UBS celebrates 25 years as lead partner of Art Basel
The UBS bank will celebrate its 25th anniversary as lead partner of Art Basel with a presentation of works by the artist Carlos Cruz-Diez which will be on display from 14to 17 June.
Carlos Cruz-Diez is considered an important artist of the 20th century in the field of colours and is known as a master of interactive visual experiences.
His works, from the UBS Art Collection, form part of an architectural intervention by Cruz-Diez in the 1970s at the former headquarters of the Schweizerische Bankgesellschaft in Zurich. Chromo-kinetic elements were integrated into parts of the building, in the rooms as well as in the corridors and common areas, to mesmerise people with a constantly changing colour scheme.
The works presented at Art Basel in Basel will be exhibited together for the first time since 2011. Some of the works have already been shown in other UBS buildings in London, Hong Kong and Panama. For the UBS Art Collection, it was a “unique opportunity” to work closely with Cruz-Diez's studio and restore these works of art for the exhibition in the lounge.
Very rare bat species rediscovered after decades in canton of Baselland
Baselland’s cantonal bat protection officer has identified extremely rare bat species by carrying out a monitoring project inside a cave.
Apart from the «usual» bat types which hibernate in caves during winter, there was also proof of rare or even very rare types arrive like «Bechsteinfledermaus» and «Wimperfledermaus» as well as small and large horseshoe nose bat. These are the first records of the existence of the small and large nose bat species in Baselland in the last 62 and 39 years respectively. A total of ten out of 29 native bat species were discovered in one cave.
Smile, please...
A hibernating small horseshoe nose wrapped in its wings was already photographed by geocachers in 2015. This photo of the rare species was discovered on the Internet two years later by an attentive local bat protector and sent to bat protection officer, Céline Martinez. Based on this information, Ms Martinez decided to install a light barrier at the entrance to the cave.
The bats which awoke from hibernation in the spring were counted by the light barrier when they left the cave and each animal was automatically photographed to determine its species. It is presumed that the cave is home to between 20 and 50 animals in winter.
Federer ready for the battle for ATP 1
Roger Federer will return to the tennis court on Wednesday after a two and a half month period of rest. Speaking in Stuttgart ahead of the Stuttgart Open, the 36-year-old Swiss champion told the media that the break had "done him good".
Federer has already been on the court twice for training in Stuttgart and said he is “very satisfied” with the quality of the grass courts there. After the semi-final of 2016 and his first defeat in 2017, he now wants to win so close to home for the first time. But he knows that the task won't be easy.
«At the beginning, you are always euphoric, then there is the draw and you realise that strong opponents are waiting.» Federer begins this tournament on Wednesday (at around 3pm) against German player Mischa Zverev (ATP 54) or Russian qualifier Michail Yuschni (ATP 93). «They are both players who like to play on grass», Federer said. But after his break, he feels «fresh, healthy, and ready».
For him, this is not just about winning the Stuttgart Open – he also has the chance to regain the number 1 ATP position. Rafael Nadal defended his narrow top position thanks to his 11th French Open win last Sunday. Federer saw practically nothing from the final, against Dominic Thiem, since he arrived and went straight to training. But he was not surprised by the result. «What he is doing is incredible, but you could have expected it.»
Federer therefore expects that Stuttgart could also be a tournament where he can gain the ATP 1 position. «That's another extra motivation,» he said.