The Artist as Researcher of Perception

In his art Markus Raetz playfully explores how we experience reality. His keen interest in the processes of human perception is the underlying thread of his whole oeuvre. He makes us aware of the fact that reality changes according to our viewpoint and that perception can be deceiving at times. Markus Raetz finds unlimited inspiration through his great technical scope and in the diversity of different materials he uses, leading him to continually produce new and novel works of art. 

An internationally famous contemporary artist
Markus Raetz was born in 1941 in Bern, and grew up in Büren on the Aare. From 1957 to 1961 he visited teachers’ training college in Hofwil and Bern, while also assisting the Ticino artist Peter Travaglini and executing his first own artworks. Subsequently he worked as a teacher until 1963 and then as an independent artist. In 1969 he was represented at the exhibition When Attitudes Become Form curated by Harald Szeemann at the Kunsthalle Bern. In 1968 and 1972 Raetz was invited to participate at the Documenta in Kassel. He has lived in Amsterdam (1969-1973) and in Carona (1973-1976) as well as undertaken longer trips to Italy, Spain and Morocco among other destinations. In 1977 he settled in Bern. From 1981 to 1982 he stayed in Berlin in conjunction with the “DAAD Berliner Künstlerprogramm” (Artists-in-Berlin Program). Markus Raetz is the recipient of a great many awards and is regularly represented in solo and group exhibitions. He is one of Switzerland’s most famous contemporary artists.

A thematically ordered overview of his print oeuvre
The Kunstmuseum Bern owns Markus Raetz’s entire print oeuvre and many of his sculptures. The exhibition is based on the Kunstmuseum’s extensive holdings of his work; the majority of exhibits on show are the property of the artist. The presentation offers a broad overview of the artist’s print oeuvre and takes up the thread of the 1991 exhibition Markus Raetz: The Print Oeuvre 1958-1991. Printmaking plays an important role in Markus Raetz’s work, boasting over 350 prints. In combination with a selection of sculptures the current exhibition palpably illustrates how strongly both media mutually influence one another. The works in the show have been arranged thematically, zeroing in on especially aspects like “Seeing and Perception”, “Landscape”, “Physiognomy”, “Quotes, References and Homages”, “Script / Words”, “Two and Three Dimensionality”, but also on printmaking techniques such as photogravure or copperplate engraving.

The exhibition and catalogue of the artist’s print oeuvre—now revised, updated and reissued after being long out of print—were realized in close cooperation with the artist.

Contact: Brigit Bucher, , Tel.: +41 31 328 09 21
Images: Marie Louise Suter, , Tel.: +41 31 328 09 53

Images and documentations