Swiss Institute / Contemporary Art New York (SI) is an independent non-profit contemporary art organization founded in 1986.[1] 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.
 | |
| Established | 1986 |
|---|---|
| Location | 38 St. Marks Place, New York City |
| Type | Contemporary art |
| Director | Stefanie Hessler |
| Website | https://www.swissinstitute.net/ |
History
The Swiss Institute was founded in 1986 by a group of Swiss expats looking to highlight their country’s artists and culture.[2] 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.[3]
From 2011 to 2016, the Swiss Institute was located in a 460 m2 (5,000 sq ft) space at 18 Wooster Street.[4][5] During that time, it showed its inaugural design exhibition in 2014.[6] 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.[7]
From 2016, the Swiss Institute staged shows at Swiss In Situ, a temporary 460 m2 (5,000 sq ft) space at 102 Franklin Street in TriBeCa.[8]
Since 2018, the Swiss Institute has been located in a 700 m2 (7,500 sq ft) 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.[9]
Leadership
Directors
- 1987–1992: Ziba Ardalan
- 1992–1997: Carin Kuoni[10]
- 1997–2000: Annette Schindler[11]
- 2000–2006: Marc-Olivier Wahler[12]
- 2006–2013: Gianni Jetzer[13]
- 2013–2021: Simon Castets
- 2022–present: Stefanie Hessler[14]
Chairs of the Board
- 2002–2016: Fabienne Abrecht
- 2016–present: Maja Hoffmann[15]
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 Keller[16]
- 2011: Hans-Ulrich Obrist[17]
- 2012: Eric Syz
- 2014: Ursula Hauser
- 2015: Dominique Lévy
- 2016: Eva Presenhuber[18]
- 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 Rist[19]
- 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