpture to video installations and performance art.
“Art Basel is like the Super Bowl of the art world,” art market expert Magnus Resch said.
The Art Market Report 2024, published by Art Basel and Swiss investment bank UBS, found that sales fell by 4 percent year-on-year in 2023, to an estimated $65 billion, against a backdrop of high interest rates, inflation and political instability.
Sales were particularly thinner at the top end of the market.
“We’ve seen a bit of a slowdown,” said UBS Global Wealth Management’s chief economist Paul Donovan.
Once the buzz of the art world, sales in art-related NFTs — or non-fungible tokens — on NFT platforms outside the art market declined sharply, according to the report, from a peak of $2.9 billion in 2021 to $1.2 billion last year.
But there is still enthusiasm. The report found transaction volume grew in 2023 by 4 percent, driven by sales at lower price levels.
“We’re not seeing art sales plunge off the edge of a cliff or anything like that,” Donovan said. “So ‘cooling’ is probably the right way to think about what is happening."
Austrian gallerist Thaddaeus Ropac said that “I think people are now reflecting a bit more, taking a bit of time, but they are still very, very active."