Portrait
Litar – a place for literature and its promotion. Zurich’s Galerie Litar hosts regular exhibitions and events on literary topics. We also produce publications and projects in the fields of literature, translation and the media.
Litar aims to spark ideas, discover new things and start conversations about rarely raised subjects. To do so, we work with programmes that run for several years and encompass a range of formats. We run our projects ourselves or in collaboration with other institutions.
The Litar Foundation is a non-profit organization; it does not accept funding applications.
Newsletter
Thank you for your interest in Litar. Our newsletter is published in German and informs readers about our current projects and upcoming events. It is sent out four to six times a year and can be cancelled at any time.
Programmes
Litar works on thematic projects that run over several years. Our objective is to explore literary content off the beaten track. In a fast-moving world, Litar takes the time for an in-depth examination of a subject, allowing it to develop on a regional, national and international basis and take effect far beyond the scope of the original programme.
Litafrika
The ‘litafrika’ programme explores the literatures of the African continent, in the form of exhibitions, events, publications and intercontinental cooperation: the starting point was the acquisition of the Swiss journalist and theologian Al Imfeld’s (1935-2017) collection of articles. This collection was catalogued in 2020-21 and can be consulted at Litar. This was followed by the ‘litafrika’ exhibition trilogy (2022-2024) at Museum Strauhof in Zurich. A collaboration with the Culturescapes Sahara festival is planned for 2025. In addition, Litar supports selected literature projects in sub-Saharan Africa: the Women’s Somali Poetry Competition in Jigjiga (Ethiopia) and others.
Exhibition trilogy ‘litafrika’
Strauhof Zurich, 2022-2024
The ‘litafrika’ exhibition trilogy, which was shown at Museum Strauhof in Zurich between 2022-2024, explored the literatures of the African continent from various perspectives. It was curated by the Litar Foundation and Museum Strauhof together with partners from several African countries and was funded by Pro Helvetia for its entire duration. In the spirit of a participatory process, each part took up the results of the previous exhibition and set a new focus.
The first exhibition, ‘litafrika - Poesien eines Kontinents’, put poetry centre stage: from post-colonial classics to the current slam and spoken word scene. The starting point was the monumental anthology ‘Africa in Poetry’ (Zurich 2015) by Swiss journalist and theologian Al Imfeld (1935-2017): a unique collection of poems from the entire continent in the German-speaking world. Curation: Christa Baumberger (Litar) and Rémi Jaccard (Strauhof)
The second exhibition, ‘litafrika - Artistic Encounters’, focussed on contemporary literature and constellated it with music, performance and visual art: eight novels - eight artistic encounters. Curation: Zukiswa Wanner
The third exhibition, ‘litafrika - Abidjan & Accra’, explored the literary scenes of two West African metropolises. It immersed the audience in the cities of Abidjan and Accra, presented current authors and cast a spotlight on the colonial past of two neighbouring countries that are both close and distant at the same time. Curator collective: Sylvia Arthur and Seth Avusuglo (LOATAD, Accra), Edwige-Renée Dro (1949books, Abidjan), Christa Baumberger and Nicole Schmid (Litar)
Overall management ‘litafrika’
Christa Baumberger (Litar) and Rémi Jaccard (Strauhof)
Exhibition graphics ‘litafrika’
Rahel Arnold
With many thanks to Pro Helvetia for funding from 2022-2024.
Youtube channel litafrika
Selected videos and digital formats are still available online: @litafrika
litafrika exhibitions
Erased from Swiss history: in the diary (from 1827) of Louis Wyrsch, a Swiss military commander serving in the Dutch colonial army in Borneo, the entries about his local ‘housekeeper’ Ibu Silla were excised. | Digital copy: Bernhard C. Schär, rights: Staatsarchiv Nidwalden
Stimmlos
Literature and (In-)Justice
Which voices do we hear and who is denied a voice? Litar provides a platform for writers who were heard too rarely, for a wide range of reasons. Some were institutionalized or even declared incapable of speaking for themselves. Others withdrew and eventually fell silent. What remains is written traces, stories and novels, documents of their lives and sometimes also visual works. The “Stimmlos” (“Unvoiced”) programme acts as an amplifier, following these quiet voices, providing a space for the unheard and presenting stories that have not yet been written.
An installation at Galerie Litar allows visitors to experience the theme of “Unvoiced” with all their senses. Changing exhibitions are shown in a walk-in cell. Voices sound out, combined with images, photography and film. The cell’s confining walls invite visitors to cross mental boundaries.
Current exhibition:
Arme Schweiz – Albert Minder und Lika Nüssli erzählen
Galerie Litar, 8 February to 5 April 2025
More (in German)…
Exhibitions to date:
Migration Memories
Galerie Litar, 9 March to 4 May 2024
More (in German)…
Frisch und Fein. Exil Zürich 1933
Galerie Litar, 15 April to 10 June 2023
More (in German)…
Aus der Stille ... Peter Liechti
Galerie Litar, 8 October to 3 December 2022
More (in German)…
Adelheid Duvanels Himmel
Galerie Litar, 30 October to 11 December 2021
More (in German)…
Friedrich Glausers Zelle
Galerie Litar, 28 May to 10 July 2021
More (in German)…
Damian Le Bas, Crisis Time / Refugee Could Be You Could Be Me, 2016 | Photo: Kai Dikhas, Diego Castellano Cano
Weltenweit
Yenish, Sinti and Roma Literatures
Under the title “Weltenweit” (“Worlds Wide”), Litar has focused since 2019 on Yenish, Sinti and Roma literatures and cultures. Switzerland has recognized the Yenish and Sinti as national minorities since 2016. The Roma are still fighting for official recognition in the country, however. The cultures of these minorities are rich and diverse – and yet barely known. In 2019 Litar organized the “Weltenweit” Festival at Kosmos Zurich to change that. For the first time in Switzerland, Yenish, Sinti and Roma culture formed the focus of a festival. Since then, Litar has held readings, workshops, teaching events and panels in various places in Switzerland and Austria, on our own or in cooperation with institutions such as RomArchive, Initiative Minderheiten Tirol and Radgenossenschaft.
