PAST PROJECTS
PAST PROJECTS
Through the various projects that the artists with whom we work have been able to realise, we have collaborated with a wide range of galleries, museums, institutions and partners all over the world. The list below is an archive of the projects NOA contemporary has been involved in.
2024
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Face-o-mat
Solo exhibition at the Ithra Museum, Saudi Arabia
19 January, 2024 — 19 March, 2024
At the heart of Tobias Gutmann’s artistic practice lies the creation and investigation of encounters – between people, cultures and environments, but also between what we perceive on the outside and what we feel on the inside. Constantly aiming to enter into a flow state of creation, the act of drawing becomes a ritual in which the artist manifests and captures his encounters through his hands. The drawings always entail playfulness and curiosity, wilderness and tranquility. With his portrait performance Face-o-mat, Tobias Gutmann has met over 5000 people worldwide to draw abstract interpretations of what he sees in their faces. Rather than providing a photorealistic depiction, the artist aims to capture the sound of a person. The ever-growing archive of his drawings has developed its own language and meaning, dissolving into multiple narratives in various mediums.
In a 2 month exhibition, Tobias Gutmann presents his Face-o-mat at Ithra. The site-specific cardboard installation serves as an environment for the three-day Face-o-mat performance, where Tobias Gutmann will be present to draw portraits of people, as well as a two-month Face-o-mat Atelier. Here, visitors will be able to experience Face-o-mat from both sides, taking on the role of painter and painted. An online archive shows the variety of drawings created, creating the narrative of how people visiting the exhibition see each other.
“Face-o-mat means looking with curious eyes, listening and breathing, until I see the person behind a face. Before the drawing begins, I wait until my preconceptions about a person start to disappear. It takes courage to look into someone's eyes, or let someone look into my eyes. It takes time to grasp the person. In everyday life we often don’t look at each other long enough to really see the person we encounter. It takes a deeper kind of seeing, to look past the façade, past visual aspects that are like a mask, covering the unique personality of each and every human being. How would our world look like if we would not only be connected globally through digital devices, but would take the time to connect through conscious, everyday face-to-face encounters?” - Tobias Gutmann
Text by Ithra Museum
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“Reflektionen”
22 February 2024 – 31 July 2024
One of the focal points of our collection is the promotion of young artists. We are therefore launching a pilot project: embedded in the exhibition of our art purchases, we are making the room within the room available to an artist in temporary exhibitions. Here, art acts as a platform to address socially relevant topics. Like innovation, for example. Innovation is important for the future viability of our society. Upheavals, crises and changing living conditions always offer opportunities. Innovation is needed to take advantage of these opportunities and remain resilient.
In this context, we present the Swiss artist Patric Sandri (*1979). In his work, the artist focuses on abstract painting. He explores the ambivalence between tradition and innovation by rethinking traditional panel painting. Paint, canvas and stretcher frame remain the same, but instead of applying the colors directly to the surfaces, he applies neon pigments to the hidden edges behind the canvas. The colors reflect through the translucent voile fabric, creating further spatial images. The creation of colors through reflections is an innovative feature of Sandri's art as well as the systematic play with infinite color combinations in his artistic process.
The boundaries between painting and sculpture blur in Patric Sandri's artistic work in an enchanting way, with not only the front of the canvas but also the back becoming an integral part of the artwork. Sandri stages the canvas as an architectural space in which he creates a relationship between image and space, between art and its surroundings. His works emphasize the contingency of perception and show that an image always depends on its medium, context and viewer.
Text source: Mobiliar Kunstsammlung
Translated by NOA contemporary
2023
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“Untitled”
November 2023
Solo exhibition and private event
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“Transformation”
8 December 2022 — 1 April 2023
Installation
Glass artist Simon Berger stages the space completely freely according to his ideas and creates new spatial installations for the first time from his further developed experiments, in which the visitors integrate themselves and interact with the material glass. For example, walk-on glass panels are installed, and the weight of the panels activates the overall work planned by the artist by breaking the glass floor. In addition, images will be created on the walls through shards of mirror and the incidence of light, in keeping with his preoccupation with reflection and transparency.
The installation will be accompanied by a supporting room acoustics/lighting concept and will be in a constant state of flux throughout the exhibition period. As the artist continues to influence the overall installation, new works, sculptures and spatial experiences are constantly being created.
During the exhibition period, individual public and exclusive events on the theme of “glass” will take place within the installation in combination with culinary delights/performances. These accompanying programmes will be communicated separately.
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“Volta Art Fair”
12 June 2023 — 18 June 2023
Duo show with Eddie Hara
Basel-based gallery, Artstübli, are known contributors to guerrilla actions and urban interventions, featuring artists that speak to collectors of contemporary art. They’ll be bringing several local talents from their space in the vibrant Markthalle.
Simon Berger, a carpenter by trade and lover of mechanics, was inspired by car carcasses to use glass as a medium to convey the depths of portraiture. His pioneering work is amplified in effect by the use of a hammer to create varying shades, textures and reflections, which all come together to form expressive portraits. After perfecting his work in with faces, Berger has turned to mirrors with new dimensions and sculptures, which you’ll be able to discover at VOLTA Basel.
Artstübli Gallery will also be presenting Eddie Hara, who lives and works in Basel after an arts education that has spanned the globe from Indonesia to The Netherlands. Through his children’s art, street art, comics and musical subcultures-inspired paintings, Hara aims to inspire viewers to think upon world issues, particularly those of war, poverty and identity, which contributes to the gallery’s efforts to showcase the best in all contemporary facets of urban art and culture.
Text by: Artstübli Art & Culture
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“Drones over All - A Tribute to Pipilotti Rist”
25 August 2023 — 22 September 2023
Solo exhibition
Zurich artist Piet Baumgartner (*1984) created the video installation “Drones Over All (A Tribute to Pipilotti)” for the Jungkunst Winterthur 2018 exhibition. The video work shows a woman walking through a street to dreamy music and smashing drones whirring in the air with a baseball bat. As the title of the work reveals, it is a homage to the video work “Ever is Overall” by Pipilotti Rist from 1997.
The homage was shot in the same street, with the same costume and in a similar colour scheme, but there are still some differences. 21 years after Pipilotti Rist's work, Piet Baumgartner replaces the cars with drones, which “today seem as untouchable and promise freedom as the status symbol car once did”, describes the artist. Emphasised by the affective music of the Rio Wolta collective, the slow-motion effect and the euphoric facial expressions, the destructive gesture of destroying the drones is staged as a liberating act.
Technological progress has become an integral part of our lives. Although drones are usually only used privately or in specific areas of activity, their presence makes them seem invasive. In a broader sense, the destruction can also be interpreted as a reconquest of technology and a reclaiming of public space. The protagonist's feminine-looking clothing and the approving acceptance of the destructive act by passers-by also lend the artwork an emancipatory note, which empowers women in public space. This active presence and strength is emphasised by the protagonist's gesture as she places the baseball bat on her shoulders at the end of the video and strides forward proudly and unperturbed.
