Art Basel opens with strong sales despite market slowdown

An artwork titled Choir by German artist Katharina Grosse seen at the entrance of the Art Basel fair for modern and contemporary art in Basel, Switzerland. Photo: AFP

Even before Art Basel officially opened to the public on Thursday, the prestigious international art fair had already recorded multi-million-dollar sales.

Notable early transactions included a US$9.5mil (RM40.5mil) sculpture by Japanese-American artist Ruth Asawa and a US$6.8mil (RM29mil) work by German painter Gerhard Richter.