Ruedi Bechtler
Ruedi Bechtler (Rudolf Carl Bechtler, pseudonym ARBI, * December 15 1942 in St. Gallen) is a Swiss artist, art collector and entrepreneur.[1] His artistic practice includes drawing, conceptual art, photography, assemblage and installation art. As a collector, his interest is focused on contemporary art.[2]
Life and Work[edit]
Ruedi Bechtler grew up with his siblings Katrin and Thomas near Zurich. In 1968, he completed his training as a Mechanical Engineer at ETH Zurich, followed by an MBA at Insead in Fontainebleau (F) in 1969. From 1969 to 1972, Bechtler lived in the USA and worked as a marketing and product planner at Allis-Chalmers. When returning to Switzerland, he joined his parents’ company, Luwa AG.[3]
Both Bechtler's father Walter Bechtler and his uncle Hans Bechtler were internationally active entrepreneurs and enthusiastic art collectors. As artists often came to his parents’ house, the whole family participated in the art events and discussions.[4] Ruedi Bechtler had been active in design since his childhood. During his stay in the USA, Bechtler's interest in art intensified and he decided to pursue a career as an artist. From 1973 to 1974, he attended courses at the School for Arts and Crafts (today Zurich University of the Arts) and evening classes at the independent F+F School for Experimental Design (today F+F School for Art and Design) in Zurich.
In 1974, together with a group of like-minded people, he opened his studio and an Action Center “Spinnerei Wettingen” in the former Wettingen spinning mill.[5] The interdisciplinary group became very active and appealed to a large audience. Invited to participate by Bechtler in 1975, the artist Roman Signer carried out one of his demolitions in the river Limmat in front of the spinning mill. In the Spinnerei, Bechtler presented his first solo exhibition, followed by the Swiss artists Liliane Csuka and Beat Zoderer (1975).
At that time, Bechtler participated in exhibitions at Kunsthaus Zürich and Kunstgewerbemuseum (now Museum für Gestaltung) in Zurich, and Künstlerhaus am Karlsplatz in Vienna. In 1976, Bechtler received the Swiss Art Awards. From 1978 to 1980 Bechtler taught at the F+F School and was active on its board from 1981 to 1997.
Bechtler's artistic practice evolved after 1974 into interactively designed works, such as tasks or installations that included public participation; Neon Object (1976) included a neon tube that needed to be shattered, Looking Each Other in the Eye (1978) was presented as an interactive photo work[6] and Sensitizer II (1977) was as a questionnaire with over 300 questions that was dispersed and discussed at a party in the Spinnerei Wettingen.[7]
From 1980 onwards, Bechtler’s practice moved away from interactive, action works and towards a material-based approach. Utilizing ink drawings, he reproduced 2D shapes into large-scale plywood forms (Holzzeichen, 1985-1992) and published blindfold drawings together with jokes (Jokes, 2017).[8] He made three-dimensional paper cut-outs (Papierobjekte, 1983-1985), created overlaid images with perforated foils and photographs. Since 1990 he developed installations, in recent years also as light objects and fountains. His installations incorporate partially found materials, that are often left recognizable.[9]
Photography remains central to his work, drawing on his thematic archive of his own photographs and collected postcards.[10] In his ongoing image series, Spiegelungen (2005) and Reflections (1987), these photographs are juxtaposed and image orientations are changed.[11]
He met Regula Kunz in 1979 and has been married to her since 1984. They have three children: Tim (* 1984), Noa (* 1986), and Salome (* 1992).
Since 1980, Bechtler has been a member of the council of the Alberto Giacometti Foundation, founded in 1965 and located at Kunsthaus Zurich.[12] In 1984 Bechtler, joined the board of Walter A. Bechtler Foundation, founded in 1955, and has been its president since 1995.[13] The foundation helps to realize Public Art. From 1988 to 1997, he served as president for the group “Junge Kunst” (“Young Art”) of the association “Zürcher Kunstfreunde” (“Zurich Partners of Arts”) at Kunsthaus Zurich.[14] He also participated in the development of the collection for conceptual photography at the Zellweger Luwa in Uster.[15] In 1999, he founded the Rhaetian Academy in Zuoz, where he was president until 2001, and initiated Art Public Plaiv,[16] with works of art in public space in the Upper Engadine.[17]
Since 1983 Bechtler has participated in numerous solo exhibitions in galleries in Zurich, Bern and New York and has shown works in exhibitions in London, Munich, Lugano, Berlin, and Seoul. A retrospective of his work can be found in the publication Flip Flop (JRP Ringier, 2010).[18] A largescale overview of his work was shown in the exhibition Silber in the Kunst(Zeug) Haus, Rapperswil in 2015.