Piet Baumgartner is a visual artist and director who works transdisciplinary in the fields of film, theatre and visual arts. After a career in journalism, he completed an MA in film directing at the Zurich University of the Arts and attended the script workshop in Munich. After training with Andrej Wajda in Warsaw and assisting Frank Castorf and René Pollesch at the Schauspielhaus Zurich, Piet Baumgartner worked as a freelance director and in the “Rio Wolta” collective. Baumgartner has received numerous international awards for his work.
Text by: Vivienne Heinzelmann
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“Morphogenesis”
3 April 2023 — 27 April 2023
Solo exhibition
Simon Berger's glass portraits visualise a tension between strength and fragility, both through the motif and the handling of the glass.
The sculpture “Morphogenesis” was first unveiled at the Sculpturegarden Geneva Biennale in summer 2022. The motif on display is one of his characteristic portraits, but instead of being framed as a work of art, the installation refers more to the material of the glass. From a distance, the face of a woman immediately stands out against the black background. As you approach the sculpture, the face disintegrates into shattered panes and a black background, which are tied to a glass transport trolley.
Simon Berger's glass portraits visualise a tension between strength and fragility, both through the motif and the handling of the glass. The anonymous portraits of women generally have a powerful expression, their penetrating gaze piercing the viewer or fixing on an object beyond the frame. On closer inspection of the artworks, these captivating images disintegrate into a collection of cracks and jagged shards of glass. Contrary to the expectation that glass should be handled with care to ensure its integrity, Berger utilises the brittleness of the material to develop his artistic language. Based on sculptural techniques, the emphasised facial features are stamped into the glass pane with a hammer. The initially transparent image carrier, the pane of glass, becomes partially opaque. The controlled shattering of the glass creates fractures that are subject to the physical laws of the material. But instead of collapsing, the safety glass holds the shards in place. Simon Berger creates beauty through destruction.
The sculpture “Morphogenesis” was unveiled for the first time at the Sculpturegarden Geneva Biennale in summer 2022. The motif on display is one of his characteristic portraits, but instead of being framed as a work of art, the installation refers more to the material of the glass. From a distance, the face of a woman immediately stands out against the black background. As you approach the sculpture, the face disintegrates into shattered panes and a black background, which are tied to a glass transport trolley. The sight of this actually destroyed material and the installation leads to a moment of irritation. It is precisely this contrast that the artist, Simon Berger, strives for when creating his works. Here, more than in other works, reference is made to the material glass as an everyday object, and to the fact that this face could only be created through destruction. The fragility of the material, which Simon Berger uses as a technique, encourages viewers to reflect on the vulnerability of human beings.
The iconic glass portraits have been exhibited worldwide, in North America, Europe and Asia, in various solo and group exhibitions. Berger's portraits were exhibited in 2022 in the Glasstress exhibition on the island of Murano in Venice, alongside major contemporary artists such as Tony Cragg, Erwin Wurm, Jaume Plensa and Thomas Schütte. His first institutional solo exhibition, “Shattering Beauty”, can be seen at the Museo del Vetro in Venice until 7 May. Simon Berger (1976*) was born in Herzogenbuchsee and now lives and works in Niederönz.
Text by: Vivienne Heinzelmann
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“In Bloom”
29 April 2023 — 4 June 2023
Duo exhibition with Seline Burn and Riika Sormunen
Spring has creeped up on us. The new season announces the beginning of all things and to celebrate, Spring presents a feast of vibrant colors. The title of the exhibition 'IN BLOOM' praises life in the era of New Normal through the harmony of line and color and beauty of art after a long winter.
Line vs Color? Querelle du coloris
Generally in appreciating an artwork, we first look at how much weight the artist places on line and color to perceive the artistic style and ideology of an artist.
EM focuses on ‘the artist’s own way of bringing sublime to the value of classical painting’ and ‘the balance between line and color’ when curating the two persons duet exhibition with artists from Helsinki, Finland and Basel, Switzerland. The artists use intricate lines of precision to describe their inner feelings, keeping the harmony between the inner and outer layers of the composition. We hope to share with the audiences the value of exactitude in the way the artists use line and color for an immersive and emotional experience through a feast of colors.
The two artists express their intuitive emotions rather than their daily mundane moments, through arrangement, combination and fragments of line and color. This shows the artists’ internal world rather than mimic or depict the outside world. The artists’ artistic sensitivity spreads the symphony of colors on canvas. Through our appreciation, we are braced with a Spring of splendor. We hope that those who seek art, experience artistic life and art of life where art is omnipresent.
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“Echoes”
3 December 2023 — 27 January 2024
Solo show
Fabien Castanier Gallery is proud to present, “ECHOES“, a solo exhibition for contemporary Swiss artist, Simon Berger. The exhibition is organized in collaboration with Laurent Marthaler Contemporary and consists of a curated selection of Berger’s signature portrait works. The artist brings to life visions of striking faces, emerging from panes of glass that he has meticulously broken and manipulated. By crafting such realism within the constraints of a traditionally fragile medium, the artist presents us with a truly unique form of expression.
Simon Berger (b. 1976, Switzerland) began his artistic endeavors by experimenting with different materials. Working with spray paint, wood, and other discarded items, he found an interest in used vehicle bodies to create assemblages. After working with one car’s windshield, he discovered a fascination with glass. Formally trained as a carpenter, Berger applied his knowledge of raw materials to create pieces that belie their delicate medium. He uses a hammer directly onto the surface of safety glass and the shattered material turns white in various degrees from this process. Emerging from the once transparent plane are arresting faces in high contrast. As they appear from the shadows, their expressions are intense or contemplative – illusions of ephemeral beauty that suggest an on-going struggle between the everlasting desire for ideal form and the deconstructive nature of time.
In order to materialize the hyper-realistic portraits of his mysterious subjects, Berger explores a uniquely contemporary version of subtractive sculpture. Though technically two dimensional, the cracks in the glass act as pigment in a structural way. The broken clarity solidifies to appear white when set upon a black background, as he often does with his gallery pieces. Like classical sculpture in which form is created by the detailed removal of material, such as from marble or wood, Berger’s technique sees the “removal” of the glass’s perfection to reveal shape. The artist employs destruction as the basis of his creation, highlighting both the strength and fragility of his medium and subject matter.
Like most subtractive sculpture, the nature of the artist’s technique relies upon definitive movements that once made cannot be undone. Removal of material, or in this case the breaking of glass, is permanent and unchanging. While the initial preparation of the composition can begin with large and forceful hits to the surface, as the piece evolves each hammer strike needs to become more intentional and calculated. However, unlike traditional fine art, each stroke of light is determined by chance with each fall of the artist’s tool rendering a chaotic pattern of cracks – controlled to a point but ultimately random. Thus, there is a performative narrative behind his work, as the craftsmanship speaks through his pieces. Every detail of the glass, which when inspected up close, reveals the uncontrollable nature of his vitreous canvas. Only when seen from afar, and with the entire piece in view, do the facial features become clear and the individuals emerge.
