Events

Can anyone fail to notice her? — the large Dominique who greets visitors to the Graphische Sammlung ETH Zürich with her gentle smile. The astounding portrait hanging in the corridor leading to the exhibition hall is captivating, with its inner radiance and immense sense of presence, holding the viewer suspended between fascination and bewilderment. When Franz Gertsch (b. 1930) started working on the woodcut in 1988, he was unable to decide for a long time on whether or not to use a landscape motif instead. In addition to his portraits — which in the meantime have become icons of Swiss art — the great Swiss artist is also renowned today for his enchanting landscapes. However, his early work is less familiar to the general public. This is precisely the phase of Gertsch’s extensive oeuvre on which the presentation planned in honour of his ninetieth birthday will be focusing. In parallel with the exhibition being held at the Franz Gertsch Museum in Burgdorf (“Zeitgeist Images: Franz Gertsch’s Works of the 1970s”, 21 March – 16 August 2020), the selection presented here will provide an insight into Gertsch’s early work, from a period when he was also creating romantic-seeming drawings in addition to delicate woodcuts. Individual groups of topics from his collection and from the ETH’s collection’s own holdings have been selected in collaboration with the artist. The survey will be rounded off with colour samples — affectionately termed “études (de) couleurs” by the artist — that are produced during the complex process of printing his incomparable monochrome worlds. A catalogue is planned for the exhibition. Curators: Dr. Linda Schädler and Alexandra Barcal, Graphische Sammlung ETH Zürich