Institution for the promotion of printmaking in contemporary art
Mission
Edition VFO publishes prints with a focus on contemporary art since 1948 in Zurich.
As an association for original prints, Edition VFO promotes in particular traditional printing techniques and focuses above all on the innovative, playful handling of the various complex and usually costly printing processes. Artists are encouraged to take up this challenge by the association regularly offering workshops with various printing workshops. Experienced printers naturally play a central role here.
Since the association is committed to the newest and contemporary trends in addition to traditional techniques, Edition VFO also publishes photo and video works and multiple objects. An important criterion in the production of the editions is the affordability of the works.
The non-commercial price structure of the association, which is largely supported by our members, is aimed primarily at private collectors. Meanwhile, in addition to a broad public of art lovers, the promotion of contemporary art in public space has become an important concern, so that the association with its institutional collectors offers the opportunity to present print-graphic works to many people in public and private institutions.
The works of the association are represented in numerous collections and have been purchased by the following museums and institutions, among others: Getty Museum Los Angeles, Kunsthaus Zürich, Kunstmuseum Bern, Bündner Kunstmuseum Chur, Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst Zurich, Musée Jenisch Vevey, Aargauer Kunsthaus Aarau, Museum zu Allerheiligen Schaffhausen, Centre Pasquart Biel/Bienne, City of Zurich, Canton of Zurich, Collection of Prints and Drawings of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Hoffmann-LaRoche Basel, Credit Suisse Art Collection, Stiftung Kunsthaus Grenchen, Swiss National Bank, UBS Art Collection, Julius Baer Art Collection and many others.
For Edition VFO it is important to preserve the juxtaposition of works by young artists on the one hand and well-known artists on the other. Most of them have a connection to Switzerland, but the association also works regularly with international artists. In recent years, Edition VFO has worked with Sylvie Fleury, Olivier Mosset, Valérie Favre, Julian Charrière, Roman Signer, Pipilotti Rist, Not Vital, Shirana Shahbazi, Beni Bischof, Zilla Leutenegger and Albrecht Schnider, among others. In addition, international artists such as Tony Cragg, Leiko Ikemura, Richard Deacon, Elodie Pong, Stephan Balkenhol, Keren Cytter and Richard Long have also produced works for the association.
Edition VFO is a non-profit organization, with a board of directors and a jury as a selection committee, which selects about 40 works per year from more than a hundred submissions. These works are published by Edition VFO. In the production and mediation of the selected works, Edition VFO sees itself as a publisher of contemporary art that sets high standards of creativity, craftsmanship and materiality of the produced works. With the help of the artists, printers and members, the association tries in this sense to convey and cultivate printmaking as an essential and attractive concept within contemporary art in Switzerland and beyond.
Membership
- 25% discount on the list prices
- A bonus of CHF 180 will be credited to your first purchase per membership year (expires at the end of June of the following year), not valid for the first purchase after new membership
- Information on new editions and current exhibitions
- Invitations to vernissages, exhibitions, fairs and studio visits
Annual fee, entrance fee, entry and exit
- CHF 180 per calendar year (individual or museum)
- CHF 100.00 one-time at entrance
- Resignation possible at the end of the year with written notice
- Statutes Edition VFO, Download
Organization / Team
Voluntary board and member work (except management + part-time positions)
Board of Directors
Silvia Schmid (President), Letizia Schubiger (Vice President) Jürg Ziegler (Quaestor), Anne Langer (Actuary), Petra Eberle (Assessor), Reto Fetz (Assessor), Samuel Seemann (Assessor)
Managing Director
David Khalat
Research Associate & Administration
Valérie Hashimoto
Traineeship: Administration & Communication
Jeronim Horvat
Sales
Marianna Burkhardt, Sandra Gomez, Gabi Klett, Sylvia Morger, Markus Pappe, Veronika Pfister, Isabell Taverna
IT
Georg Eberle, Petra Eberle, Markus Pappe, Samuel Seemann
Design
Epaminondas Coutsicos
Production
About 50 editions mostly produced locally in Switzerland, in various styles by about 25 artists per year. The current offer comprises about 700 works.