Since making his first works in glass in 2017, Berger has stepped out as a cutting edge and notable figure on the contemporary art scene. He has shown in institutions and events worldwide with solo and group exhibitions, including showings at two of the world’s most prominent glass art museums, Vitromusée in Romont, Switzerland, and Murano Glass Museum in Venice, Italy. Recently, the artist partnered with the National Women’s History Museum to create a portrait of Vice President Kamala Harris in 2021. Later that year, Berger created works for the “We are Unbreakable” project, which honored the victims of the Beirut explosion in 2020. He continues to create new work for projects and exhibitions around the globe from his studio in Niederönz, Switzerland.
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“Denter Perspectivas”
24 November 2023 — 5 January 2024
Group exhibition
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“Reflected Identities”
17 April 2023 — 23 April 2023
Solo show during “Salone del Mobile”
An unprecedented collection of mirrors, a personal interpretation by Simon Berger. The boundaries between the work of art and the reflected image dissolve in a suspended time made of light and shadow, solids and voids. The mirror is transformed into a "living canvas," which returns the image of a double soul: the reflection of a real identity in connection with the expressive force of feminine elegance maximum expression of the artist's essence.
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“WE, WE OR ME”
18 March 2023 — 28 May 2023
Solo exhibition curated by Eveline Suter
Jakup Ferris' (*1981) visual world is colourful and full of happy creatures. People, animals and hybrid creatures do gymnastics, ride their bicycles or whizz through the pictures on a skateboard. Above all, they come together: outside for a picnic, at the family table, dancing, making music or playing chess in the park. Jakup Ferri seems to ask himself while drawing: What else is in a motif? - And in a flash, the buttons on a shirt become seeds that birds are pecking at. His works sparkle with graphic humour and narrative joy.
The Kosovan artist cultivates a linear style, with the outlines taking centre stage and framing the bold colours. Jakup Ferri creates paintings based on drawings and has his pictorial inventions woven or embroidered. He draws inspiration from microorganisms, folk art, arts and crafts, art brut and the pixel world of computer games. In his installations, he overlays carpets with abstract-concrete patterns, embroidered drawings and paintings to create a dense cosmos full of stories.
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“Untitled”
Group exhibition
3 June 2023 — 23 July 2023
Street Art Fest Grenoble - Alpes presents a selection of works by all the artists taking part in the 2023 edition.
This exhibition is a shared party, a privileged meeting to celebrate all connections in the public space, based on a presentation of their personal work, with no limits on techniques, size or media, but always of the highest quality.
The exhibition also showcases the heritage that the Ancien Musée de Peinture building represents for the city of Grenoble, with its surface area and historic architecture enhancing the works on display.
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“Réflexion Cristalline”
22 July 2023 — 5 November 2023
Installation
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“Things that brought me here”
16 November 2023 — 16 January 2024
Solo show on Artsy
Hinano's creative approach, drawing from instinct and intuition, translates into vibrant and evocative artworks. She let herself carried away by the physical sensations of the moment, by fleeting emotions, discovering in the process what type of brushstroke will follow the previous one.
To maximise her productivity, Hinano adheres to a special routine, dedicating at least three hours daily to work on multiple paintings simultaneously. Her creative process commences with meditation, a reflective pause that fosters the expression of the feelings she seeks to convey through her art. The crescendo of her painting technique mirrors her emotional ascent, starting with small brushstrokes and evolving into broader ones. The result is paintings on canvas or ceramic of a lively and varied colour palette, revealing sometimes enigmatic visions, with figures emerging like faded dreams. Small-scale artworks become vessels of emotions, while larger paintings are like pages of a diary, narrating memories from her childhood, journeys, and her youth.
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“Stress”
2023
For this project, Micha Häni was able to collaborate with the musician Stress from western Switzerland to design the visual elements for his MTV Unplugged show. It is the second MTV Unplugged edition that has ever been made in Switzerland and is still a great accomplishment and honor in the music scene worldwide.
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“The Doors of Perception”
2 July 2023 — 30 September 2023
Solo exhibition curated by Sandrine Welte and Pasquale Lettieri
Cris Contini Contemporary and Lo Studiolo d'Arte, present THE DOORS OF PERCEPTION, the solo show of Swiss sculptor Simon Berger curated by Sandrine Welte and Prof. Pasquale Lettieri on display at the Civic Museum of Sansepolcro.
In this exhibition sponsored by the Municipality of Sansepolcro and the Department of Culture, Simon Berger embraces the artistic heritage of the city as a starting point for a commentary that develops from a 1925 essay by Aldous Huxley, in which the author describes Piero della Francesca's Resurrection as ‘the greatest painting in the world’, thus saving it from the bombings of World War II. It was later, in his autobiographical account that the English writer reexamined the Renaissance artist’s work with respect to drapery, thereby opening the semantics of contemplation to new modes of seeing. With The Doors of Perception, the Swiss artist undertakes to investigate these very mechanisms of the beholding mind, that solitary universe in which the infinite vagueness of imagination and conception come together.
Through an immersive, box-like installation of glass canvases, the labyrinthine structures of the human intellect are replicated, playing with the illusion of sight and the seduction of the senses.
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“Facing Grace”
15 December 2023 — 12 February 2024
Solo exhibition curated by Sandrine Welte and Pasquale Lettieri
Inspired by Antonio Canova's sculptural group The Three Graces, Swiss artist Simon Berger reinterprets the complex neoclassical work by arranging the sheet of glass as if it were a "canvas" and using sculptural tools including a hammer to work directly on the surface by "etching" and "drawing" striking sculptural portraits. The use of safety glass, which contains a layer of plastic inside, ensures that the material, even if broken, remains in place. Dismembered through the technique of "morphogenesis," the Three Graces are separated as the Swiss artist recreates their likeness on his glass canvases as disjointed figures.
Exhibition organized by Cris Contini Contemporary in collaboration with the City of Treviso in the spaces of Casa Robegan, Civic Museums of Treviso. The exhibition, curated by Sandrine Welte and Pasquale Lettieri and supported by Cristian Contini and Fulvio Granocchia, is part of the cultural program sponsored by the City Council and supported by Banca Prealpi SanBiagio.
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“Shattering Beauty”
28 January 2023 — 7 May 2023
Solo exhibition curated by Sandrine Welte and Chiara Squarcina
The exhibition Simon Berger: Shattering Beauty, organised in collaboration with Berengo Studio at the Museo del Vetro, contains a seri”
The exhibition Simon Berger: Shattering Beauty, organised in collaboration with Berengo Studio at the Museo del Vetro, contains a series of new portraits by the artist in glass, presenting his pioneering technique to the Venetian lagoon for the very first time. In his hyper realistic portraits Berger recreates the lines of the human face by breaking the material. In a mesmerising process he refers to as “morphogenesis,” he re-situates the medium as an animated “canvas,” using sculptural tools such as a hammer to physically work at its surface to “etch” and “draw” haunting human faces. Reinforced safety glass, which holds at its core a crucial layer of plastic, ensures that the material, though broken, stays in place.
