Amplify with Alexandra Steinacker-Clark | Diverse Voices: Celebrating the Global Exhibitor Lineup at VOLTA
Earlier this month, VOLTA announced its 2025 exhibitors list for the upcoming Basel fair in June. The fair has over 70 exhibitors from over 28 countries across the globe, with a few distinctive sections and specific approaches worth highlighting: a Middle East North Africa Pavilion, dedicated to spotlighting art from the MENA region, as well as a SOLO section where galleries will exhibit one artist (as opposed to a typical art fair hang which involves various works from a gallery’s artist roster).
One of the most exciting aspects of VOLTA is their commitment to supporting emerging art and artists, giving a platform to innovative ideas and fresh perspectives. As I prepare for my first visit to Basel, I am keeping in mind that this fair is where many artists and gallerists will be exhibiting at Basel for the first time, too. I feel a certain kinship with these galleries, especially in a time where we all know that attending art fairs as a gallery is incredibly important but can also pose an incredible financial risk to younger galleries (something I touched on briefly in my first Amplify column here).
However, there is so much more to explore. While I look forward to seeing the aforementioned sections, I decided to split some of the further exhibiting galleries into overarching categories so that both you, the reader, along with myself, can use this as a guideline to discover the galleries that champion the art and artists that you are most passionate about.
If you are interested in abstract art, I suggest you visit the stand of:
Marc Standing, The Green Labyrinth. Courtesy the Artist and Graham Contemporary
Graham Contemporary (Johannesburg, South Africa) - The gallery represents contemporary emerging, mid-career and established artists from Africa and diaspora whose work has a strong focus on concept and abstraction.
If you are interested in art using nature as its departure point, you should go see:
Muriel Guepin Gallery (New York, NY, USA) - A core focus of the gallery’s roster is artists who explore nature through landscapes, organic forms, or patterns. They exhibit a wide range of mediums, including drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, ceramics and textiles.
If you are a fan of digital art, I suggest paying a visit to:
Guelman und Unbekannt Gallery (Berlin, Germany) - The gallery’s sole focus is on digital art, and primarily art created by humans with the assistance of artificial intelligence. Their mission is not only placing digital art in an artistic context but also educating a broad audience and professionals on how to appreciate this new art and understand its development.
If you want to discover something outside the traditional gallery model:
Creative Growth Art Center (Oakland, California): A non-profit organisation, Creative Growth recently celebrated their 50th Anniversary, marking half a century of being at the forefront of empowering artists with developmental disabilities by providing a nurturing space for creativity and inclusivity through supportive studio environments, gallery representation, and more..
Dan Miller, For Les Echos, Photography by Poppy Lynch. Courtesy Creative Growth Art Center
If you enjoy galleries that have a cultural and/or regional focus:
Isabelle Marie Poirier Troyano, Shiva, 2024, Textile, 34x38x44cm. Courtesy the Artist and Isolina Arbulu
LATITUDE Gallery (New York, NY, USA) - The gallery, located in Chinatown in Manhattan, showcases works by emerging Asian diaspora artists with a mission to cultivate a community of diverse voices in the art world.
Isolina Arbulu (Marbella, Spain) - Founded in 2019, Isolina Arbulu is, according to the gallery’s mission statement, “committed to supporting the female gaze, traditionally absent or ignored in the art world.” They primarily exhibit Spanish art, with a particular emphasis on contemporary Andalusian and South American artists.
Wolf and Nomad (Miami, FL, USA) - The gallery specializes in representing mid-career artists who are from various Latin American countries including but not limited to Mexico, Colombia, and Argentina.
Carolina Bazo, Selva Roja. Courtesy the Artist and O Art Project
If you want to focus on international female-led galleries, which I particularly look forward to visiting:
Fabienne Levy (Switzerland) - Dealer Fabienne Levy opened her eponymous gallery in Lausanne, her hometown, in 2019. The artists in her programme are interested in making sense of the world around them and who create works that bring us to think differently about our society and the systems within it.
O-Art Project (Lima, Peru) -The space was created through the joint efforts of five Peruvian women artists who founded the platform to explore the overarching themes of intimacy, desire, and social roles in women's lives. As more a platform or project space than a gallery, I look forward to seeing how they approach their stand at the fair.
TAMARA KREISLER Gallery (Madrid, Spain) - Exhibiting on the same stand as the aforementioned Isolina Arbulu gallery, Tamara Kreisler is the third generation of gallery owners of the Kreisler family. The gallery promotes contemporary artists from both the Spanish and international art scenes.
Luzia Simons, Stockage 2015, 2024, Scanogram Inkjet print on photo rag, framed behind museum glass, 100 x 80cm. Courtesy the Artist and Galerie Andreas Binder
And finally, if you want to visit galleries that represent established as well as emerging artists:
Galerie Andreas Binder (Munich, Germany) - The gallery has been around for over 30 years, with its beginnings in Munich in 1991 with a program showing emerging and established international contemporary artists working with various media such as painting, photography, film, and installation. Besides the gallery in Munich, Andreas Binder ran the Project Space Berlin in Berlin from 1995 until 1998, where artists like Fred Sandback, Lawrence Weiner, and Matt Mullican were invited to realize in situ projects.
In delving deeper into VOLTA’s vibrant 2025 exhibitor lineup, it becomes clear that this fair is not just a marketplace for art, but a dynamic platform for dialogue, discovery, and international representation. From digital pioneers to regionally focused spaces and female-led initiatives, VOLTA is bringing together a rich group of voices that reflect the evolving landscape of contemporary art today. Whatever medium or movement you are drawn to, there is something at the fair that will resonate with every visitor. As I look forward to my own first experience in Basel, I invite you to join me in exploring these global perspectives - I hope to see you there!