Bechtler has been the owner of the Hotel Castell in Zuoz since 1996, where he organizes contemporary art and architecture events.[19] He also commissions works: Tadashi Kawamata rebuilt the old “Felsenbad” as a Reflecting Pool (1997), Pipilotti Rist and Gabrielle Hächler realized the Red Bar (1998), James Turrell created the Skyspace Piz Uter (2005). Throughout the hotels’ hallways and guest rooms are artworks from Bechtler’s collection including works by Martin Kippenberger, Mickry Drei, Mai-Thu Perret, Roman Signer, Peter Fischli & David Weiss, Lawrence Weiner, Gerda Steiner & Jörg Lenzlinger, Simon Starling, Carsten Höller and Andrea Büttner.
Works by Ruedi Bechtler in Collections[edit]
- Banca del Gottardo, Lugano (with catalogue, 1995)
- Zellweger Luwa, Uster (with catalogue, 2011)
- Kunst(Zeug)Haus Rapperswil
- Julius Baer Group, Zürich
- Ruedi Bechtler at Schweizerische Mobiliar Insurance, Bern (with publication, 2016)
- Swiss National Bank, Zürich
- Goetz Collection, München (in collaboration with Tobias Madison, 2010)
- Nestlé, Vevey
Publications[edit]
- Ruedi Bechtler: Reflexionen 1987–1991. [eds. Ruedi Bechtler and Fritz Franz Vogel], exhibition catalogue. Raum F, Zürich 1991.
- Ruedi Bechtler: Flip Flop. (contributions by Daniel Baumann, Lionel Bovier, Das Institut: Kerstin Brätsch und Adele Röder, Philipp Kaiser, Tadashi Kawamata, Tobias Madison, Heike Munder, Pipilotti Rist, Steiner-Lietha). JRP Ringier, Zürich 2010, ISBN 978-3-03764-179-8 Search this book on
.. - Ruedi Bechtler: Jokes & more. Edizioni Periferia, Luzern/Poschiavo 2017, ISBN 978-3-906016-82-5 Search this book on ..
Exhibitions[edit]
Select Solo Exhibitions[edit]
- Spinnerei Wettingen, 1975 (as ARBI)
- Ruedi Bechtler, Schnitte – aus der Fläche in den Raum, Gimpel-Hanover + André Emmerich Galerien, Zurich 1983
- Ruedi Bechtler, Papierobjekte, Galerie Michèle Zeller, Bern 1984
- E' Galerie, Zurich 1989
- Bildgebende Fotografie, Raum f, Forum für Fotografie, Zurich 1991/1992, as part of Kunstszene 1991 (with catalogue)
- Ruedi Bechtler, Labor zu Ordnungen, Serge Ziegler Galerie, Zurich, 1998
- Ruedi Bechtler, Larry Deyab, Serge Ziegler Galerie at Brooke Alexander, New York, 2006
- Ruedi Bechtler, Balance, Galerie Ziegler, Zurich, 2015
Select Group Exhibitions[edit]
- Galerie Amstutz, Zurich 1975 (as ARBI)
- Kunstszene Zürich 1975, Kunsthaus Zurich 1975/1976 (as ARBI)
- Kunstschule F+F, Kunsthaus Zurich, 1976 (as ARBI)
- Künstlerhaus am Karlsplatz, Wien 1978 (as ARBI)
- Spinnerei Wettingen, Kunsthaus Zurich, 1979 (as ARBI)
- Kunst auf dem Wasser, Kunsthaus Zug, 1979 (as ARBI, with Regula Kunz)
- 7. Schweizerische Plastikausstellung, Biel 1980 (as ARBI, with Regula Kunz)
- Twelve Swiss Artists, Galerie Gimpel & Hanover / Gimpel Fils, London 1983 (with catalogue)
- Ruedi Bechtler, Ellen Classen, Geneviève Duley-Wohnlich, Marc Egger, Kunsthaus Oerlikon, Tramdepot Tiefenbrunnen, Zurich 1989
- Helvetia (condensed), Fotokunst aus der Schweiz, Künstlerwerkstatt Lothringerstrasse 13, München 1992 (with catalogue)