This highly controlled sculptural technique originates from the artist’s classical training in carpentry, and is a moving example of how many artists are now translating techniques from other mediums into the world of glass. Berger’s unique technique of deliberate “shattering,” contradicts years of teaching, whereby broken glass has been seen as wasted or ruined. On the contrary, he instead turns the material’s so-called weakness into its most vital asset. Its ability to break becomes reframed as its ability to change, to be altered, and to be recast as something new. To watch the artist create these works is to witness a vivid “performance,” not dissimilar to that of the glass maestros in the furnace. In a way, Berger’s craft provides an enticing extension of tradition, continuing the animated life of glass, into what had previously been viewed as its death.
The exquisite shattering of Berger’s work becomes representative of how powerful revitalising and reanimating our own relationship to the material can be. Each artwork becomes a reminder of the process of breaking down barriers, a physical urge encouraging audiences to view glass – and the world within which it exists – in a different way. The trauma and pain typically associated with broken glass are inverted. The shattering of the material is not an end point for Berger: it is just the beginning.
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“Sai Bot Performance”
8 June 2023
Private event with performance by Sai Bot
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“Art Car”
23 May 2023
Artist Simon Berger, known for his unmistakable artistic style, his incredible mastery of glass and his iconic portraits, was invited by the Porsche Centre to transform a Porsche 996 into a work of art. The result is surprising at first glance, but for car lovers, the reference to the motif is immediately recognisable. At the unveiling of the Porsche Art Car on 23 May in Basel, a glass fried egg is revealed. It appears to be dripping from the bonnet of the black Porsche and to have been fried on the floor in front of it.
Simon Berger decided to visualise the Porsche 966's nickname "Fried Egg". The model was given this name because of the modified shape of the front headlights. The iconic round headlights of the Porsche 911 were replaced with lights that resembled the shape of a fried egg. This change was controversial but memorable and may have inspired later changes to the headlight shape on other models.
In creating the Art Car, Simon Berger was inspired by Porsche's innovative spirit to try something new himself. He appreciates the unmistakable style with which the Porsche brand has been designing its models for decades, without shying away from experimentation and progress. "When I saw that they had delivered the Porsche 996 to my studio for the artwork, I thought to myself: if they deliver me the fried egg, I'll bring them one back, too," the artist, himself an enthusiastic Porsche fan, explained with a laugh. Inspired by the story of the "fried egg" headlights, he seized the opportunity to explore new possibilities in his own art. Instead of bringing forth his typical portraits out of glass, he uses coloured glass to combine the egg sculpture with the Porsche.
Once again, Simon Berger demonstrates his ability to respond to specific situations and constantly develop his work. He gives his Porsche Art Car a humorous touch and at the same time makes a strong statement: Only those who dare to cross boundaries, and perhaps polarise in the process, contribute to innovation and development and perhaps be polarising in the process contribute to innovation and development.
Click here to learn more.
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“Fragile”
6 September 2023 — 13 January 2024
Duo exhibition with Simon Berger
In this exhibition, Simon Berger and Vierwind examine the theme of fragility. The hammer blows of one and the dynamic splashes of the other are gestures imbued with power. From a centre, the movement always radiates outwards, but with a different impact. While the shards of glass are sharp edges, Vierwind's strokes reveal rounder, softer forms.
The theme of fragility is expressed in Simon Berger's work through the transparency of the glass. The vulnerability of the human being is also present in the work of both artists, with an emphasis on sensitivity and cultural, linguistic and graphic interconnectivity.
This is an exhibition that invites us to contemplate the works: to see, understand and feel the ultimate tension of the material. The genius of his interplay of forces and balance is evident in each of his compositions, and reminds us of our own fragility, while allowing us to perceive the full complexity of life.
Questioning the obvious, the expected result of the encounter between canvas, glass and a hammer, proving that there can be as much strength as gentleness in an impact, having the idea and putting it on show.
An exhibition where the hammer is not a destructive tool, but one that amplifies beauty and emotion.
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“Verbunden”
26 August 2023 — 15 August 2024
The theme of this year's annual exhibition in the Galerie im Kloster and on the sculpture trail of the SSBL Foundation for Self-Determined and Assisted Living is “Verbunden”. As the second exhibition in the “Zeitgeist” series, the theme alludes to the past year and picks up on social movements. As before, the exhibition presents artistic positions that deal with the theme in different ways and come from artists from the SSBL studios as well as from well-known and young artists from Central Switzerland. Whether representational or abstract, whether painting, drawing or sculpture, the works are intended to encourage visitors to reflect, to discover the connections between the works, between nature and man, between fullness and emptiness, between colour and blankness.
In keeping with the theme of the exhibition, the gallery in the SSBL monastery is now a member of the “Kunsthoch Luzern” association. The vernissage will therefore take place on the day of action, in which around 30 art institutions in and around Lucerne are participating. This gives the Galerie im Kloster regional visibility and integrates it into the discourse on artistic creation in Lucerne.
Text by: Vivienne Heinzelmann (Curator)
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“I can do that too!” says the AI
20 January 2023 — 18 March 2023
Solo exhibition
In “I can do that too!” Says the AI, Swiss artist Tobias Gutmann presents the public with Sai Bot: an artificial intelligence robot who produces portraits in real time, using the thousands of drawings the artist has created since 2012 in the scope of his Face-o-mat performance as a source. From these data, Sai Bot assimilates and learns the formal language and repertoire of the portraits, thus creating their own combinations.
The portraits embody the works of the exhibition, and the creation process of each one is experiential and intimate. The visitor who desires to be drawn by Sai Bot sits down in front of them and enters into a personal interaction with the robot, who speaks, asking questions while they process traces and characteristics, interpreting them in abstract form. The result is subtle, minimal and unique.
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“Tosca”
28 September 2023 — 28 October 2023
Public art project
After a solo exhibition at the Musée du Verre in Murano, the creation of the portrait of Kamala Harris exhibited at the Lincoln Museum in Washington, and a vibrant tribute to the British writer Aldous Huxley at the Museo Municipale in Sansepolcro, it is opposite the Opéra Comique in Paris, one of France's oldest theatrical and musical institutions, that Simon Berger is installing his new creation.
Simon Berger's unique technique consists of multiple hammer blows, directed and controlled, on glass surfaces to sculpt shapes and create striking figures. Inspired by the place given to operatic heroines, the true guardians of the Opéra Comique, Simon Berger wanted to pay tribute to Tosca, one of the most famous and demanding female characters in the Italian opera repertoire. In doing so, he has added a contemporary perspective that complements the two statues in the theatre's main hall, those of Carmen (by Guiraud-Rivière) and Manon (by Mercié).
