Swiss Institute / Contemporary Art New York (SI) is an independent non-profit contemporary art organization founded in 1986. SI is located at 38 St. Marks Place, at the corner of Second Avenue, in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City.
History The Swiss Institute was founded in 1986 by a group of Swiss expats looking to highlight their country’s artists and culture.Thomas Gebremedhin (May 29, 2018), A New Art Space in New York City’s East Village Wall Street Journal. It originally had headquarters at the Swiss Townhouse at 35 West 67th Street. It moved to the third floor of the New Era Building at 495 Broadway in Soho in 1994.Swiss Institute Moves to Wooster Street Artforum, September 6, 2011.
From 2011 to 2016, the Swiss Institute was located in a space at 18 Wooster Street.Karen Rosenberg (October 13, 2011), Pamela Rosenkranz and Nikolas Gambaroff: ‘This Is Not My Color/The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’ New York Times.Martha Schwendener (April 21, 2016), SoHo and TriBeCa, a Cradle of Contemporary Art New York Times. During that time, it showed its inaugural design exhibition in 2014.Su Wu (September 16, 2014), At the Swiss Institute, a Survey of Eccentric Chair Designs T: The New York Times Style Magazine. In addition to hosting art exhibitions, the space became the venue for the fall/winter 2016 presentation of New York City-based accessories brand Mansur Gavriel, which enlisted a handful of collaborators to turn the space into a domestic scene.Hilary Moss (February 16, 2016), How Mansur Gavriel Turned a White Box Into a Cozy Home T: The New York Times Style Magazine.
From 2016, the Swiss Institute staged shows at Swiss In Situ, a temporary space at 102 Franklin Street in TriBeCa.Andrew Russeth (July 26, 2016), Mobile for the Moment, Swiss Institute Will Stage Shows at Temporary Space in TriBeCa ARTnews.
Since 2018, the Swiss Institute has been located in a space at 38 St. Marks Place and Second Avenue. Formerly a bank, the four-story building was re-designed by Selldorf Architects and includes exhibition space, an education and public programs floor, a library, and a usable rooftop. Exhibitions include visual and performing arts, design, and architecture, with public programs spanning a wide range of topics. SI also has weekly public programming and education classes. Admission is free.
Printed Matter, Inc. St. Mark’s bookstore is located on the ground floor.Andrew Russeth (May 7, 2018), Printed Matter Plans East Village Location in Swiss Institute’s New Home ARTnews.
Leadership Directors 1987–1992: Ziba Ardalan de Weck 1992–1997: Carin KuoniRita Emch (January 8, 2007), Swiss Institute: Ein "Juwel" in einer Stadt der Museen Swissinfo. 1997–2000: Annette Schindler 2000–2006: Marc-Olivier Wahler 2006–2013: Gianni Jetzer 2013–2021: Simon Castets 2022–present: Stefanie HesslerSalomé Gómez-Upegui (December 15, 2022), With a New Director at the Helm, New York’s Swiss Institute Seeks to Highlight Concerns Around Climate Change ARTnews.
Chairs of the Board 2002–2016: Fabienne Abrecht 2016–present: Maja HoffmannHannah Ghorashi (June 3, 2015), Swiss Institute Elects Maja Hoffmann as New Board Chair, Effective June 2016 ARTnews.
Awards At its annual fundraiser, the Swiss Institute has recognized several individuals with the SI Award, including the following: 1996: Bob Lutz 1997: Daniel Vasella 1998: Leonard Lauder 2000: Ulrich Bremi 2001: Adolf Ogi 2003: Michael Ringier 2005: Thomas W. Bechtler 2006: Uli Sigg 2007: Iwan Wirth 2008: Maja Hoffmann 2009: Bice Curiger 2010: Sam KellerSwiss Institute in New York ehrt Sam Keller und Pipilotti Rist Swissinfo, November 13, 2010. 2011: Hans-Ulrich ObristRita Emch (November 7, 2011), New York: Swiss Institute in neuem Gewand Swissinfo. 2012: Eric Syz 2014: Ursula Hauser 2015: Dominique Lévy 2016: Eva PresenhuberNate Freeman (November 11, 2016), The Election Over, Gala Season Continues, With Swiss Institute Celebrating 30 Years ARTnews. 2017: Yves Béhar 2018: Herzog & de Meuron
Since 2003, the Swiss Institute has also been honoring artists with the SI Artist Tributes: 2003: Christian Marclay 2004: Ugo Rondinone 2005: Olaf Breuning 2006: Christoph Büchel 2007: Shirana Shahbazi 2008: Roman Signer 2009: Peter Fischli & David Weiss 2010: Pipilotti RistSwiss Institute in New York ehrt Sam Keller und Pipilotti Rist Swissinfo, November 13, 2010. 2011: John Armleder 2012: Thomas Hirschhorn 2013: Sylvie Fleury 2014: Valentin Carron 2015: Pamela Rosenkranz 2016: Olivier Mosset, Jordan Wolfson 2017: Mai-Thu Perret, Niele Toroni 2018: Latifa Echakhch, Walter Pfeiffer 2019: Christina Forrer, Rudolf Stingel 2021: Jill Mulleady, Nicolas Party
References
External links
Swiss Institute / Contemporary Art New York at Google Cultural Institute