Swiss Institute Contemporary Art New York

Swiss Institute Contemporary Art New York
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. 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.
From 2011 to 2016, the Swiss Institute was located in a space at 18 Wooster Street. During that time, it showed its inaugural design exhibition in 2014. 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.
From 2016, the Swiss Institute staged shows at Swiss In Situ, a temporary space at 102 Franklin Street in TriBeCa.
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.
Leadership
Directors
1987–1992: Ziba Ardalan
1992–1997: Carin Kuoni
1997–2000: Annette Schindler
2000–2006: Marc-Olivier Wahler
2006–2013: Gianni Jetzer
2013–2021: Simon Castets
2022–present: Stefanie Hessler
Chairs of the Board
2002–2016: Fabienne Abrecht
2016–present: Maja Hoffmann
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
2011: Hans-Ulrich Obrist
2012: Eric Syz
2014: Ursula Hauser
2015: Dominique Lévy
2016: Eva Presenhuber
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
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
Art museums and galleries in Manhattan
Contemporary art galleries in the United States
East Village, Manhattan
1986 establishments in New York City