This sculpture pays tribute to this emblematic character on the very spot where he first appeared in Paris on 13 October 1903, exactly 120 years ago.
It was at the Opéra Comique that the first - and highly controversial - French performance of Giacomo Puccini's Manon took place, recounting the tragic fate of a famous opera singer, mistress of a painter and victim of his passion. Simon Berger's striking sculpture captures the emotional intensity of Tosca, both in the power of her gaze and in her fragility, evoked by the broken glass.
Commenting on his portraits of women in broken glass, Simon Berger says: “The women I sculpt are not only luminous, they are light itself. Immaterial, their features are engraved deep in the glass, whose finesse captures every nuance of their emotions, even the most fleeting, for eternity.”
This open-air exhibition, accessible to all free of charge, is the fruit of a collaboration between Simon Berger and the Mairie de Paris, and confirms the City of Paris' desire to use public spaces to bring art to as many people as possible.
Text by: Agence DS
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“International Mural Festival”
27 February 2023 — 5 March 2023
Mural Festival
First edition of the Wallidia festival! A pictorial and contemporary dialogue between abstract calligraphy and the sea. An international meeting of European and African artists. From February 27 to March 5, 2023 in Oualidia.
Click here to learn more.
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“International Mural Festival”
27 February 2023 — 5 March 2023
Mural Festival
First edition of the Wallidia festival! A pictorial and contemporary dialogue between abstract calligraphy and the sea. An international meeting of European and African artists. From February 27 to March 5, 2023 in Oualidia.
Click here to learn more.
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“Beauty in Destruction”
23 September 2023 — 15 October 2023
Solo exhibition
West Chelsea Contemporary is pleased to present Beauty in Destruction: The Art of Simon Berger, an exploration of glass as an artistic medium and destruction as a path to beauty. This exhibition marks Berger’s first showing in Texas and features over 40 new works made exclusively for WCC. Having exhibited worldwide, pioneering Swiss artist Simon Berger is an international sensation. With a hammer in hand, Berger transforms panels of plain glass into portraits of precision, broadening the possibilities of a traditional medium. Rather than sculpting, blowing, or casting glass into molds, Berger destroys it. As the glass breaks, what is delicate becomes bold; what is fragile becomes strong. From two-dimensional glass “canvases” to immersive sculptures and experimental installations, this exhibition not only highlights Berger’s mastery of material, but also his aim to propel the medium forward. Look into the glass and find the beauty in destruction.
Berger’s deliberate use of destruction challenges what is typical in art history — that glass must be preserved, for once it is broken, it is wasted and ruined. Instead, Berger turns the material’s perceived weakness into its greatest strength. The ability for glass to break no longer means a discarded fate, but rather a way to transform it into something new altogether. As the glass shatters, the resulting patterns form lines of inquiry, guiding you to see the world differently.
In this way, Berger confronts the “broken window theory.” Originating in 1982 by social scientists, the “broken window theory” states that visible signs of what is deemed as criminal, anti-social, or disorderly behavior — broken windows — encourage further disorder and crime. The theory suggests that by policing methods against vandalism, loitering, and more, order and lawfulness are achieved. Instead, Berger sees broken glass not as a mark of crime, but a display of art. He sees his tool of choice — the hammer — not as a provocateur of disorder, but rather as a method to reveal the beauty of destruction.
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2022
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“Auswahl 22”
3 December 2022 — 2 January 2023
Group exhibition curated by Dr. Céline Eidenbenz
As the year draws to a close, the Aargauer Kunsthaus offers an opportunity to discover the region's current artistic output in all its abundance. Auswahl 22 is the traditional annual exhibition of Aargau artists and is jointly organised by the Aargauer Kunsthaus and the Aargauer Kuratorium.
Over 150 dossiers are submitted each autumn and judged by the expert juries of the Aargauer Kunsthaus and the Aargauer Kuratorium. On the occasion of the exhibition, the Aargau Board of Trustees awards the work grants in the fields of visual arts and performance. In the same context, the Credit Suisse Promotion Prize is awarded to a young artist.
Text by: Aargauer Kunsthaus -
“Exclusive Event”
2022
Solo show
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“Shattered”
1 July 2022 — 31 July 2022
Solo exhibition
Aurum Gallery is extremely privileged to announce our first exhibition with ‘Shattered’ by Swiss contemporary glass artist Simon Berger.
The artist will be in attendance for his debut exhibition in Asia featuring over 30 unique works on display and will create a live performance piece during the opening weekend.
Simon Berger is a contemporary glass artist exploring the material which he hammers, lacerates and cracks. Wood and scrap metal inspired the artist’s first pieces created from the streets. His unique technique was born out of artistic explorations using car windscreens. With a fascination for faces, he engraves portraits that play with light and transparency, plunging the gaze into a meander of lesions that he calls ‘Morphogenesis’.
In the form of apparent vandalism, his work provokes the theory of a ‘broken window’. The glass is a medium for light, while the hammer is not used for destruction but for amplifying the effect.
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“Jahresausstellung 2022”
11 December 2022 — 29 January 2023
Group exhibition curated by Damian Jurt
As the most important platform for contemporary art in Graubünden, the annual exhibition of Graubünden artists takes place in December.
The annual exhibition offers the public a unique opportunity to gain an overview of current artistic creation in the canton. This exhibition concludes the rich 2022 programme of the Bündner Kunstmuseum and offers visual artists an important platform to present their work.
Text by: Bündner Kunstmuseum Chur
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“Face-o-mat & Sai Bot”
18 May 2022
Performance
Tobias Gutmann travelled around the world with his Face-o-mat and created abstract portraits of over 5000 people. Sai Bot is his new digital artist twin that creates portraits in the style of the Face-o-mat. Sai Bot and Gutmann have a similar artistic approach, but Sai is on a journey of self-discovery and is developing its own artistic language.
Sai Bot is not subject to some of the factors that influence artistic production, such as fatigue and emotions, and can therefore “solve” certain portraits in a way that Gutmann would not have thought of. The technology-supported depiction of people is more present today than ever before, but Sai does not strive for optimisation - quite the opposite.
He captures the “sound of a person” instead of producing a photorealistic image of their face. With these highly abstract portraits, Sai Bot positions themselves as a humanised machine that creates subjective images of the people who allow themselves to be portrayed.
Text by: Vivienne Heinzelmann
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“Cantonale Berne Jura”
4 December 2022 — 15 January 2023
Group exhibition
Organised in collaboration with the Bienne Fine Arts Society, the inter-cantonal exhibition is an opportunity to draw attention to the regional art scene. The works, selected by a specialist jury, are surprising in their diversity and originality, and open the door to new discoveries. The artists thus have the opportunity to present their work to a broad public, while the public has the chance to discover them beyond the cantonal borders.