Current Publication
Morphing the Roma Label
Roma Jam Session art Kollektiv (Mo Diener, RR Marki and Milena Petrovic)
Published by Mo Diener and RR Marki, Zurich 2022.
Texts in German, English and Romanes.
Info and order: OnCurating.org
Publication and translations into Romanes were made possible with the support of Litar.
Agenda
Unless otherwise specified, events are listed in the language or the languages in which they will be held.
Information on past events is available here.
Galerie Litar
Vernissage der nächsten Ausstellung: Freitag, 7. Februar 2025, 17–20 Uhr
Öffnungszeiten (ab 8.2.–5.4.2025)
Mi, Do, Fr 14–18 Uhr
Sa 13–16 Uhr
sowie nach Vereinbarung
Galerie Litar
Letzistrasse 23, 8006 Zürich
info@litar.ch | Tel. +41 44 291 99 00
Arme Schweiz
Lika Nüssli und Albert Minder erzählen
8. Februar bis 5. April 2025
Galerie Litar Zürich
Armut in der Schweiz: 1850 – 1950 – 2025. Die Ausstellung nähert sich dem wichtigen Thema mit den feinen Sensoren der Literatur. Im Zentrum stehen eine Graphic Novel und eine Familienchronik: packend, eindringlich und mit Humor.
Lika Nüssli (*1973) hält die Erinnerungen ihres Vaters als Verdingkind fest – und damit auch ein Stück Schweizer Geschichte. Albert Minder (1879–1965) hat als Erster in der Schweiz das Leben seiner heimatlosen Vorfahren erzählt. «Starkes Ding» und die «Korber-Chronik» behandeln so aktuelle und zeitlose Themen wie Herkunft, Familienbande, Arbeit und Armut.
Die Ausstellung präsentiert sich als begehbare Graphic Novel: mit Originalzeichnungen und raumhohen Sprechblasen, die Lika Nüssli eigens auf die Wände der Galerie Litar gemalt hat. Eine Toninstallation lässt Minders lebhafte Erzählungen erklingen, und Originaldokumente und Fotografien geben Einblick in eine wenig bekannte Schweiz. Ein Stadtrundgang durch Zürich zeigt Facetten der Armut heute.
Kuratiert von Christa Baumberger.
Die Ausstellung wird unterstützt von Stadt Zürich Kultur. Herzlichen Dank!
Veranstaltungen
Vernissage mit der Künstlerin Lika Nüssli und den Herausgeberinnen Christa Baumberger und Nina Debrunner. «45 Minuten mit…»-Gespräche mit Isabella Huser, Schriftstellerin, Julia Marti, Verlegerin Edition Moderne, und Sara Galle, Historikerin. Buchpräsentation Albert Minder mit den Herausgeberinnen und Zeitzeuge Martin Schwander, Lesekreis Graphic Novel «Starkes Ding», Stadtrundgang zu Frauenarmut mit Sandra Brühlmann sowie Carte Blanche-Finissage mit Lika Nüssli und Katja Bürgler, Musikerin. Veranstaltungen in Kooperation mit Museum Schloss Burgdorf und Verein Surprise.
Publikationen | Edition Litar
Zur Ausstellung erscheinen:
Neuedition von Albert Minder «Die Korber-Chronik. Aus dem Wanderbuch eines Heimatlosen.» Herausgegeben und mit Nachworten von Christa Baumberger und Nina Debrunner. Chronos, Zürich 2025.
«Arme Schweiz» | Edition Litar 05. Mit Zeichnungen und Zitaten, historischen Schlaglichtern und Gesprächen.
Bestellung: info@litar.ch | CHF 8.– (zzgl. Versandkosten)
In der Ausstellung erhältlich: Lika Nüssli «Starkes Ding». Edition Moderne, Zürich 2022.
Download: Flyer «Arme Schweiz – Lika Nüssli und Albert Minder erzählen»
Impressum
Leitung Litar | Kuratorin: Christa Baumberger
Künstlerische Intervention: Lika Nüssli
Stimme: Thomas Douglas
Ausstellungsgrafik: Rahel Arnold
Beratung: Nina Debrunner
Assistenz | Vermittlung: Nicole Schmid
Kommunikaton: Simone Ammann
Previous exhibitions
Contact
The Litar foundation is located at Letzistrasse 23 in Zurich-Oberstrass: in an old painter's studio, and surrounded by a cosy courtyard garden with old trees and a babbling fountain. Close to the city centre, yet quiet and idyllic, it is an ideal location for smaller scale exhibitions and events.
Galerie Litar Zurich © Studio Gataric Fotografie | Event photo: Nakarin Saisorn
Litar
Letzistrasse 23, CH-8006 Zurich
Tel. +41 44 291 99 00
info@litar.ch
www.litar.ch
How to get to Litar:
- Tram 10 from Zurich central station to Letzistrasse (10 mins)
- Tram 10 from Zurich airport to Letzistrasse (20 mins)
- Tram 9 from Bellevueplatz to Letzistrasse (10 mins)
Newsletter
Thank you for your interest in Litar. Our newsletter is published in German and informs readers about our current projects and upcoming events. It is sent out four to six times a year and can be cancelled at any time.
Team
Photos team: Ayse Yavas