Members
About 800
Publications
- David Khalat (ed.): On Photography. Imagery in Contemporary Printmaking. About Books. Zurich 2020, ISBN 978-3-906946-30-6.
- David Khalat, Bernard Vienat (eds.): La métamohpose de l'art imprimé. Verlag für Moderne Kunst. Vienna 2020, ISBN 978-3-903320-44-4.
- Hans Eggenberger, Annemarie Bucher, Hans Egli (eds.): Verein für Originalgraphik 1948-1998. Zurich 1998, ISBN 3-9521610-0-4.
- H. and H. Zschokke: Verein für Originalgraphik 1948-1982 (compilation of the catalog raisonné). Orell Füssli. Zurich 1982.
Submissions
Selection of the artists
The artists make a submission to the selection committee / jury (documentation with project sketch). If the submitted project is realised, Edition VFO takes over the entire production costs and pays the artists a fee. The Edition VFO receives the edition and the artists receive almost twenty percent of the edition as APs.
Documentation with project sketch
When entering the data, a documentation of the work to be realised is expected in PDF format (not larger than 5MB). We ask for a limitation of maximum ten pages including text and pictures.
Edition VFO publishes mainly medium and small format works in classical or contemporary printing techniques, mostly by Swiss artists. It is possible to edit single works or small series. Occasionally serial unique pieces or multiples can be produced.
Important aspects for publishing work are:
- Innovative use of the chosen technique
- Originality of the work in the conceptual, formal and technical implementation (no reproduction of already existing works in another technique)
- References to printmaking and current artistic or cultural discourses
- Financial viability
- Suitability for a circle of collectors and laymen interested in art
Selection committee
Petra Eberle, Peter Fischer, Bigna Guyer, David Khalat, Anne Muhl, Sandino Scheidegger, Una Szeemann
Please note that commission decisions are always communicated in writing with no further comments.
Mediation
In addition to openings, studio visits, and print residencies for artists, we offer a multifaceted educational program for school classes of various levels and teachers. With our well-founded expertise, we provide a low-threshold approach to the world of art that is understandable to all. At the same time, we encourage active exchange in order to facilitate a multifaceted examination of artistic content. Small print experiments, picture and exhibition interpretations or self-designed guided tours can be realized in our premises. In this setting, the connections between archives, exhibitions, galleries and artists become tangible and understandable for the participants - a first access to the professional art world!
Current offer "My little art collection"
In the educational program "My Little Art Collection", school classes and teachers can explore the popular theme of collecting art. In the process, participants put together their own first collection of prints based on various criteria. Through our introduction and guidance, no prior knowledge is required and we also clarify the central question of why printmaking is still important today. Thus, in the workshop we practice not only looking at art, but also classifying and interpreting it in different categories: What kind of printing technique was chosen, in what format and in what edition? Is there a background story to this picture and how does it fit into the artist's other work? In preparation for the workshop, the students look at their own homes to see what pictures and posters are hanging on the walls. The compiled collections are then presented to the class and also exhibited in the VFO edition as a booklet.
Cost: CHF 150 incl. ZVV. In cooperation with Schule+Kultur, Volksschulamt, Bildungsdirektion Kanton Zürich, www.schuleundkultur.zh.ch For registration, please contact Valérie Hashimoto, valerie.hashimoto@vfo.ch.
Contact
Sales and exhibitions
Edition VFO, Verein für Originalgraphik
Limmatstrasse 268
CH-8005 Zurich, Switzerland
info@edition-vfo.ch
+41 44 241 53 00
Opening Times: Thursday and Friday, 2 - 6 pm and Saturday 12 - 4 pm
How to find us
Minutes General Assembly 2022 (German)