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“Mother and Thistle”
5 May 2022 — 30 May 2022
Solo exhibition
Eve Leibe Gallery is pleased to present Mother and Thistle, a debut solo exhibition of paintings by Swiss artist Seline Burn. Taking part of its name from the prickly leaved flower, Mother and Thistle gazes beneath the surface, examining themes of motherhood, protection and freedom. Bridging connections between subject and viewer, Burn’s new body of work confronts her inner thoughts, navigating familial relationships and revisiting childhood memories. Comprising eleven figurative paintings, the exhibition brings together intimate moments, inviting the viewer to engage with Burn’s inner world.
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“Glasstress - State of Mind”
4 June 2022 — 27 November 2022
Group show curated by Adriano Berengo, Koen Vanmechelen, Ludovico Pratesi
In a world of continual change, of constant upheaval, and unexpected turns how do we make up our mind? “Glasstress – State of Mind” presents the seventh edition of the famed exhibition of contemporary art in glass. Originally launched back in 2009 as a collateral event of the Venice Biennale the exhibition has continued to attract international artists and designers eager to experiment with the medium of glass.
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“Fotografie im Dialog”
14 January 2022 — 12 February 2022
Duo exhibition with Janik Bürgin and Roselyne Titaud.
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“Face-o-mat & Sai Bot”
1 April — 2 April 2022
Performative Installations
At the center of Tobias Gutmann's (*1987 Wewak, PNG) artistic practice is the creation and exploration of encounters, encounters between people, cultures and environments, but also between what we perceive externally what we feel internally. Gutmann's drawings reflect experiences, thoughts, memories, happenings, beliefs. They also reflect the artist’s own unique approach to figure and form, which oscillates between the abstract and the pictorial, between the known and the unknown. In his growing archive of drawings he has developed his own artistic language.
On April 1, 2022 Tobias Gutmann and Sai Bot will debut in a joint performance at Schwarzescafé/Luma Westbau hosted by Barbara Seiler Galerie, extending the legacy of Face-o-mat to explore the relationship between human and machine perception.
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“Internationale Druckgraphik”
17 March 2022 — 30 April 2022
Group Exhibition.
Click here to learn more.
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“Unbreakable Identities”
Milan Design Week, 2022
Solo exhibition
Art pays tribute to the female world with suggestive portraits engraved in glass by Swiss artist Simon Berger. In his hands, a hammer is an amplifier of identity perspectives, preserving faces in glass making them eternal is the distinctive sign of the artist. The celebration of an everlasting beauty framed in the purity of crystal. Feminine identities, indestructible and unbreakable, are the result of a figurative perception that is revealed through the extraordinary materiality of glass.
The exhibition hosts eight magnificent pieces by this talented artist and glass master, from the splendid face positioned in the window to the two suggestive internal profiles, to an intense detail of an eye accompanied by two portraits. The undisputed protagonist, however, is the table: Unbreakable Identities, visible through a 3D effect.
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“Immerfort - Der Mensch als Beziehung”
18 May 2022 — 9 July 2022
Solo exhibition curated by Dr. Karin Mairitsch
“IMMERFORT. The human being as a connection” presents itself as a painterly commitment to humanity and leaves the impression of a visual plea that could not be more impressive: Humans, stay in connection (!) - with yourself, your fellow human beings and the environment, seems to be the young artist's invitation to us viewers.
Emanuel Heim’s oeuvre on display at the Galerie im Theater Rüsselsheim comprises 50 works in oil on canvas, which were created between 2019 and 2022. Heim creates the majority of his works in large formats (over one metre). His artistic handwriting is characterised by his strikingly bold use of colour and the confident gestural style with which he operates on the floating border between expressive figurative or natural depictions and the derailment of figuration towards abstract spatial contexts, surfaces and forms. In terms of motifs, Heim focusses on people, how they struggle for community in their search for themselves and how they locate themselves in a world that is just as connected to nature as it is to architectural scenery or geometric forms and artefacts. The painterly and motivic development that Heim underwent is striking: while the works from around 2020 and earlier were mostly portraits that flowed onto the picture ground in an almost expressionist tradition with wild strokes and bright colours (e.g. “In der Familie”, “In der Wüste II”, “Im Kopf I”), the portraits from 2020 and into 2021 are increasingly in motion. Some facial features and parts dissolve using a generous palette knife and painting technique (e.g. “In the Fire”, “Harlequin”, “Portrait of an Unknown Man”), while figures are found in imaginative to nature-bound environmental contexts (e.g. “Der weisse Strand”, “Die Suche”, “Die Werkstatt”, “Nachts im Atelier”), figure and ground, content and form, movement and stillness seem to flow into one another. Heim continues this process consistently. The turning point in his oeuvre in this respect appears to be the work “Ikarus”. Just as Ikarus flew too high with the wings of Daedalus and the wax with which the feathers of the wings were attached melted due to the heat of the sun, causing Icarus to fall into the sea, Heim exposes people to a similar process of becoming and allows them to merge into light, shapes, colours, structures, emotions and formations. In other words: with “Ikarus”, Heim realises humanity's dissolving state of being, that state which, through movement, comes to disembodiment and thus into a superordinate flow, until it finally lives on as pure vibration in the whole of its surrounding world. This means that although the absence of the human being is evident in Heim's repertoire from now on, it is precisely because of this absence that the human being becomes all the more present as a guiding pictorial motif. Particularly in the works from 2022 (e.g. “Die Ankunft”, “Im Austausch”, “Der Strauß”) with precursors from 2021 (e.g. “Die Stromschnelle”, “Der Übergang”, “Der Eingriff”), we recognise the compositionally skilfully staged centre in his pictures, around which a kind of pull develops through forms, geometries, patterns and perspective, which involuntarily draws us in as viewers and locates our, in the truest sense of the word, “access to the picture” in Heim's colourful world and narrative subtlety. In this way, we become part of the narrative that unfolds in the picture and part of the relationship that Heim's pictures establish. The titles of the pictures provide important clues.
Text by: Dr. Karin Mairitsch (Curator)
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“Cantonale Berne Jura”
17 December 2022 — 22 January 2023
Group exhibition
There was a one in three chance of winning one of the sought-after exhibition spaces at the intercantonal Christmas exhibition - a ratio similar to “Rock, Paper, Scissors”. From around 470 submissions, 177 artists were selected to give an insight into their current work. Twelve art centres are now taking part in the Cantonale Berne Jura. This year's new venues are the Museum Franz Gertsch in Burgdorf and the Kunsthaus Steffisburg, which was invited as a guest last year. Around 50 works by 26 artists will be on display at the Kunstmuseum Thun.
A conscious decision was made this year not to have a unifying theme for the exhibitions. Instead, the selection focussed on whether the works and positions suited the respective building, both strategically and architecturally. In contrast to previous years, content-related tendencies were not given any weight in the selection. A deliberate decision that, after two years of pandemic and global crises, is intended as a sign of openness. Accordingly, many techniques and media are represented, with artistic creations ranging from scissors to stone to paper and beyond.
