an Introduction to Swiss Photobooks from 1927 to the Present Photography

Swiss Photobooks from 1927 to the Present

The Swiss Foun­da­ti­on for Pho­to­gra­phy (Fo­to­stif­tung Schweiz) is mar­king its forti­eth an­ni­vers­a­ry by pre­sen­ting a fresh view of Swiss pho­to­gra­phy – a tour d’ho­ri­zon co­ver­ing a range of il­lu­mi­na­ting pho­to­books in which not only the great the­mes of pho­to­gra­phy are re­flec­ted but also the de­ve­lop­ment of pho­to­gra­phic sty­les and modes of ex­pres­si­on.

Swiss Photobooks from the 20th century

Since the late 1920s – when it be­ca­me pos­si­ble to print pho­to­graphs in high qua­li­ty – the book has re­pea­ted­ly pro­ved its­elf to be an ideal plat­form for the pre­sen­ta­ti­on of pho­to­gra­phic works. Books have not only cont­ri­bu­ted to the dis­se­mi­na­ti­on and trans­mis­si­on of pho­to­gra­phy but also fa­ci­li­ta­ted the in­te­gra­ti­on of the in­di­vi­du­al image into a mea­ningful con­text or se­quence.

Eduard Spelterini, Über den Wolken, Brunner & Co. A.G., Zurich 1928

Barbara Davatz, As Time Goes By, Edition Patrick Frey, Zurich 1999

Andri Pol, Grüezi, Kontrast Verlag, Zurich 2006

The ex­hi­bi­ti­on by the Swiss Foun­da­ti­on for Pho­to­gra­phy is based on an ex­ten­si­ve re­se­arch pro­ject in which hund­reds, in part long-for­got­ten pho­to­books were brought to­ge­ther and cri­ti­cal­ly ex­ami­ned. The selec­tion of works re­sul­ting from this pro­cess forms the back­bone of this new his­to­ry of Swiss pho­to­gra­phy, which is also being pu­blis­hed as a book. The pu­bli­ca­ti­on pres­ents the in­di­vi­du­al works with ex­ten­si­ve pic­tu­re spreads and texts by 23 aut­hors – a chro­no­lo­gi­cal re­fe­rence work that also tra­ces the pro­cess that has seen the pho­to­graph chan­ge from a do­cu­ment into a means of sub­jec­tive and ar­tis­tic ex­pres­si­on.

Jakob Tuggener, Fabrik, Rotapfel Verlag, Erlenbach-Zurich 1943

Giorgio von Arb, Leute am Grabserberg, Buchs Druck, Buchs 1988

Andreas Seibert, From Somewhere to Nowhere, Lars Müller Publishers, Baden 2008

With the help of seven the­ma­tic areas – home­land, por­trai­tu­re, moun­tain pho­to­gra­phy, the world of work, ae­ri­al pho­to­gra­phy, con­tem­pora­ry his­to­ry, tra­vel – this ex­hi­bi­ti­on aims at a kind of ty­po­lo­gy of the Swiss pho­to­book which draws at­ten­ti­on to the po­ten­ti­al in­ter­play bet­ween book and pho­to­graph, while also re­vea­ling the extent to which modes of ex­pres­si­on have al­te­red over the cour­se of time. Con­cise ex­cer­pts from these books ex­hi­bi­ted on the walls high­light the basic prin­ciple of each pho­to­book – a pho­to­graph po­si­tio­ned on a dou­ble page still re­mains an in­te­gral part of a lar­ger se­quence. The con­cept, de­sign and re­cep­ti­on of pho­to­books are ex­ami­ned more clo­se­ly in dis­play cases. A large wall in­stal­la­ti­on is de­vo­ted to pho­to­book co­vers. The pho­to­book is also pre­sen­ted as an ob­ject in film form: “rea­ding” il­lus­tra­ted pho­to­gra­phy books is not just an in­tel­lec­tu­al but also a sen­su­al act.

Andreas Seibert, From Somewhere to Nowhere, Lars Müller Publishers, Baden 2008

There are ano­ther 20,000 pu­bli­ca­ti­ons in the li­bra­ry of the Zen­trum für Fo­to­gra­fie. This only spe­cial pu­blic li­bra­ry in Swit­z­er­land de­di­ca­ted to pho­to­gra­phy stocks both nu­merous works by pho­to­graph­ers and ex­ten­si­ve li­te­ra­tu­re on the his­to­ry and theo­ry of pho­to­gra­phy. On­line ca­ta­lo­gue: www.​fotobibliothek.​ch

Jakob Tuggener, Fabrik, Rotapfel Verlag, Erlenbach-Zurich 1943

1941: Bestseller von Gotthard Schuh

Inseln der Götter. Java, Sumatra, Bali. / Gotthard SCHUH. – Zürich: Morgarten-Verlag 1941. – 4°. 215 S. mit Tdr.-Abb. Ln. SU.

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Weitere Ausgaben

Eilanden der Goden. Java, Sumatra, Bali. / Gotthard SCHUH. Nederlandsche bewerking van Fred Rombach. – Amsterdam: Elsevier 1943. – 4°. 215 S. mit Tdr.-Abb. Pbd. SU.

Holländische Erstausgabe aus dem Jahre 1943.

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Inseln der Götter. Java, Sumatra, Bali. / Gotthard SCHUH. – Zürich: Büchergilde Gutenberg 1954. – 4°. 153 S. mit Tdr.-Abb. Krt. SU mit Pergamin.. – (Büchergilde Gutenberg Zürich ; 1954)

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Iles des dieux. Java, Sumatra, Bali. / Gotthard SCHUH. – No. 3898/10300. – Lausanne: La Guilde du Livre 1954. – 4°. 153, [1] S. mit Tdr.-Abb. Krt. SU mit Pergamin eingefasst. – (La Guilde du Livre ; 1954)

>>> Schweizer Photobuchreihe «La Guild du Livre»

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Gudarnas öar. Java, Sumatra, Bali. / Gotthard SCHUH. Översätting av Rada Nikolaev och Per Erik Wahlund. – [Schwedische Erstausgabe.] – Uppsala: J. A. Lindblads 1956. – 4°. 153 S. mit Tiefdruck-Abb. Unbedruckter Pappband. SU.

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Inseln der Götter. Java, Sumatra, Bali. / Gotthard SCHUH. – Zürich: Ex Libris 1960. – 4°. 151, [1] S. mit Tdr.-Abb. Ln. SU.

Das Buch kam zwischen 1941 und 1956 in 11 Auflagen heraus (siehe S. 152). Die vorliegende Ex-Libris-Ausgabe stellt also insgesamt die 12. Ausgabe dar (in HBK2 als 2. Aufl. geführt).

>>> Virtuelle Ausstellung «Büchergilde / Guild du Livre»