Un'isola nell'aria, 1975

Urs Lüthi  

Lüthi Urs is a plastic artist and photographer born in Kriens, Switzerland in 1947. He lives in Munich and Cassel, where he has taught at the Academy of Arts since 1994. Renowned for his photographic work, he is also an active sculptor, installation creator and 80s-influence painter.

There is always a touch of humour to be found in his photographic self-portraits, which consider issues like : identity, type and the representation of the self and others. He often poses as a young androgynous man, playing off the ambiguity and bluriness of sexual identity in cross-dressing. Unlike Narcissus, he uses his image to encourage others to recognise a variety of identities within themselves. He deals with the crazy worlds of our time, from esoteric groups to fitness clubs, in a melancholic tone and a touch of irony.


In 1969, he gained fame from an exhibition at Kunstmuseum Luzern (Visualisierte Denkprozesse), where he later showed his work in 1974 with “Transformer - Aspekte der Traverstie”. In 2001, he represented Switzerland at the Venice Biennale. Since then, his work has been shown in a range of solo and group exhibitions in France and abroad.