Chrysanne Stathacos
Basel Social Club

The Basel Social Club is a curated project that was founded in the spring of 2022 by a collective of artists, gallerists, and curators with the intention of creating social spaces for art. The Basel Social Club is accessible to all and free of charge.

The Breeder presents Chrysanne Stathacos at Art Basel Social Club. Known for her evocative explorations of spirituality, feminism, and materiality, Stathacos has built a body of work that defies categorization, spanning painting, installation, printmaking, and performance. With a practice that traverses her Greek, American and Canadian origins, her work is imbued with a profound sense of ritual and transformation. A longtime fixture of the downtown New York art scene, Stathacos’ contributions have often been overshadowed by her male contemporaries, yet her unique fusion of conceptual art and Eastern spirituality has left an indelible mark on contemporary feminist discourse. At the heart of her practice is a profound engagement with cycles of creation and decay, using ephemeral materials such as roses, hair, and ivy to evoke themes of transience, loss, and rebirth. Her art serves as both a personal and collective meditation, addressing grief, empowerment, and the interconnection between the body and the metaphysical world. Having lost many close friends during the HIV/AIDS crisis, Stathacos responded with deeply introspective works that merge personal mourning with universal healing. The presentation culminates in a site-specific floor rose mandala installation, a contemplative arrangement of flowers and found objects that invites viewers into an immersive, spiritual experience. Drawing from Eastern traditions, this ephemeral work highlights Stathacos’ engagement with Buddhist philosophy, ritualistic aesthetics, and notions of impermanence. Through her alchemical use of materials and her commitment to feminist and spiritual discourse, Chrysanne Stathacos creates spaces of reflection, healing, and empowerment. The presentation offers a rare opportunity to experience the depth and breadth of her artistic vision, bridging personal narratives with collective memory and transformation.

Chrysanne Stathacos (b. 1951) has exhibited for over 40 years in museums, galleries and public spaces internationally. Selected solo shows: Chrysanne, Cooper Cole, Toronto (2024/2025); The Re-Turn, Anonymous Gallery, New York (2023), The Breeder Studyroom, The Breeder, Athens (2023), Cooking with Roses, Buffalo Institute of Contemporary Art, New York (2022), The Great Void. The Gold Rush, Cooper Cole, Toronto (2018), Do I still yearn for my virginity, Situations Gallery, New York (2018), Pythia, The Breeder Gallery, Athens (2017), The Banquet: Ephemera Office Enterprise – with Hunter Reynolds, Participant Inc., New York (2017), Flower Power, Fiendish Plots, Lincoln, Nebraska (2014), Night Garden, Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt (2008), Lady Day Lord Night (with Andrew Zealley), Art Metropole, Toronto (2007), Rose Mandala (of Three Reflections), Anderson Gallery, University of Buffalo New York (2006), and so beautiful (again) 1990-2004, Open Studio, Toronto (2005), another change, PS 122 Gallery, New York (2005), another change, Nature Morte, New Delhi (2005), biCHANCE, Participant Inc., New York (2004), Cross Your Fingers, Frankfurt (2003), Rose Wishes, India International Centre, New Delhi (2001), Wish, Lombard-Freid Fine Arts, New York (1997), 1852-2063, Gallery TPW, Toronto (1997), A Rose and a Hair, Onassis Center, New York University, New York(1996), …and so beautiful, Lombard-Freid Fine Arts, New York (1995), 1-900 Mirror Mirror, Art Metropole, Toronto (1995), Pop Pop Pop; Garnet Press Gallery, Toronto (1993), The Abortion Project collaboration with Kathe Burkhart, Artists Space, New York (traveling Simon Watson Gallery, NY, Hallwalls, Buffalo, NY, Real Art Ways, Hartford, Conn and New Langton Arts, San Francisco, California) (1990).

Her works have also been included in many public art projects & sculpture parks among which:13th Gwanju Biennale, Gwanju, South Korea (2021), Oracle Drawings, Parliament of Bodies, documenta 14, Athens (2017), Natural Wishing, Textile Museum, 5×5 Initiative, Washington (2012), Commission of the Arts, Washington DC (2012), Three Wishing Trees, Bungesgartenshau, Koblenz, Germany (2011), True Patriot Love, Nuit Blanche, Toronto (2011), 48*C, Public, Art, Ecology, Khoj and Goethe Institute, Delhi (2008), Into the Street, Art Omi/ The Fields, New York (2008), Treelines, Abingdon Art Center Philadelphia (2006), Wade, Wade Collective, Toronto (2006), Float, Socrates, Sculpture Park, New York (2005), The Wish Machine, Krichentag, Frankfurt (2001), Landesgarstenshau, Grossenhaim, Germany (2001).

Works by Chrysanne Stathacos are in the collections of Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Art Bank, Art Gallery of Ontario, Art Gallery of Guelph, Art Gallery of Peel, Art Gallery of Victoria, Art Museum at the University of Toronto, Burchfield Penny Art Center, Cambridge Art Gallery, Castellani Art Museum, Cape Breton University, Fales Library NYU, Government of Ontario, Hamilton Art Gallery, MOMA – Artist Book Collection, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, Moving Collection, AIT Hour Museum, Tokyo, Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Tom Tomson Art Gallery, National Gallery of Canada, Archive/Library, Walker Art Center, Artist Book Collection, among other distinguished international collections.