Not Vital Switzerland, b. 1948

Galerie von Opel is delighted to present the work of Not Vital, in collaboration with  Museum Mater (Barcelona). The exhibition will be on view in our gallery from

October  5 to November 9.

Not is a Swiss artist whose career has been defined by a nomadic spirit and an international presence since the 1970s. He has lived and worked in the United States, Niger, Italy, Brazil, China, and his native Engadin. His work reflects these global experiences, drawing inspiration from themes of housing, nature, animals, and the interplay between sculpture and architecture.

Exploring the thresholds between abstraction and figuration, Vital’s practice is marked by a profound and tactile engagement with materials such as plaster, steel, marble, ceramics, and organic matter. He frequently collaborates with master craftsmen around the world from steel forgers in Beijing and glassblowers in Murano to Tuareg silversmiths and Bhutanese papermakers. This physical and material sensibility imbues his works with both striking presence and poetic ambiguity, often destabilising in scale and form.

In 2009, Vital introduced the concept of “SCARCH” (a fusion of “sculpture” and “architecture”), describing structures created not for domestic life but for transcendental experiences such as contemplating a sunset or gazing at the night sky. These constructions, formalist yet poetic, invite new ways of looking at the world rather than offering conventional shelter.

Vital’s work has been presented in major international exhibitions, including the 49th Venice Biennale (2001) and the 17th International Architecture Biennale (2021). His solo exhibitions include Kunsthalle Bielefeld (2005), The Arts Club of Chicago (2006), UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing (2011), Museo d’arte Mendrisio, Switzerland (2014–15), Yorkshire Sculpture Park, UK (2016), Ateneum Art Museum, Helsinki (2018–19), and Museum der Moderne, Salzburg.