From December 2022 to January 2023, the Cantonale Berne Jura will showcase refreshing, uncompromising, magnificent, ingeniously simple and exhilaratingly complex works by artists from the cantons of Bern and Jura. The exhibitions in eleven art institutions form a powerful platform for contemporary art of supra-regional importance. The aim of the Cantonale is to present a broad spectrum of artistic positions and to strive for the best possible quality of the respective exhibitions.
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“Tobias Gutmann & Sai Bot”
29 November 2022 — 17 March 2023
Solo exhibition curated by Dr. Ismene Wyss and Gabriela Gonzalez
In the first extensive exhibition by Tobias Gutmann and Sai Bot, visitors find themselves in a space-filling installation. At the centre of the exhibition is the encounter with Sai Bot, an art-creating artificial intelligence that has emerged from Tobias Gutmann's oeuvre.
The artistic artificial intelligence Sai Bot comes from a digital world, has learnt Tobias Gutmann's drawing style and developed it further independently. The entrance hall of Mobiliar in Bern offers Sai Bot a physical living space for the duration of the exhibition. During their visit, viewers have the opportunity to experience the work of this still young artist. The walls, painted in pastel colours and dark green, symbolise the "cloud", Sai Bot's digital home, and transfer it into the here and now. In the exhibition, visitors become part of Sai's world and are invited to engage in new encounters.
Sai Bot interprets the person sitting opposite. In doing so, Sai Bot does not create a photorealistic reproduction, as might be expected, but rather abstracts the face of the person portrayed in a very unique way. This creative approach makes Sai Bot an artistic personality. Sai Bot is capable of making subjective and creative decisions that Tobias Gutmann used to make as a painter.
In the exhibition, Sai Bot's framed artworks are presented between portraits of renowned artists from the Mobiliar collection. This raises the question of what place these digitally created artworks occupy in the art-historical series of portrait painting. Can they add a new and exciting aspect to the artistic exploration of our likeness?
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“Kunst & Nachhaltigkeit”
5 November 2022 — 17 March 2023
Solo exhibition curated by Dr. Ismene Wyss and Gabriele Gonzalez
The artist's photographic works deal with the question of the light source and the object depicted. On the one hand, the close-ups of collected waste such as PET bottles convey a critical view of our consumer behaviour and our treatment of the environment. The beautiful, poetic mood of the works contrasts with the socio-critical commentary, creating a unique tension in Bürgin's works. On the other hand, the basic concept of light in photography forms a link to the current discussion about the shortage of electricity.
This special circumstance prompted the curatorial team to work with the artist to create a transspatial experience for visitors and transfer the image into the space. For the first time, Bürgin is showing works in an exhibition concept in which the colour moves out of the photograph and extends across the wall to the floor of the exhibition space. The different wall colours are linked by the continuous purple floor. The interplay of these different formal elements and the colour forms a multi-layered unity that accompanies the viewer through the exhibition. In the reception area, the floor colour extends beyond its boundaries to the wall. The link between the picture and the wall is thus emphasised once again.
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“Art Car”
18 June 2022
The Porsche Taycan GTS, characterized by clear and precise lines - the artworks of Janik Bürgin, which present selected, blurred color fields. A collaboration that at initially appears to be characterized by differences, but the two are strongly connected by a deeper theme: the environment. At first glance, the artworks by Basel-based artist Janik Bürgin are fascinating due to the contrasts and compositions of the color fields and seem to glow from within due to their intense colors. The fact that there are concrete objects behind the blurred color fields is initially unrecognizable. The technique used to create the works is photography, although the works initially look like oil paintings.
Blurring is a theme that Janik Bürgin has been exploring for several years. The motifs of the out-of-focus photography are plastic waste that the artist encounters in his everyday life. The blurring that is brought into the picture simplifies the once concrete photograph to such an extent that the final product of the artwork becomes completely abstract. The concealment of the motif is a deliberate decision to visualize the theme of the series. Bürgin reflects this embellishment up to a complete concealment of a tragic development in his works, in which he transforms the photographed waste into unrecognizable, aesthetic colour compositions.
The fact that the Porsche Taycan GTS to be designed is an innovative electric car was an important concern for Bürgin, who himself attaches great importance to sustainability. In the collaboration between Porsche and Janik Bürgin, the themes of aesthetics and environmental pollution are combined, but in a positive new way: the aesthetics of the Porsche Taycan GTS with its shape and color are considered an aesthetic symbol of ecologically sustainable mobility thanks to the new e-technology.
Click here to learn more.
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“Morphogenesis”
10 June 2022 — 30 September 2022
Biennale group exhibition
Contemporary glass artist Simon Berger speaks a singular visual language as he explores the depths of his material, glass, which he cracks and splits with a hammer. The pane of glass becomes the support for an expansion achieved by impacts that play with transparency. The closer and shorter the blows, the stronger the contrasts and nuances. In his hands, the hammer is not a tool of destruction, but rather an amplifier of effects. Berger began his artistic explorations with aerosol cans before turning to other media. Trained as a carpenter, his natural attraction to wood inspired his first urban art creations. A keen mechanic, he also spent a lot of time working on crashed vehicles. It was while thinking about what to do with a car windscreen that his art was born. "Human faces have always fascinated me," explains Simon. "On safety glass, these patterns seem to come to life and attract visitors as if by magic. It's a discovery, where abstract mist meets figurative perception.
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“Aufgewühlt”
6 May 2022 — 1 August 2023
Group show with artists with and without disabilities
The theme of the new exhibition, "Aufgewühlt" ("Stirred up"), addresses the zeitgeist of the past year. Various events have shaken up existing structures, routines, things we take for granted and even normal everyday life. In this exhibition, which will be shown in the Galerie im Kloster as well as in the Skulpturenweg, the artistic positions on display address the theme in different ways, through the design, the colours used, the content or through references to their material nature. While viewing the exhibition, take a look back at the past year and ask yourself how it has shaken you up, both positively and negatively.
Text by: Vivienne Heinzelmann (curator)
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“L’espoir”
10 June — 24 June 2022
Mural
The mural “L’espoire” was Simon Berger's first permanent installation in an official building. Stretching across a glass façade, the work depicts a young boy of colour looking up at the sky with a hopeful look in his eyes. In his site-specific projects, Simon Berger aims to create works that convey a message which is integral to the place where they are located. For this piece, the artist researched about social injustice and the impact of various socio-economic factors such as class, location, and ethnicity on access to education. The mural is intended as a reminder of the power of education, demanding that its availability be guaranteed to all children, regardless of their background.
Text by: Vivienne Heinzelmann
Click here to learn more.
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“Face-o-mat & Sai Bot”
13 June — 19 June 2022
Award (Nomination), and exhibition
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“May Be Closer (I)”
16 November 2022 — 20 January 2023
Group exhibition
"Objects in a mirror may be closer than they appear" is a text found on the rear-view mirrors of cars in several countries, including the US, India, and South Korea. It asserts or rather warns that our perspectives are skewed and do not reflect reality. The artists in this two-part exhibition question how we see the world, the absurdity of the human condition, the notion of self, and its counterpart, the other.
