Collection: RUTH-MARIA OBRIST
Ruth Maria Obrist (b. 9 May 1955, Laufenburg, Switzerland) grew up in Turgi and Untersiggenthal and has lived and worked in Baden since 1993. Her practice is rooted in Minimal Art and the traditions of constructive and concrete art. Rather than relying on individual gesture, she works with a conceptual vocabulary built on strict, logical derivation.
Geometry is her guiding thread. She explores the optical tension between arithmetically identical surfaces, shifts between positive and negative forms, and contrasts geometric physicality with two-dimensional drawing. Her work follows fixed rules. As she has noted, mathematical structures offer stability in an increasingly confusing world. That clarity of thought shapes everything she makes.
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Her most recent monograph, The Poetry of Logic (Kerber Verlag, 2022), captures the core of her philosophy: precision as poetry, logic as a path to aesthetic clarity. Her Haus in dem ich wohnte series, available as limited edition prints, exemplifies this approach.
Solo Exhibitions
2025 — MERKER-Areal, Baden, Switzerland (upcoming)
2022 — foryouandyourcustomers, Zürich, Switzerland
2021 — Kunstraum Baden, Switzerland
2018 — Galerie 94, Baden, Switzerland
2015 — Museum Spörri, Wettingen, Switzerland
2005 — IG Halle, Rapperswil, Switzerland
2004 — Swiss Embassy, Paris, France
Selected Group Exhibitions
2025 — Galerie 94, Baden, 10-year anniversary exhibition
Museum Rehmann, Laufenburg, Switzerland
Galerie Rosenberg, Zürich
Galerie La Ferronnerie, Paris
Kunsthaus, Zofingen
Public Commissions
Since 2000, Obrist has realised wall reliefs, architectural interventions, mosaics, church and clinic installations, facade designs, and public sculptures across Switzerland. Notable commissions include works for Klinik Hirslanden Zürich, Klosterkirche Windisch, and the Badenfahrt festival (2023).
Awards and Residencies
1985 — Swiss Federal Grant for Applied Arts
1983 — Swiss Federal Grant for Applied Arts
Residency fellowships in Prague, Paris, and Genoa
