«Boy in Chair»
URS FISCHER (*1973):
Urs Fischer draws on the rich potential of diverse materials and objects - from clay, steel, wax, and paint to food items and furniture, as well as art historical and media-based imagery. Through the transformation of the familiar, he creates works that are both captivating and provocative. By employing true-to-scale distortions, illusions, and juxtapositions of everyday items, his paintings, sculptures, photographs, and large-scale installations delve into themes of perception and representation, presence and absence, life and death, kitsch and consumer culture - often with a touch of irony or humor.
The sculpture Boy in Chair was created as part of Fischer’s ongoing project «YES» (since 2011, with editions in Moscow, Leeds, Hydra), where the artist invites participants to collaborate in shaping objects and sculptures from clay, becoming part of a shared creative process. A highlight of this project took place in 2012 at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA Los Angeles, where 1,500 volunteers crafted a sea of raw clay sculptures in the weeks leading up to the exhibition. Selected pieces were displayed and later cast in bronze, using a technique that preserved the clay’s texture as well as the fingerprints and impressions left by the participants.
Since November 2023, the bronze sculpture has been installed in Zellweger Park, a donation from Fischer's parents to the Walter A. Bechtler Foundation. Previously, it had been situated in the garden of the artist’s parents. In late 2023, they moved into an apartment in Zellweger Park, where they can continue to enjoy regular visits to the sculpture.