Using colorful interplays of light and shadow, Seline Burn conjures evocative images where intimacy and radical strangeness are delicately balanced. Burn allows the viewer to immerse in distant dreams and internal processes of her inner life in a practice that she understands as an ongoing personal diary. Overshadowed by cool shades of blue, The Secret Garden depicts two women lingering in undisturbed togetherness. The women represent the same person, where the figure of the present embraces her past self as a moment of consoling oneself and alleviating past trauma.
In Hell or High Water, a female figure rests on boundless water, representing a woman that must navigate her position within the stream of the present society. Freedom Land brings an irregular transition from the king blue sky to the opposing water element through the buttermilk shades of a dune's horizon. The woman stepping out of the water recalls the grace and freedom of change.
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“Le verre dans tous ses éclats”
9 April — 9 October 2022
Solo exhibition
The Bernese artist Simon Berger (*1976) has spent years optimising his artistic technique. He has always been fascinated by human faces. In 2016, while still in the experimental phase, he created his first work in glass. His art turns the perception of reality on its head and the aesthetic he has chosen gives new meaning to the term “broken window”.
Today, Simon Berger is in demand for projects all over the world. In 2021, his career took off with the portrait of US Vice President Kamala Harris, which was be exhibited on the National Mall in Washington.
For his exhibition at the Vitromusée Romont, his first institutional exhibition, Simon Berger is creating completely new works to give visitors an insight into his artistic oeuvre. The exhibition includes a video interview with the artist.
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Selected projects & exhibitions of our artists
We are convinced that artist can be happier and more successful with a smart and sustainable strategy. That is why we work very closely with our artists in Strategic Management and plan future projects and development steps together. We always focus on the long-term success of artist . Depending on the project and exhibition, we support our artists strategically and operationally.
Artist
Simon Berger
Museum
Museo del Vetro - Murano, Italy
Title
Shattering Beauty
Year
2022 - 23
Solo exhibition curated by Sandrine Welte and Chiara Squarcina.
In collaboration with Adriano Berengo, Berengo Studio, Murano
Photocredit: Jörg Häfeli
The exhibition Simon Berger: Shattering Beauty, organised in collaboration with Berengo Studio at the Museo del Vetro, contains a series of new portraits by the artist in glass, presenting his pioneering technique to the Venetian lagoon for the very first time.
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In his hyper realistic portraits Berger recreates the lines of the human face by breaking the material. In a mesmerising process he refers to as “morphogenesis,” he re-situates the medium as an animated “canvas,” using sculptural tools such as a hammer to physically work at its surface to “etch” and “draw” haunting human faces. Reinforced safety glass, which holds at its core a crucial layer of plastic, ensures that the material, though broken, stays in place. This highly controlled sculptural technique originates from the artist’s classical training in carpentry, and is a moving example of how many artists are now translating techniques from other mediums into the world of glass.
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Berger’s unique technique of deliberate “shattering,” contradicts years of teaching, whereby broken glass has been seen as wasted or ruined. On the contrary, he instead turns the material’s so-called weakness into its most vital asset. Its ability to break becomes reframed as its ability to change, to be altered, and to be recast as something new.
To watch the artist create these works is to witness a vivid “performance,” not dissimilar to that of the glass maestros in the furnace. In a way, Berger’s craft provides an enticing extension of tradition, continuing the animated life of glass, into what had previously been viewed as its death. The exquisite shattering of Berger’s work becomes representative of how powerful revitalising and reanimating our own relationship to the material can be. Each artwork becomes a reminder of the process of breaking down barriers, a physical urge encouraging audiences to view glass – and the world within which it exists – in a different way. The trauma and pain typically associated with broken glass are inverted. The shattering of the material is not an end point for Berger: it is just the beginning.
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As Simon Berger's management team, we coordinated the collaboration between the artist, the curator, the museum, and the collaboration partners.
Artist
Jakup Ferri
Museum
Museum of Art Lucerne, Switzerland
Title
WE, WE OR ME
Year
2023
Solo exhibition curated by Eveline Sutter and Fanni Fetzer
Photocredit: NOA, Oliver Kümmerli
The pictorial world of Jakup Ferri (*1981) is colourful and full of happy creatures: humans, animals and hybrids, doing gymnastics, riding bicycles or breezing through the images on skateboards. But mainly they gather together: outside for a picnic, around a family dining table, to dance, make music or play chess in the park. As he draws, Jakup Ferri would seem to be asking himself what else a particular motif might contain. And suddenly, the buttons on a shirt become grains for birds to pick at. His works sparkle with graphic wit and speak of delightful things.
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Jakup Ferri comes from Kosovo and for a long time he mainly worked with video until, thanks to a small sketchbook, he took to drawing. And to this very day small formats are still his favourites. He usually selects an 11 x 20 cm page, rarely any larger. He draws directly with the finest ink pens, without a preliminary drawing and usually without any prior idea. Often his starting point is a face. Jakup Ferri then expands on this, depending on how that face looks at the world – sadly, cheerfully or mischievously. He is always looking for new characters; most recently robots have entered his universe. One pictorial invention seems to give rise to the next. As a result, series emerge, for example, with vehicles such as bikes, submarines, aeroplanes or helicopters.
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Jakup Ferri’s drawings also provide the basis for other works, which is why lines are to the fore encompassing the colours, both in his coloured drawings and in his paintings and textile works.
Since 2010 the artist has been having his pictorial inventions woven or embroidered. What inspired him to work with textiles were visits to markets in his hometown. In Kosovo as well as in other former Yugoslavian states, the production and processing of textiles were extremely popular. Jakup Ferri sought out craftswomen who embroidered his motifs in the traditional way.
Although the first embroidered drawing was not very precise as regards the motif, technically the result inspired him so greatly that he meantime works with numerous craftswomen in Kosovo and Albania.
Concrete experiences or images are seldom Jakup Ferri’s sources of inspiration, but rather aspects of folk art, crafts and Art brut, as well as structures like micro-organisms or pixels in computer games. The carpets, for example, are a collaboration with his son Jip, who designed the patterns for the computer game Animal Crossing, including for the characters’ caps and T-shirts.
In 2022 Jakup Ferri was responsible for the Kosovo pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Now, for the first time it is possible to get to know his works in Switzerland. For the exhibition we, we or me, the artist has installed about 130 works, including many which were only produced in recent weeks. These works – carpets, embroidery, paintings – take up not only all four walls, but also the floor, superimposed to form a dense cosmos packed with stories.
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As a member of the board of ArtClub Lucerne, Florian Paul Koenig was able to organize a guided tour and an artist talk with Jakup Ferri. Subsequently, the museum director Fanni Fetzer put us in touch with the artist, which allowed us to start a collaboration.