- la collezione di fotografia svizzera della Banca del Gottardo, Galleria Gottardo, Lugano, 1995 (with catalogue)
- 3rd Photo Festival, Seoul 2003 (with catalogue)
- Carlos Amorales, Ruedi Bechtler, Larry Deyab u. a., griedervonputtkamer galerie, Berlin, 2003
- Ruedi Bechtler and friends. Tobias Madison, Martin Senn, Gerda Steiner & Jörg Lenzlinger. Galerie Tuchamid, Klosters, 2012
- serge stauffer – kunst als forschung, Helmhaus Zürich, 2013 (with catalogue)
- Das Dreieck der Liebe – Körperlichkeit und Abstraktion in der Zürcher Kunst, Helmhaus Zurich, 2015 (with catalogue)
- Silber. Teres Wydler. Ruedi Bechtler. Alex Sadkowsky, Kunst(Zeug)Haus Rapperswil-Jona, 2015–2016
References[edit]
- ↑ Cf. Ruedi Bechtler at Swiss Foundation for Photography; Ruedi Bechtler: Flip Flop. JRP Ringier, Zürich 2010, p. 152
- ↑ Cf. Hotel Castell, Art at the Castell
- ↑ Regarding Luwa AG cf. Luwa Air Engineering AG, regarding the history of Luwa AG cf. Luwa at Historical Dictionary of Switzerland
- ↑ Cf. Bice Curiger (ed.): Before the Sun Rises. Walter A. Bechtler Stiftung. JRP Ringier, Zurich 2005, pp. 130-135
- ↑ Cf. Silvia Dörnenburg u. a. (eds.): Zurzeit. 15 Jahre Ateliergemeinschaft Spinnerei Wettingen. Self-published, Wettingen 1989.
- ↑ Cf. Hansjörg Mattmüller, Gerhard J. Lischka (eds.): Genie gibt’s. Die siebziger Jahre an der F&F Schule für experimentelle Gestaltung. Betzel, Frankfurt am Main 1981, pp. 97–99.
- ↑ Cf. Michael Hiltbrunner: Fragen, Methoden, Prozesse, Archive. Forschende Kunst bei Serge Stauffer und an der frühen F+F Schule. In: Ute Holfelder a.o. (ed.): Kunst und Ethnografie – zwischen Kooperation und Ko-Produktion? (Kulturwiss. Technikforschung; 7). Chronos, Zurich 2018, pp. 113–126.
- ↑ Cf. Ruedi Bechtler: Jokes & more. Edizioni Periferia, Luzern/Poschiavo 2017. (English edition)
- ↑ Cf. on Ruedi Bechtler at Mobiliar Art Collection
- ↑ Cf. Hilar Stadler: Und immer wieder eine Ordnung in Unordnung fügen. Acht Versuche über die Arbeit von Ruedi Bechtler. In: Kunstbulletin, no. 5, Mai 1998, pp. 26–31.
- ↑ Cf. Ruedi Bechtler: Reflexionen 1987–1991. [eds. Ruedi Bechtler and Fritz Franz Vogel]. Exhibition catalogue. Raum F, Zürich 1991.
- ↑ Cf. Ruedi Bechtler: Rede zum Gedenkanlass, 50 Jahre Giacometti-Stiftung, 2016
- ↑ Cf. Bice Curiger (ed.): Before the Sun Rises. Walter A. Bechtler Stiftung. JRP Ringier, Zürich 2005; Website Walter A. Bechtler Foundation
- ↑ Kunstfreunde Zürich
- ↑ Cf. Kunstmuseum Bonn and Kunstmuseum St. Gallen (eds.): Through the Looking Brain. Eine Schweizer Sammlung konzeptueller Fotografie. Exhibition catalogue. Hatje Cantz, Ostfildern 2011.
- ↑ Cf. Art Public Plaiv
- ↑ Cf. Christoph Schenker (ed.): Public Plaiv, art contemporauna illa Plaiv. Gegenwartskunst im Landschafts- und Siedlungsraum La Plaiv, Oberengadin. HGKZ Hochschule für Gestaltung und Kunst, Zürich 2002.
- ↑ Cf. Ruedi Bechtler: Flip Flop. JRP Ringier, Zurich 2010.
- ↑ Cf. Hotel Castell, Art at the Castell
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