For institutions such as Art Basel (with Art Basel Miami Beach) or the Swiss Institute (with showrooms in both New York City and Paris), contemporary Swiss art is certainly not confined to national boundaries. Yet, Swiss galleries and museums very much give respect to their own artists, both with more established names and a new wave of young guns.

In Zurich, Galerie Eva Presenhuber represents local duo Peter Fischli and David Weiss, heavy hitters with a fantastic sense of humor that plays on the banality of objects taken out of context. Another big name in the Presenhuber stable is Ugo Rondinone, whose rainbow Hell, Yes! graces the New York’s New Museum, but is also known for bringing traces of melancholy to his work. Sylvie Fleury, with her chrome-plated Gucci shoes on display in the gallerist’s loft residence, also shines in this constellation; her works place women in positions of authority, drawing from the worlds of fashion, car racing, and even space travel. Bringing up the rear, young artist Valentin Carron is currently showing replicas of bas-relief sculptures representing traditional work activities — not without a touch of irony — at New York’s 303 Gallery. … Read More