BASIS 2026 is the exhibition of the first and second year bachelor’s students at the Institute Art Gender Nature HGK Basel FHNW, which takes place annually at the end of each spring semester. It showcases their artistic development and fosters discourse through presentations to peers, and the public. Curated by four lecturers, Onome Ekeh, Mayte Gómez Molina, Lena Maria Thüring, and Hannah Weinberger, and produced by Karin Borer, the exhibition also serves as an exam, during which an external jury—this year artist and former student Jennifer Merlyn Scherler, and Tuula Rasmussen, curator and research associate at the Kunstmuseum Solothurn—evaluates the works. Presented at four different locations on the Campus Dreispitz, BASIS 2026 emphasizes collaboration, artistic freedom, and collective exchange, offering a dynamic space for dialogue, the emergence of new ideas, and artistic languages and voices. It marks a meaningful moment for students at the beginning of their artistic development, and we are especially pleased to also share this moment with a public audience.

A fundamental part of the bachelor's program and of this exhibition is the Forum Kunst. This teaching format brings students together in three inter-year groups, guided by artists and theorists. It provides a space for dialogue, collaboration, and connection with a wide network of creative peers, laying the groundwork for future projects and partnerships. In the Forum Kunst, the students take on the challenge of presenting their work—both to their fellow students and lecturers—and engaging in conversation.

The curatorial team of lecturers works alongside the students to find appropriate ways to present the works and to create a shared space for encounter and dialogue, an exhibition that reflects different perspectives in a cohesive group setting. BASIS 2026 is conceived as a platform for experiencing art, but it also creates meaningful moments for students to exchange and reflect on their own work once exhibited.